By this time SLORC leader Saw Maung stepped down and General Than Shwe took the reins of power. Than Shwe proved to be one of the most brutal dictators the world has ever seen. He consolidated and reorganized the military, renaming it the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC). As Seekins explains: Through its control of a “state capitalist” economy, especially the sale of natural resources, such as natural gas, to neighboring countries, the SPDC and the Tatmadaw officer corps have evolved into a class that, in contrast to the pre-1988 Tatmadaw, enjoys little esteem among the general population but is more deeply entrenched in power than ever before. (Seekins, 2006, p. 46) Than Shwe deviated from the typical Burmese strategy of inward policy making and isolation from the international community. Instead, the new regime encouraged cordial relations with countries such as China, India, Bangladesh, and members of ASEAN. Than Shwe stabilized the country economically in comparison to Ne Win and Saw Maung (Seekins, 2006). It also should be noted that economic changes made in the past two decades have more immediately benefited upper ranking members of the military government rather than the Burmese people. After increased international pressure and feeling the effects of economic and military sanctions, in 2003 the SPDC announced its “Roadmap to Democracy.” This was a seven-step, systematic plan to implement what the generals termed “disciplined democracy.” This enshrined Tatmadaw privileges and control behind a veil of more internationally acceptable standards and semi-democratic change. The Roadmap proved to be an extremely slow process—some arguing that it was not truly intended to bring about actual change. Grave human rights violations continued under the SPDC and in 2007 came to the forefront of international news for the first time since the People’s Uprising of 1988. Initially owing to the SPDC’s decision to remove 16