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Statement on 62nd
Birthday of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi
19.06.2007
Daw Aung San Suu Kyi has remained the iconic symbol of freedom and the
struggle for independence in
Burma since she joined the pro-democracy movement in 1988. She has essentially
become the face of Burma in its struggle for freedom, democracy and human
rights. No one comes even remotely close to her in that role of leadership. In
Suu Kyi, the majority sees her as one of their own, who understands them and can
talk in the same language. They see her as the daughter of their leader. And it
is in her that the minority communities like the Karen and Shan look for
leadership, as do many other communities that form today's Burma. She is their
hope and dream. She is their leader, comrade, and sister. She is also a fellow-traveler
tasting pain and suffering in the long march to freedom, democracy and human
rights. She is their last chance to redress their grievances and elevate their
status from statelessness to statehood, denial to acceptance, non-entity to
entity, and become effective citizens in a federal system that respects and
protects their unique place in history, culture and religion.
Daw Aung San Suu Kyi’s 11 years under house arrest over the last 17 years
have clearly demonstrated the blatant attempts by the junta at silencing any
opposition to the military rule. As we all know, she is the World’s only
imprisoned Nobel Peace Prize recipient under house arrest or imprisonment.
Even though a unique appeal has made for the release of Daw Aung San Suu
Kyi by 59 former presidents and prime ministers from around the world, the UN
General Assembly, the UN Secretary General, EU, ASEAN countries, Amnesty
International, U.S. senators backed by first lady Laura Bush and the U.S. State
Department, the women of the United States Senate and the women of the United
States, and many other influential humanitarian organisations worldwide, Burma's
military leaders have extended her unlawful detention for another year.
So, we,
the National League for Democracy (Liberated Area-UK branch) urgently request
for increased international efforts for the release of our national hero Aung
San Suu Kyi and all other political prisoners in Burma.
The National
League for Democracy (Liberated Area-UK branch)
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Creating Heroes
_ by Jim Mcnalis
[Jim McNalis is the creator of the very well known
sculpture of Aung San
Suu Kyi. Jim made the sculpture with clay from Burmese soil which he
secretly packed away in his suitcase on his returns home from his occasional
trips to Burma. He presented his famous sculpture of Aung San Suu Kyi to
Burmese government in exile who later relayed it to Aung San Suu Kyi’s
family in Britain.
Jim also made a sculpture of Saw Bo Mya, the much revered leader of Karen
National Union (KNU). Lately, Jim made sculptures of the three famous
comedians in Burma, called “the Three Moustache Brothers” who bravely make
jokes on SPDC military regime.]
I have
just returned from another trip into Burma and am filled with the usual
combination of emotions: elation at the beauty of the country and the
wonderful people; sadness at the continuing injustice under which the people
are forced to live; and an anger bordering on rage at the behavior of the
regime to its people.
I, along
with the rest of the civilized world, was shocked by the re imprisonment of
Min Ko Naing and his colleagues. What the regime fails to understand
is that they have not created prisoners, they have created heroes.
Like Daw Suu Kyi, they are unable to break down their opposition. When
they temporarily release these moral warriors from their cells, they are
expecting broken, grateful kow towing silence. It is not to be.
These people have a moral superiority and a strength the generals will never
comprehend. They all possess what I referred to as a "nobility of the
human spirit" in describing my sculpture of Aung San Suu Kyi. People
with this "nobility of the human spirit" ennoble us all.
It is
time now to insure that Min Ko Naing's heroic defiance of injustice are
honored. I hope BURMA DIGEST readers can also answer the call for
reference material on Min Ko Naing.
I WILL
NEED: (Anything that can be emailed or sent to me would be
greatly appreciated.)
1.
I would like any written materials, biographies or interviews
that will let me understand his personality, intelligence, humor or other
characteristics that make him unique...all these features must be
incorporated into the sculpture.
2.
Any and all photos of Min Ko Naing. While a good
painting can be done from a good photograph, a good sculpture requires
photos of many different angles...Full Front; 3/4 views and any left or
right profile shots would be extremely useful.
So I ask
all of you to help me honor this brave man and guarantee that every minute
the generals make him spend in prison will not make him a prisoner, it will
make him a hero.
