Only the third white elephant, a potent symbol of power and good fortune in Burma, to be found in Burma in the past decade has been caught by government workers in the country’s western Arakan state…The country’s ruling general [Senior General Than Shwe], whose superstitious bent was a key catalyst behind the creation of Naypyidaw in 2005, has long sought a white elephant, and this discovery will likely be paraded as a sign that controversial elections this year have the backing of higher powers.

– Extracted from “Revered white elephant caught in Burma”, Democratic Voice of Burma, 29 June 2010.