BurmaNet News, January 1-2, 2009

[Editor]

January 1-2, 2009 Issue # 3623


INSIDE BURMA
Doha Time via DPA: Suu Kyi is allowed visit by her doctor
Irrawaddy: Win Tin denies NLD divided over 2010 Election
DVB: CRPP backs NLD’s call for national reconciliation
Mizzima News: Burmese Censor Board tightens grip on films for festival

ON THE BORDER
DVB: NCUB to form new government in exile

BUSINESS / TRADE
Irrawaddy: Weekly business roundup - William Boot

REGIONAL
Mizzima News: Sheikh Hasina seeks Suu Kyi's release

INTERNATIONAL
AFP: US backs democracy in Myanmar ahead of anniversary

OPINION / OTHER
Irrawaddy: New Year’s resolutions for the NLD - Min Zin
Mizzima News: Leading saffron monk's memoir - U Pyinya Zawta

____________________________________
INSIDE BURMA

January 2, DPA via Doha Time
Suu Kyi is allowed visit by her doctor

Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi was allowed a New Year’s Day
visit yesterday by her personal doctor and she was in good health,
officials said.

Doctor Tin Myo Win visited Suu Kyi at her lakeside home - where the Nobel
laureate has been kept under detention in near complete isolation since
mid-2003 - briefly yesterday afternoon, a government official confirmed.

“This visit is just a regular visit for January. Her health is good,” said
an official who was briefed by Tin Myo Win just before the meeting.

The doctor is one of few people allowed to visit Suu Kyi, the daughter of
Myanmar independence hero Aung San, who has spent about 13 of the past 18
years under house arrest with the latest incarceration beginning in May,
2003.

Suu Kyi is allowed a visit by her doctor once a month, but has been denied
visits by members of the National League for Democracy (NLD) party, which
she leads but cannot communicate with.

It has been widely speculated that Myanmar’s ruling junta will keep Suu
Kyi under house arrest until after the general election scheduled for
2010.

The NLD won the 1990 general election by a landslide, with many voting for
the party to protest Suu Kyi’s arrest and detention in 1989 for publicly
criticising former military strongman Ne Win.

Although the NLD won at the polls, the military denied the party power,
claiming a new constitution needed to be drafted before civilian rule
could take place in Myanmar.
Myanmar, also called Burma, has been under military rule since 1962.

http://www.gulf-times.com/site/topics/printArticle.asp?cu_no=2&item_no=264204&version=1&template_id=45&parent_id=25

____________________________________

January 1, Irrawaddy
Win Tin denies NLD divided over 2010 Election - Min Lwin

Win Tin, a leading member of Burma’s main opposition party, the National
League for Democracy (NLD), denied claims that he had said the party was
divided over whether it would take part in an election slated for 2010.

Speaking to The Irrawaddy on Tuesday, Win Tin said that he was misquoted
in a report by Deutsche Presse Agentur (DPA), which stated that he had
told a visiting European diplomat that “some [in the party] want to
participate [in the election] and some do not.”

Win Tin (Photo: Myat Moe Maung/The Irrawaddy)
“The NLD hasn’t considered joining the military-backed election in 2010,”
he said.

“I told the Italian diplomat that there are two approaches in the NLD.
Some, like me, reject the constitution outright, while some want to amend
the constitution after parliament is convened,” he said, adding that he
was referring to a parliament consisting of representatives elected in
1990.

Win Tin, who was released earlier this year from Rangoon’s notorious
Insein Prison after serving 19 years, said that “throughout my prison life
and since my release, I have rejected the junta-backed constitution.”

According to the DPA report, published on November 29, Attilo Massimo
Ianucci, the Asia-Pacific chief of Italy’s foreign ministry, had urged the
NLD to participate in the 2010 election.

“He said at present, the military occupied 100 percent of the government
and after 2010, there would be only 25 percent. It is much better than the
current situation,” Win Tin was quoted as saying.

