Friday, 14 November 2008 01:00 | and posted in Features
On Tuesday in Burma 14 pro-democracy activists were jailed for 65 years each. The breathtakingly severe sentences were passed down behind closed doors, with no defence lawyers or family allowed at the trial. They will live out their remaining years in prison. On Monday a 28 year old blogger was given 20 years imprisonment.
You’d be forgiven for missing it in the news – a small piece, if any, appeared in the media. A far cry from the global coverage when the saffron robed, shaven-headed monks took to the streets last year - soon followed by the same streets running with blood when the military junta cracked down on the peaceful protests. So, while over a year has passed from those initially hopeful, then horrifying, reports has anything changed?
The militia in Burma* have been in power since 1962. They are counted among the most brutal and corrupt rulers in the world. Child labour, prostitution, torture, executions and trafficking are rife. Rape is used as a weapon of war. There are thought to be around 70,000 children conscripted into the army. 1 million people have been forced to leave their homes. The Karen tribe situated in eastern Burma have been routinely ‘cleansed’ from their homes, among other ethnic groups.
There was a brief flicker of hope in the country when in 1990 democratic elections were held. Aung San Suu Kyi, as leader of the National League for Democracy, was elected leader of Burma with a convincing 82% of the vote. However, she was never to take power. The ruling militia refused to recognise the results and consequently Aung San Suu Kyi has been under house arrest for over 13 years. She was offered the opportunity to leave in 1999 to visit her dying husband, but she knew if she left the country she would not be allowed to return. Her life’s work is to see freedom and democracy in Burma and she could not abandon her home.
Aung San Suu Kyi was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1991. President Clinton granted her America’s highest civilian honour. Edinburgh, Glasgow and Dundee have awarded her the Freedom of the City. U2 wrote ‘Walk On’ about her. There has been international outcry over both the arrest of the pro-democracy leader and against the ruling militia. Yet while everyone from Ricky Gervais to Jim Carrey line up to condemn the countries rulers nothing is changing. While the country can rely on support from nearby economies such as China and arms being supplied from China, India, North Korea and Russia they probably see little need to change. Despite near universal condemnation over the massacre of peacefully protesting students in 1988 and of the monks in 2007 the military junta have not given up an inch of their power.
Charities, such as the Burma Campaign UK, campaign both to free Aung San Suu Kyi and to force companies who invest in Burma out. They have successfully caused several large multinational companies to relocate, but many are still funding the militia by investing in the country including Hutchison Whampoa who own both 3 mobile and Superdrug. While the UK, amongst others, impose limited sanctions against Burma they don’t stop British companies empowering the corrupt leadership. Despite the EU stating that if the junta did not respond to international pressure for democracy they would increase sanctions, they have not. The UN Security Council called upon Burma to release all political prisoners yet since then there have been thousands more arrests and today around 2100 political prisoners languish in Burmese prisons, denied a fair hearing or justice of any form. Included in these are some of the monks who survived the massacre last year, the only weapon they wielded against the military might was prayer.
The UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon will visit Burma again in December. He last met with the militia following Cyclone Nargis which ripped through Burma in May of this year causing devastation to a population already on the edge of survival. The Burmese military junta initially refused to let aid through to the people, leaving US and European ships with food, water and medical supplies on the borders while hundreds of thousands of people suffered.
It remains to be seen whether Ban Ki-moon’s visit will change the political climate of Burma, whether US and European sanctions will do any good, whether the media can continue to highlight the plight of the people, whether Aung San Suu Kyi “the singing bird in the open cage” will ever “fly for freedom”.** Will we have to wait another 20 years before the people of Burma again rise up in revolution in an attempt to make their silenced voices heard to the world?
FOOTNOTES:
* Burma is situated to the south of China to the west of Thailand.
** U2 - Walk On
