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Essay Subject: A brief analysis of the protests in myanmar and their subsequent repression that looks ...... More...

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Paper Abstract: A brief analysis of the protests in myanmar and their subsequent repression that looks at the history of the military regime and the role of the monks Paper Introduction: The current crackdown on protests in Burma Myanmar has galvanizedworld opinion with vivid images of monks being arrested and beaten Thereis however nothing new about repression of dissent in Burma Thecountry has been torn by regular attacks on demonstrators for the past years When economic conditions take a downturn the ruling military juntafinds the streets filled with students-or in this case Buddhist monks asking for something better Lennon This paper will briefly examine thehistory of repression in Burma and then provide an Text of the Paper: The entire text of the paper is shown below. However, the text is somewhat scrambled. We want to give you as much information as we possibly can about our papers and essays, but we cannot give them away for free. In the text below you will find that while disordered, many of the phrases are essentially intact. From this text you will be able to get a solid sense of the writing style, the concepts addressed, and the sources used in the research paper. The military regime, which has been trying toconvince the world that democratization is occuring in Burma, found itselfin a tough situation. In order to understand what is occurring in Burma today, we must takea brief look at the last twenty years of history. On August 19, agroup of students led a protest in Yangon that was joined by almost 5 people. On August 15, 2 7 the military regimein Burma imposed a 1 percent increase in fuel prices at state-owned gasstations. However, "his replacement, ThanShwe, has proven to be just as repressive" (Lennon). Inthe end, it seems clear that "[t]he violence of the past two days hasanswered the question of whether the military would fire on Buddhist monks,the highly revered moral core of Burmese society" (Mydans). Suu Kyi is the daughter of Aung San, a legendary force againstfascism in Burma who was assassinated in 1947 (Lennon). Suu Kyi's experience is butone example of the systematic repression of dissent that has been the normin Burma over the past twenty years. September 2 , 2 7."Timeline: Myanmar protests." Al Jazeera. The current state ofaffairs in Burma can be traced back to the military coup that took place in1988. Despite thedanger, they are no longer afraid to speak out against the militaryregime." Sunday Tribune (Ireland). Themilitary and riot police had been deployed to surround six big monasteriesin Yangon, and "[t]he violence began before dawn with raids on Buddhistmonasteries and continued through the day with tear gas, beatings andvolleys of gunfire" (Mydans). The government's reluctance to crushthe dissent may have been the result of its need for internationalassistance and the knowledge that, in the age of youtube and videocellphones, any repression would be quickly transmitted throughout theworld. To live in Burma today is to live in a state of fear. The military's repression of the monks is a clearstatement that they will not tolerate any dissent. At least nine people, including a Japanesevideo journalist, were killed by the military (Al Jazeera). Theyalso spoke of monks being herded off to labor camps" (Keane). As themonks continued to expand their participation in the protests and to issueincreasingly more radical statements, many observers wondered what themilitary government's reaction would be. The 2, protestingmonks had been allowed by the police to pass a roadblock in order to reachSuu Kyi's house. One of these protests, in the northern town of Sittwe, wasbroken up by police firing warning shots and using tear gas. She returned to Burma to nurse her sick mother,however, and soon began to speak out against the repressive military regime(Lennon). As a result ofthis increase, the costs of transportation skyrocketed, which drove up theprices of food and other essential goods (Al Jazeera). Works CitedKeane, Fergal. A seriesof small protests began to spread across the nation despite crackdowns ledby the ruling party (but not yet by the military), and on August 28 a groupof Buddhist monks joined the protest in the northwest city of Sittwe. The restrictions placedon internet usage and cellular phone access also show that the militaryregime does not want the world to know the full extent of their repression. Thereis, however, nothing new about repression of dissent in Burma: "Thecountry has been torn by regular attacks on demonstrators for the past 2 years. Having reviewed the history of repression in Burma, we now turn ourattention to the recent protests. However, the month-long delay between the beginning of the monks'involvement in the protests and the actual violence that ensued also showsthat the government knows that it is facing a different world today than itwas twenty years ago. "Defiance is Met by Brutality in Myanmar." InternationalHerald Tribune. Theparticipation of the monks in the protests marked a direct challenge to themilitary regime's authority. One journalist describes an interview he had with some monks whotold him that they had not slept in seven days due to fear of abduction.The monk noted that the secret police comes to abduct people in the earlyhours of the morning, and "told stories of colleagues who had been takenoff into detention, stripped of their robes and beaten by soldiers. The monks,due to their status as respected leaders within Burmese communities, areespecially singled out for repression if they do not follow the regime'sdictates. The current crackdown on protests in Burma (Myanmar) has galvanizedworld opinion with vivid images of monks being arrested and beaten. During that year, General Saw Maung seized power and his militarytroops brutally repressed the resulting protests. Theclergy