Standing up for Burma
On Thursday, October 4th, we’ll be shutting down our website and directing everyone to the Free Burma page. If you are not familiar with this conflict, the Burma Freedom campaign and the US campaign for Burma have a lot of information as well as ways in which you can help.
The people of the Southeast Asian country of Burma are locked in one of the world’s great freedom struggles. The country’s military rulers, the State Peace and Development Council, have run the country with an iron fist for the past 15 years, after they assumed power from a 26-year socialist dictatorship. In 1988, students, professionals, and others launched a nationwide uprising aimed at bringing an end to authoritarian rule during which millions of people courageously marched on the streets, calling for freedom and democracy.
The military responded by gunning down thousands of demonstrators and imprisoning thousands more in one of Southeast Asia’s most bloody episodes in recent history.
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Great idea Esra’a. Avaaz also has a petition for this here:
http://www.avaaz.org/en/stand_with_burma/
Though he’s great, it’s not Esra’as idea
Come join our campaign!
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I’m a girl.
“it’s not Esra’as idea”
Why, did you personally force her to shut down this website?
HEY, can we focus on Burma please? This is not about whose idea it was: there’s dozens of existing campaigns for Burma right now. Pick one and fight. Thanks.
Ooops. Sorry.
Me too
I felt very ignorant hearing about this only last night. The Avaaz link is going around in many mailing lists. What an excellent tool for advocacy! Here’s also a site of importance: http://www.altsean.org
In their poll, it says 58% of the people voted that SPDC will crackdown on the protests violently. What do you guys think? What can the UN do about this?
The UN can do nothing, because China will use it’s veto to block everything, I think. Also I’m not sure whether a military invention would be a good decision – they usually cause more violence but don’t end it.
I agree with you Simon. Sending international troops there is dangerous and might destabilize the whole situation further, but we also can’t leave the peaceful demonstrators to continue getting shot at, murdered, arrested, raped, etc.
So when we call for action, who is our target? The military dictatorship in Burma will not listen to us or stop just because we said so. What can we do, other than spread awareness and declare solidarity?
I really don’t know!
In Serbia, Ukraine and Georgia the succesful revolutions of the last years were empowered by millions of Dollars from Soros’ “Open Society”. But I don’t think that could be useful in Burma: You can’t buy something there… the infrastructure is much to bad.
In Ukraine the Orange Revolution was powerful because so many activists were involved. 2/3 of them were youth. One of the main results of this revolution was free press and freedom of speech. If the thousands of protesters in Burma soon became millions, a lot can be achieved. Burma’s population is about 50 million right now… if even 30% of them get involved, that’s huge. But it takes so much courage and it’s so risky that many probably don’t want to give up their security even if it’s for the sake of their human rights.
But why were so many Activists involved in the Orange Revolution?
First, because the Ukraine is much more urbanized than Burma, and the infrastructure is better: They were able to come via acceptable streets, with buses or by train – that’s impossible in Burma.
Second, they had very could communication – that was what Soros paid for.
Third, the Ukrainians do not have to work everyday or dare – if you protest, you can’t earn money. That’s a big problem in a poor country like Burma.
So would you suggest financial aid to activists within Burma?
Better than nothing…
I just read it is feared the monks will suffer from their arresting, because they cannot beg now and do not have any income, what means they cannot buy food.
Our new site is online:
http://www.free-burma.org
have a look! (the wiki stays at http://freeburma.stots.de)
Great job, it would be great to have some for sidebars too. Maybe 200px for width.
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I will submit your wish. I agree, we should have some for the sidebars as well.
Here is an article about how Singapore supports and funds the brutal military junta in Burma. It contains an interesting piece of information about Israel’s involvement in the oppression in Burma.
http://www.theage.com.au/news/world/web-of-cash-power-and-cronies/2007/09/28/1190486569946.html?page=fullpage#contentSwap1
@ Randall:
I could give something like that for nearly every country you know… That’s why we’re doing this campaign! (Hope you’ll take part
)
Simon you should also contact Global Voices Online for some coverage.
I already sent a mail to Preetam Rai who is covering Burma, but didn’t get any message from him up to now (was yesterday evening I sent it).
If you know some of the GVO editors it would be fine if you could contact them. You can give them my email if you want, too.
Sanctions and invasions have proved ineffective as we have seen in Iraq. A third way must be found, probably one that makes the present regime irrelevant. Any ideas?
That’s a tough question Richard. My follow-up question would be what can average people do from abroad, without the involvement of their governments? Other than creating some noise, what is there left to do? Here is an e-mail I got from the guys at Avaaz.org -
World governments and banking interests should be urged to freeze all funds traceable to Burmese government players and their families. They will only understand the pressure of loss of power, influence and money.
Do you think that might put the whole economy in jeopardy and maybe force millions of people out of jobs?
Perhaps you could reason through for me how that would happen? I don’t see how cutting off the funds of the ruling class would cause this to happen.
Free Burma!
International Bloggers’ Day for Burma on the 4th of October
International bloggers are preparing an action to support the peaceful revolution in Burma. We want to set a sign for freedom and show our sympathy for these people who are fighting their cruel regime without weapons. These Bloggers are planning to refrain from posting to their blogs on October 4 and just put up one Banner then, underlined with the words „Free Burma!“.
http://www.free-burma.org
Esra,
It depends on your objective. If you’re willing to take on every single dictator, one at a time, petition after petition, with no end in sight, do what you’re already doing. If on the other hand you’re willing to attack the root cause, the fact that dictatorships like China consistently block progress, the fact that powerful democracies like the US continue to support dictators via military aid to serve commercial interests, then you need to attack the United Nations. You need to insist that only democracies (people) are represented, not dictatorships. And you need to insist that members of this new United Nations work to make dictatorship an obsolete concept and not pretend that dictators actually represent people. We need a United Nations founded on the principle of DEMOCRACY.
The leaders of Burma should have their faces on wanted posters. The free nations should broadcast wireless internet throughout the country. I’m not proposing we go to war, but rather that free nations do everything they can to bring about peaceful change. These incredibly easy actions are not too much to ask of people who believe in freedom.
gary
Esra’a,
I don’t think freezing the assets of the rulers abroad will throw the economy into a tailspin. Not every nation and bank would comply, which would force them to drain particular sources down. I also don’t think the economy of Burma is in such great shape anyway, and doubt that the expenditures of the ruling class wind up helping the general population.
This is just one external force that can be applied without direct internal intervention.
I was flabbergasted to read that the Chinese ambassador said China prefers to leave be the internal affairs of other countries. I’m sure every Tibetan was glad to hear that. You can bet that the first time the Burmese government turns off the oil and gas, China will be acting very hegemonistically. Burma is just another source of resources for the powerful nations and corporations around the world; I don’t believe that in the long run their people matter to these governments. As long as these powerful entities exist for the reasons they do, things will not change. Thus, the only way to counteract their power is to somehow make them irrelevant.
I daresay that a strong propaganda effort needs to be made toward the lower-ranking elements of the Burmese military. They need to be reminded of their origins, and why their loyalty to the people needs to be their priority.
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