In a statement issued on December 10 to the Foreign Correspondents Club of
Myanmar, based in the former capital Rangoon, Win Tin reiterated that he
has always rejected the junta’s efforts to write a new constitution
through the military-backed National Convention, first convened in 1993.
He said that he clearly stated his position on the matter in front of
visiting US Congressman Bill Richardson and military intelligence agents
while he was still in prison.

He added that he has always maintained three fundamental demands,
summarized as “Suu Hlut Twe.”

“Suu” stands for the unconditional release of pro-democracy leader Aung
San Suu Kyi and all other political prisoners; “Hlut” stands for the
convening of the Hluttaw (the people’s parliament) with representatives
elected in the 1990 elections; and “Twe” stands for dialogue between the
military government and opposition groups.

____________________________________

January 2, Democratic Voice of Burma
CRPP backs NLD’s call for national reconciliation

The National League for Democracy has called for national reconciliation
and the immediate release of all political prisoners in a New Year
statement backed by MPs-elect and ethnic parties.

The NLD released the statement yesterday with the support of members of
the Committee Representing the People’s Parliament and seven
election-winning parties.

The other parties were the Shan Nationalities League for Democracy led by
Hkun Htun Oo, the Arakan League for Democracy led by Aye Thar Aung, the
Mon National League for Democracy led by Nai Tun Thein, Kyaw Min’s
National Democratic Party for Human Rights, the National Democracy Party
led by MP-elect Soe Win, the Zomi National Congress led by Cin Sian Thang
and Htaung Ko Thang’s United Nationalities League for Democracy.

The statement was signed by all the party leaders apart from Hkun Htun Oo
and Kyaw Min who are currently in prison.

NLD spokesperson Nyan Win said the party had decided to release the
statement under the NLD banner, but highlighted the significance of the
support of other groups.

"NLD central executive committee member decided in a meeting to [release
it as an NLD statement] but all CRPP members except two absentees signed,”
he said.

“We believe that we cannot rebuild Burma without the participation of
ethnic nationalities."

Aye Thar Aung of the ALD, who is also secretary of the CRPP, said the
groups had met to discuss the content of the statement.

"It is an effort to persuade the SPDC to start the national reconciliation
process with the release of political prisoners,” he explained.

“One of our plans for 2009 is to persuade the SPDC to release political
prisoners and change the constitution before the planned 2010 election."

Aye Thar Aung said that the CRPP also wanted to expand to include other
political parties and to rally non-political groups to join calls for the
release of political prisoners.

____________________________________

January 2, Mizzima News
Burmese Censor Board tightens grip on films for festival

Burma's Information Ministry has announced that makers of films and
documentaries will need to seek prior permission from the Censor Board to
be able to contest in international film festivals, sources in the Burmese
film industry said.

"The film censorship board has issued a new order. All films and
documentary makers must seek permission before contesting at international
film festivals," a film director in Rangoon said on condition of
anonymity.

According to sources in Rangoon's film industry, the new regulation came
into being after director Kyi Phyu Shin won the "2008 Best Short Film
Award" of the National Geographic Society with her 15 minute-long
documentary film in 2008.

Director, Kyi Phyu Shin, won the award for her documentary film on the
life of a Burmese painter called Wathone. The English-subtitled film named
'Scathes of Wathone' included interviews with Wathone.

____________________________________
ON THE BORDER

January 2, Democratic Voice of Burma
NCUB to form new government in exile

The National Council of the Union of Burma has announced its plans to
establish a new government in exile in advance of the Burmese military
regime’s planned 2010 election.

The NCUB, an umbrella organisation of exiled opposition groups based on
the Thai-Burma border, plans to form a united parliament comprising
elected members of parliament and ethnic nationalities.

NCUB spokesperson Myint Thein said the move was a rejection of the 2008
constitution and the planned 2010 elections, which he said would validate
long-term military rule.

“We will form a united parliament and from there, we will form a rival
national unity government to respond to the current situation,” Myint
Thein said.