The
generals are fools. They are actually guaranteeing Min Ko Naing and
all Burmese who they imprison will be heroes and that through the example of
these courageous people the regime cannot survive.
Please
join me in this effort to resist the regime. Please join me in
honoring a hero. I thank you all in advance for whatever helps you can
provide. [If you send anything related with Min Ko Naing to
burmadigest@tayzathuria.org.uk , it'll be forwarded to Jim.]
Jim's other articles:
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Lack of Religious
Freedom in Burma
Highly
authoritarian military regimes have ruled Burma since 1962. The current
military government, the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC), has
governed without a constitution or legislature since 1988. Most adherents of
religions that registered with the authorities generally enjoyed the right
to worship as they chose; however, the Government imposed restrictions on
certain religious activities and frequently abused the right to religious
freedom.
In
November 2005, the minister of religious affairs called a meeting of leaders
of the four main religions in the country. The minister used the meeting to
denounce the 2005 State Department International Religious Freedom Report
and requested each leader write a letter stating that their religious
communities may practice their faith freely in the country, which the
ministry would display on its official website. During a discussion that
followed, the representative of the Islamic Religious Affairs Council (IRAC)
said that while there had been progress on some religious issues, there was
room for further improvement. The minister reportedly stopped further
discussion and adjourned the meeting abruptly.
Restrictions on Religious Freedom
The
Government continued to show controlling the organization and restricting
the activities and expression of the Buddhist clergy (Sangha), although some
monks have resisted such control. Based on the 1990 Sangha Organization Law,
the Government banned any organization of Buddhist monks other than the nine
state-recognized monastic orders. These nine orders submit to the authority
of the SMNC, which monks indirectly elect. Violations of this law are
punishable by immediate public defrocking, and often by criminal penalties.
Authorities defrocked and arrested a group of twenty-six monks in 2003 and
sentenced them in 2004 to jail terms of seven years (eighteen years for the
leader) for refusing to accept government donations of robes and other
items. The authorities released these monks from prison on July 6, 2005.
Monks serving sentences of life in prison reportedly included the Venerable
U Thondara of Myingyan (arrested during the 1988 anti-government
demonstrations). The exile-based Assistance Association for Political
Prisoners (AAPP) estimated that there were eighty-four monks in prison for
various charges.
Authorities refused to approve requests for gatherings to celebrate
traditional Christian and Islamic holidays and restricted the number of
Muslims that could gather in one place. For instance, after repeatedly
postponing the fiftieth anniversary celebration of the Islamic Religious
Affairs Council and its sixteenth Islam Religious Assembly in Myitkyina,
Kachin State, local authorities agreed to allow the convocation from May 30
to 31. On May 29, the authorities asked IRAC leaders to postpone the meeting
again, but later the Kachin PDC chairman agreed to allow the nearly 400
delegates who had gathered in Myitkyina after traveling from all over the
country to meet for just one and a half hours on May 31. The Muslim
delegates found this unacceptable and returned home without convening. In
April 2006, Mandalay authorities refused permission for area churches to
hold a joint Easter program. When permission was granted to hold a general
meeting, Christian leaders reported that authorities often required them to
submit details in advance of the meeting, including the name of the pianist
and what songs they would play. Islamic groups reported that authorities
authorized only remote sites for their annual Eid al-Adha sacrifices within
Rangoon. Muslims had to travel long distances to participate. Muslims also
reported that the Eid al-Adha ceremonies were restricted to three hours in
length. Some Buddhists complained that the animal sacrifices during Islamic
religious festivals offended their sensitivities. In 2004, the Government
revoked permission at the last moment for the Methodist Church of Lower
Burma to hold its one hundred twenty-fifth anniversary gala event.
In 1995,
the Government prohibited any opposition political party member from being
ordained as a monk or religious leader.
The
Government continued to discriminate against members of minority religions,
restricting their educational, proselytizing, and church-building
activities. In June 2005, authorities forced a Muslim private tutor in
Rangoon to close down his school. Although he was teaching only the public
school curriculum, authorities accused him of trying to convert children to
Islam because he was offering free courses. In June 2005, authorities in
Shwepyitha Township, Rangoon Division, arrested eight Muslims, including the
imam of the community, and charged them with holding group prayers at the
imam's house. Authorities also arrested a Muslim cleric in South
Dagon Township, Rangoon Division, for holding private Qur'an courses for
Muslim children at his house.
