Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2008

The United States should join Europe in increasing support for independent humanitarian work in military-ruled Myanmar while maintaining targeted sanctions, Refugees International said Thursday.

The US-based humanitarian advocacy group said in a report after a dispatching a mission into Myanmar that while the military junta had "shown indifference" to the West, sanctions were "hurting" the masses.

Quoting OECD figures, it said that Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, received less overseas development assistance -- a mere 2.88 dollars per person -- than any of the poorest 50 countries.

The average assistance in this tier of countries is more than 58 dollars per person.

Other strong armed countries routinely receive much larger aid packages, Refugees International said, citing Sudan's 55 dollars per person, Zimbabwe (21 dollars) and Laos (63 dollars).

Economic difficulties fueled the dramatic September 2007 protests led by Buddhist monks in Myanmar that resulted in a bloody crackdown by the military junta, which the United Nations says left 31 dead.

"Greater international commitment, including US funding, will be needed to adequately address the basic needs of the Burmese people," said Refugees International Vice-President Joel Charny, who assessed the humanitarian situation inside Myanmar in February.

He said Washington should "re-evaluate its policies for Myanmar, and join the UK and Europe in increasing support for independent humanitarian work inside the country with targeted sanctions" on the military junta.

Increased European humanitarian aid has been matched by a tightening of sanctions targeted specifically at the economic activities of officials and friends of the military junta reluctant to impose democratic reforms.

"A lack of political progress cannot justify the prolonged suffering of ordinary Burmese, who are in large part innocent victims of the prolonged political stalemate," Charny said.

US policy makers in Washington maintain restrictions on humanitarian assistance to Burma, with minor exceptions for HIV/AIDS and avian flu programs, in the belief that any aid provided to Myanmar-based agencies will inevitably prop up the military regime, he said.

US officials in Myanmar's biggest city of Yangon and those in regional offices in neighboring Thailand who are most familiar with the military-ruled country however support greater humanitarian assistance inside Myanmar, Charny said.

Despite this view, the Bush administration and Congressional staff who drive the US sanctions policy on Myanmar "have been reluctant to visit Burma, making it difficult for legitimate humanitarian actors to demonstrate the effectiveness of their work."

US Congressional staff and administration officials were urged to travel to Myanmar to directly assess the situation, including the ability of the UN and NGOs to provide humanitarian assistance inside the country.

The US State Department reserved comment until it had studied the Refugees International report.

"We have not seen the report. We look forward to having an opportunity to study it," a department official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said.