12. Cheroot

I’m reading an article about the tobacco industry in Myanmar, and I learn that British American Tobacco, one of the world’s largest cigarette manufacturers, has finalized a $50 million investment over five years to produce, market and sell its brands in Myanmar.  It doesn’t surprise me because the country is opening its doors to the Western world.  It’s rich in cheap labor and high in tobacco addiction — almost 50 percent of the men smoke or chew tobacco.  Myanmar seems like a perfect place for big business to step in and capitalize on that addiction.  I can’t help but wonder what it’s going to do to the country.  Earlier today, I visited a workshop and watched a group of young women diligently making cigars “old-school” style.  They sit on the floor and roll cigars all day long, making between 500 and 1,000 cigars a day.  The process is tedious, though quite simple.  A mixture of chopped tobacco leaves, herbs, honey, rice whiskey, tamarind juice and molasses is combined and roasted.  After it cools, it is rolled in a cheroot leaf and adhered with glue made from rice.  A cornhusk filter is placed on one end, followed by a cigar band. The ends are clipped off before the cigars are bundled and packaged for sale.  The women make cigars in various sizes and flavors, depending on what ingredients are added to the tobacco mixture.  I’m told that a bundle of ten small cheroots is only $1.20 USD.  I also heard that the young women earn about $4 USD a day, which equates to $0.50 per hour.  After seeing the women today and reading this article, I wonder whether big business will eventually drive out the traditional cigar making in northern Myanmar.  I also wonder whether it will provide more job opportunities and higher wages.  I don’t know…  What I do know is that half a century of isolation and military rule have left this country uneducated on the harmful effects of tobacco.  It has also left this country ripe for corporations to move in and make their stake in a nation that hasn’t yet felt the impact of Westernization.  It’s my hope that as the Western world moves in, opportunity for health education comes with it.  Now, it’s the people who bear a heavy price for the industry and pleasure of cheroot.