“[As well as reaffirming the 1990 election results,] we will also be
fighting against military rule by uniting legal and armed ethnic groups,
pro-democracy groups and other organisations to form a legal de facto
parliament,” he said.

“From there we will form a rival national unity government that practices
good governance in order to carry out our intentions.”

Myint Thein said the new government would campaign for a federal system of
government in Burma.

“We oppose the 2010 election. We also oppose the 2008 constitution. We
support the results of the 1990 election,” Myint Thein said.

“The main aim of the NCUB government is to build a federal system that
specifically guarantees equality and the right to self-legislation for
ethnic nationalities.”

The new government could present a challenge to the National Coalition
Government of the Union of Burma, the US-based government in exile led by
prime minister Dr Sein Win.

There have been persistent rumours of tensions between NCUB and NCGUB in
the past, but representatives of both organisations have insisted that
they are united in their aims.

When asked where the NCGUB fitted in with the new plans, Myint Thein said
the new government would work with the NCGUB.

“We are in a position to deal with problems step by step,” Myint Thein said.

“We are aiming to form a rival government that can achieve national unity
and oppose military rule in practice,” he continued.

“In order for that to happen, as we will be formed on the basis of the
1990 election, we will systematically negotiate and work with the NCGUB
and any other organisation.”

Sein Win, prime minister of the NCGUB, said he did not yet know the
details of the NCUB statement.

“We don't know how they are going to move forward with their activities,”
he said.

“[The NCGUB] was formed on the basis of the results of the 1990 election
and we will continue with the policies of the NLD, the CRPP and so on in
the future,” he went on.

“There will be a meeting of MPs and a prime ministerial election in
Ireland in mid-January.”

____________________________________
BUSINESS / TRADE

January 2, Irrawaddy
Weekly business roundup - William Boot

2008: Surge Year in Foreign Investment in Burma

2008 saw a surge in foreign companies doing business in Burma despite U.S.
and European Union sanctions, observers and activists say.

The largest number of newcomers work in the oil, gas and hydrodam sectors
with the aim of producing for export the commodity Burma itself is most in
need of—energy.

“I would estimate that dozens of new firms have started up business in
Burma in 2008,” analyst Mike Arnold told The Irrawaddy. “Many of them are
Chinese state-owned enterprises underlining the tightening grip on Burma
that Beijing has applied.”

“With two major pipelines to be built through the country, I think you are
also going to see a continuing increase in Chinese and other Asian firms
getting involved in Burma in 2009,” said Arnold, a Hong Kong-based energy
sector analyst.

Thirty new company names were recently added to the so-called dirty list
compiled by the human rights activist organization Burma Campaign UK, from
the tourism and construction to energy.

The biggest single sector 2008 additions named by the campaign were in
hydroelectric dam construction, and they came from India, Britain, Japan
and China.

More than 110 of the 170 companies named in Burma Campaign’s dirty list
are in energy and tourism-linked businesses.

“New targeted sanctions against the regime must be implemented if the
international community is serious about cutting the regime’s financial
lifeline,” says the campaign’s Johnny Chatterton.

The British human rights group says it successfully persuaded a number
companies in 2008 to stop doing business with Burma, but one of its
biggest targets—the London-based insurance brokers Lloyds—steadfastly
refused to budge.


Daewoo ‘Coerced’ to Sell Shwe Gas to China

The gas pipeline to be built through Burma from the coast to China will
cost about US $1 billion, industry analysts estimate.

But the total bill the Chinese are likely to pick up for the development
of transshipment facilities for both gas and oil is likely to be at least
US$2.5 billion.

The formal confirmation last week that state-owned China National
Petroleum Corporation will buy a 30-year supply of gas from the offshore
Shwe field merely confirms what most in the industry have known for a
year.

The deal will involve pumping trillions of cubic feet (up to 200 billion
cubic meters) from the Bay of Bengal to Kunming in China’s Yunnan
province.

The Shwe field is being developed by a South Korean-Indian consortium led
by the industrial conglomerate Daewoo International.