In October
2005, a proregime Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA) group from Kawkareik
District, Karen State, reportedly detained three members of the local IRAC,
including the chairman, and kept them in an underground cell. A senior DKBA
officer intervened and gained their release after three days. In December
2005, authorities at Three Pagoda Township in the same district reportedly
ordered Muslim leaders to stop holding prayers at the local worship hall
they had used for many years, located on land owned by the IRAC.
Government
authorities continued to prohibit Christian clergy from proselytizing in
some areas. Christian groups reported that several times during the period
covered by this report, local authorities denied applications for residency
permits of known Christian ministers attempting to move into a new township.
The groups indicated this was not a widespread practice, but depended on the
individual community and local authority. In general, the Government has not
allowed permanent foreign religious missions to operate in the country since
the mid-1960s, when it expelled nearly all foreign missionaries and
nationalized all private schools and hospitals, which were extensive and
affiliated mostly with Christian religious organizations. The Government is
not known to have paid any compensation in connection with these extensive
confiscations. Christian groups, including Catholics and Protestants, have
brought in foreign clergy and religious workers for visits as tourists, but
they have been careful to ensure that the Government did not perceive their
activities as proselytizing.
Some
Christians in Chin State claimed that authorities have not authorized the
construction of any new churches since 1997. In some parts of the state,
however, recently built churches are evident. In March 2006, Lt. Col. Hla
Maw Oo, director of the Border Trade Department, ordered Kachin Baptists to
remove a church from its current location in Mong Yu in northeastern Shan
State by April 20 to make way for an economic development zone along the
Chinese border. The official reportedly offered $7,000 (8.7 million kyats)
compensation for the church that Christian businessmen built for $12,070 (15
million kyats) in 2002. The official threatened to involve the military if
the members did not comply. This case was still pending at the end of the
reporting period. In Chin State, authorities jailed three persons for
constructing new churches. In Rangoon, Mandalay, and elsewhere, authorities
allowed construction of new community centers by various Christian groups if
the groups agreed not to hold services there or erect any Christian signs.
Local
civilian and military authorities continued to take actions against
Christian groups: arresting clergy, closing home churches, and prohibiting
religious services. During the period covered by this report, authorities in
the Rangoon area closed several house churches because they did not have
proper authorization to hold religious meetings. Other Rangoon
home churches remained operational only after paying bribes to local
officials. At the same time, the authorities made it difficult, although not
impossible, to obtain approval for the construction of "authorized"
churches. In September 2005, officials in Kyauktada
Township, Rangoon, ordered the Full Gospel Assembly church to cease its
worship services, as it was located in a residential building. The church
had been operating from that location for many years and was listed in the
1999 Rangoon Church Directory.
In early
2005, local authorities in the Chin State capital of Haka notified Baptist
leaders that they would be forced to relocate an active, historic cemetery
from church property to a remote location outside of town. Religious leaders
reported that authorities continued to forcefully relocate cemeteries in
many parts of the country. In September 2005, local authorities of Pabedan
Township, Rangoon, ordered Grace Baptist Church and Theology Seminary to
close or face confiscation of their land. The church and seminary continued
to operate throughout the period of this report. Evangelists in South Dagon
and Hlaing Thayar townships near Rangoon were accused of proselytizing and
were threatened in 2003 with arrest if they opened house churches and
kindergartens.
In
November 2005, authorities in Insein
Township, Rangoon, pressured evangelical Christians of the twenty-year-old
Phawkkan church to sign "no worship" agreements. Some signed the agreements
out of fear, but others refused. In February 2006, the authorities issued an
order banning worship at the church. In February 2006, Insein Township
authorities ordered a Chin evangelist to stop holding worship services in
his house church in Aung San ward.
In
February 2006, police at Hpa-an, Karen
State, arrested Yeh Zaw, a member of Insein
Kanphawt Evangelical Church. Yeh Zaw had earlier written a letter to the
regime leader urging him to end the persecution of his church which Rangoon
authorities closed in early 2006, banning members from worshipping there.
Police charged him with traveling without an identity card.
[These are the excerpts from Burma:
International Religious Freedom Report 2006 submitted to the United States Congress by the US Department
of State.] |
