Burmese monks against a military junta...
Hi Guys,
You may have seen on the news over the last week or so, the amazing rallys of protest that are occurring all over Burma, lead initially by the countrys monks. A military junta has ruled over Burma for the past 4 decades, notoriously and quite publically abusing the human rights of it’s own people. Most notably in the house-arrest of Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi, who won a democratically formed election in 1990, but was refused ruling power by the junta.
This weighs heavily on me from a personal level. Having been to the country, spoken to it’s people and seen tears well up as they spoke of their dreams to have ‘the lady’ released from arrest and parade her people.
People speak politics in hushed voices. Tourism is only a very recent thing to the Burmese but we found they would carefully use every opportunity to let us know what was going on.
Unfortunetly our media plays more importance on such issues as Brownlow medals so this will rarely make headline news. All I ask is that you spend a little bit of time, to understand what is happening in this country. The Burmese are a dignified people with traditional cultural values but they are at the whim of a superstitious and violent junta.
Please just spend some time to try and understand what is happening in this country, if you don’t already know.
There’s been some wonderful photography of Burma on this very site.
Jessica Tremp
good on you for sharing mren…they are certainly beautiful people
Murray Newham
thanks jess, its frustrating to me that this country is completely ignored when theres probably more justifiable means of intervention than there was for Iraq..
kathleen
thanks for bringing this out to air mren… I think RedBubble could benefit plenty from some of the more journalistic creative travelling types… brings a certain intellectualism to the fore and I believe in using whatever influence one can get to promote socially important and responsible issues… thanks for the lesson too!
longroad
yr a bloody legend man, keep up the passionate work aye
i think i understand a little about what yr sayin, we have average joe citizen worry bout his new v8 ute n big screen telly when people living in burma are willing to die for what they believe in
dont know if that makes sense but i get frustrated with this sort of stuff too
peace out pj
liqwidrok
Hi N, I’ve had some small experience of S.E. Asia and I’ve come to realise that battles fought here for human rights long ago are being experienced present day in these ‘3rd world’ countries. the injustices of the ruling powers leading to corruption and greed that creates the incredible gap between the living conditions of the people. Is there so little wealth that only a small minority enjoy it? has this to varying degrees always been the way? Probably. The labourers and artisans who created the Angkor marvels may agree and at the same time say they were happy doing so. People cope with their simple life and make the best of it everywhere. the opportunities to improve their lot are not what they could be in these places when you compare them to ours. Heroines like Aung san will faster track these good changes to life in these countries. If she was catholic you would petition the pope to give her a sainthood! seriously again, awareness to others of her effort by, for example, your writing brings a better life a step closer to these beautiful peoples.. well done! ...This is my ‘Internationalist’ way of thinking ok.. Ciao4now!