“It’s amusing to hear the Chinese state media report that China was
selected by Daewoo from a number of international bidders for the Shwe
gas,” independent energy sector consultant-analyst Sar Watana told The
Irrawaddy in Bangkok this week.

“From what we understand, it is quite the opposite. Daewoo was coerced to
sell the gas to China in the face of higher bids from India and Japan, and
interest from Thailand. The South Korean government’s Korea Gas enterprise
also wanted to buy some of the gas.”

Peliminary surveying work for the 1,200 kilometer gas pipeline is likely
to begin in 2009, although it could be another four years before the gas
flows.

Daewoo, the leading stakeholder in the Shwe field, has been reported to
the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development—to which South
Korea belongs—for failing to comply with the multinational body’s code of
corporate conduct on human rights.

The U.S. EarthRights International group said Daewoo’s commercial
activities in Burma, including links with the pipeline, were against
Burmese interests and human and land rights.

The South Korean government has rejected the ERI complaint as unfounded.

Some industry analysts question claims by the official Chinese news agency
Xinhua that Burma will be able to tap into the gas being pumped through
the country into China to “help promote economic development.”

“Unless China is going to provide the infrastructure needed, the Burmese
authorities do not have the wherewithal to utilize the gas in any
meaningful way,” said another Bangkok-based industry observer who declined
to be named because of the sensitive nature of the subject.

China is also planning to develop an oil pipeline through Burma, from a
new deep-sea transshipment port development at Kyaukpyu on Ramree Island.

This pipeline is likely to cost US $1.5 billion, according to Japan’s
Nikkei newspaper quoting sources in the state Myanmar Oil and Gas
Enterprise.


Thai Company to Widen Dig for Burmese Coal

The Bangkok-based coal mining company Saraburi was unable to comment this
week on reports that it is expanding its business in Burma.

The open-cast miner has reportedly won a concession to dig for coal in
Shan State bordering northern Thailand north of Tachilek, Burma.

Saraburi already mines extensively in southern Burma at Maw Taung, where
work has severely scarred land to get at reserves the company has
estimated at 10 million tons.

Environmentalists say the opencast mining methods would no longer be
tolerated in Thailand, just across the border.

But Saraburi says in a Web site company policy statement that it “commits
to operate in [an] ethical and mutual manner with its customers, business
counterparts, alliances, employees and shareholders to benefit the society
and the country as a whole.”

The new concession in Shan State was reported by the local news group
S.H.A.N.

____________________________________
REGIONAL

January 2, Mizzima News
Sheikh Hasina seeks Suu Kyi's release - Siddique Islam

Sheikh Hasina, Bangladesh's Prime Minister in waiting has sought the
release of Burmese democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi from prolonged house
arrest and friendly relations with all neighbouring countries.

Awami League (AL) President Sheikh Hasina made the demand at the first
press conference after her party and the Awami League-led grand alliance's
resounding victory in Monday's Parliament elections. The press conference
was held at the Bangladesh-China Conference Centre in Dhaka on Wednesday.

"I have also been in prison for restoration of democracy in my country and
she should not be in prison. We demand the release of Suu Kyi," Hasina
said replying to a query.

She said her government would maintain friendly relations with China, the
present world's fastest-growing economic powerhouse, and seek Chinese
investments in Bangladesh.

Hasina, who is expected to be sworn in on or before January 10 as Prime
Minister, her second stint after a break of five-plus-two years, said the
first task of her government would be to cut high prices of essential
commodities so that its is within the reach of the common man and
eradicate poverty.

Excluding the seats of its partners, the AL bagged an astounding 230 seats
in the ninth parliamentary elections, up from 62 in the 2001 polls.

The AL's landslide victory is a reminder of yet another landmark election
in 1970 when the slain president Sheikh Mujibur Rahman garnered absolute
majority, but was denied power by the then Pakistani regime, political
observers said.

According to the Election Commission (EC) counts, the grand alliance got
262 seats while the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP)-led four-party
coalition won only 32 seats, independents four and Liberal Democratic
Party (LDP) one.