hereby also refuses donations and preaching" (Mydans2). The government did notgive any warning or any reasons for the price increase. In Burma, "the Buddhist clergy is highlyrevered and comprises the most organized group apart from the military"(Mydans2). According to a prominent human rights group, the monks releasedthe following statement during their initial participation in the protests: "The clergy boycotts the violent, mean, cruel, ruthless, pitiless kings,the great thieves who live by stealing from the national treasury. "Secret police, intimidation and fear in the Golden Land ofBurma; The junta continues to hunt down monks and activists, but civiliansin Burma are coming to terms with their power to create change. General Maung dissolvedthe Burma Socialist Program Party, which at that time was the only legalparty in the country, and replaced it with the State Law and OrderRestoration Council. This is notsomething new, but rather something that has become the common operatingprocedure for the Burmese military government. Although international pressure led to Suu Kyi's release in 1995, shecontinued to be harassed by the military regime: "has since been in andout of detention, denied permission to see her family, including her sickBritish husband (he died in 1999), attacked by government-sponsored mobsand now languishes under house arrest that has been continually extendedsince she was last arrested in 2 3" (Lennon). Combined withthe severe restrictions of the internet and cellular phone access in Burmathat the military government instituted, we see that the regime hascombined its brutal repression with new practices aimed at isolating thecountry and ensuring that the international community cannot observe theiractions. Emboldened by the lack of direct military action, themonks called on sympathizers to join them and up to 1 , protesters tookto the Yangon streets on September 24 and 25 (Al Jazeera). On September 27, however, the military finally intervened. Although the protests began as a result ofthe drastic increase in fuel prices that the military regime instituted,they quickly grew into a general protest of the lack of democraticprinciples in the country. Shwe continued thecampaign of military repression in Burma through systematic attacks onpolitical opponents and the placement of restrictions on freedom of thepress (Lennon). During his four years as the head of the militarygovernment, Maung renamed the country Myanmar and placed noted dissidentAung San Suu Kyi under house arrest (Lennon). When economic conditions take a downturn the ruling military juntafinds the streets filled with students-or in this case Buddhist monks --asking for something better" (Lennon). Suu Kyi spent muchof her life overseas. This paper will briefly examine thehistory of repression in Burma, and then provide an overview of the recentprotests and the subsequent repression. It appeared that part of themilitary's reluctance was due to the timing of the protests, which came "ata time when Myanmar is attempting to present itself to the world as ademocratizing nation, with the adoption early this month of newconstitutional guidelines" (Mydans2). The global community must continue to exert pressureon the military regime to liberalize the country and to truly democratize.This pressure must take all forms available, including diplomacy andeconomic sanctions. OnSeptember 5, the police and military fired warning shots to break up aprotest by monks in the northern town of Pakokku; this was the firstreported case of military intervention and of gunfire being used tosuppress protest (Al Jazeera). Thus we see that the unfortunate cycle of violence and popularrepression in Burma continues. The protests began to spread across the nation, and there was muchspeculation about what the government's reaction would be. On September18, "Buddhist monks hold string of protests in Yangon and other cities onanniversary of 1988 coup that brought current military regime to power" (AlJazeera). "How a Land of Gentle People Came to Ruin." The DailyTelegraph (Australia). In 1992, poor health forcedGeneral Maung to step down from power. However, it isunclear if that is the extent of the death toll or if many more perished atthe hands of the military, because "with the authorities clamping down ontelephone and Internet communications, human rights groups and exiles saidthey were having increasing difficulty getting information" (Mydans). October 14, 2 7.Lennon, Troy. September 28, 2 7.Mydans, Seth (2). The militaryregime maintains its hold on power through a system of brutal repression.Journalists are constantly shadowed by secret police, who take careful noteof any and all contacts that the journalists have with people. Suu Kyi helped form the National League for Democracy in the198 s, for which she was sentenced to house arrest by the military regime.She continued her campaign to foster democratic principles in the countryeven as she was confined to her house, however, and in 1991 was recognizedfor her dedication with the Nobel Peace Prize (Lennon). On September22, Aung San Suu Kyi greeted a group of protesting monks from the house shehas spent 12 of the last 18 hears being detained in. "Monks Add Weight to Myanmar Protests." InternationalHerald Tribune. Available at[http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/12 4FAE-DD74-4DD1-9A22- 6E 55ADAD5B.htm]. Many of the leaders of the protest were "made up of former studentleaders from the 1988 pro-democracy uprising, many of whom were jailed andtortured after the military crushed those protests" (Al Jazeera). The regime must be made to understand thatdemocratization is something that has to be demonstrated, and thatrepression is the furthes thing in the world from democracy. The price of compressed canisters of natural gas, used by manyBurmese to heat their homes, increased five fold. September 28, 2 7.Mydans, Seth. If this paper is not what you are looking for, you can search again: Search for: or Click here to request an essay written just for you.