A total of 1,555 candidates from 39 political parties including
independent candidates contested the election to replace the caretaker
administration.

The last general election was held on October 1, 2001 for the 8th
Parliament. A total of 1,935 candidates representing 54 parties and
including 484 independents had contested the polls.

Thousands of voters turned up in the capital city and elsewhere in the
country to exercise their franchise as voting took place in a peaceful
atmosphere.

Local and foreign election observers, in their preliminary assessments,
have hailed the parliamentary elections as by far the most 'peaceful" and
fairest, calling upon the opposition to accept the people's verdict.

Of the total 81,05,8698 voters, the turnout was around 80 per cent on an
average as against the last election's nearly 75 per cent, EC officials
confirmed.

____________________________________
INTERNATIONAL

January 2, Agence France Presse
US backs democracy in Myanmar ahead of anniversary

The United States on Friday highlighted its support for efforts to
establish democracy in military-run Myanmar, ahead of the country's 61st
anniversary of independence.

State Department spokesman Sean McCormack alluded to the human rights
crackdown by the military junta that has been in power since 1962, as he
commemorated the anniversary of independence from Britain on January 4,
1948.

"We wish to express our warmest wishes to the people of Burma on this
occasion," McCormack said in a statement, referring to the country's name
before the junta changed it to Myanmar in 1989.

"As we reflect on Burma's independence struggle, led by General Aung San,
we are reminded of our own history," the statement said, alluding to the
US drive for independence from Britain in the 18th century.

"We support the peaceful efforts of people everywhere to exercise freely
their universal human rights," he said.

"We stand with the Burmese people today in honoring Aung San's vision for
an independent, peaceful, and democratic Burma and look forward to the day
when Burma's citizens will be able to enjoy the fruits of freedom and
democracy," he said.

"We earnestly hope that day will come soon," according to McCormack's
statement.

Massive protests in 2007, sparked initially by fuel-hikes and involving
tens of thousands of people, were eventually crushed by the military. At
least 31 people were killed, according to the United Nations.

____________________________________
OPINION / OTHER

January 2, Irrawaddy
New Year’s resolutions for the NLD - Min Zin

The Burmese military junta is at its happiest when history repeats itself.
Under the leadership of Snr-Gen Than Shwe, the regime replays its old
maneuvers—content that its strategy has for so long been unbreakable.

A recognizable play in the regime's game plan has long been the tactic of
combining brute force and naked aggression through harsh crackdowns with
political offensives aimed at weakening the opposition and defusing
international pressure.

But if the regime’s policymakers are so predictable, surely the question
is what the opposition will do to counter their plans and achieve the two
most important results for political transition— constitutional reform and
the release of political prisoners.

Take, for starters, the case of the 2,100 political prisoners languishing
in Burma’s jails—234 of whom were arrested during or after the nationwide
protests in September 2007 and have received sentences of up to 68 years
imprisonment each since November 2008.

The goal of the harsh sentencing is clear—to eliminate potential
opposition in the run-up to the 2010 election, which is the fifth step in
the regime's master-plan known as the “Seven-Step Roadmap to Democracy.”

The intended effect of the brutality is a "shock and awe"
campaign—terrorizing the public and creating an environment of fear ahead
of the election. The junta hopes the Burmese population will become
depoliticized and will meekly allow the military to steal the election.

International outcry has pronounced loud again. Sources in United Nations
said that Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is even considering the option for
"temporary suspension of his good offices mission on Burma". Some sources
close to Burmese Foreign Ministry confirmed that China and Russia are
pressing the generals in Naypyidaw to cooperate with Secretary-General's
good office and show a "positive gesture" to calm down mounting
international criticism before the scheduled 2010 election in Burma.

As history has its proof, it is now time for Than Shwe to pull out a card
and play magic with his international supporters. One possible prospect
will be the release of Aung San Suu Kyi, the opposition leader and the
only imprisoned Noble Peace Prize winner, in near future – as earliest as
by May or as latest as November 2009 – which in itself presents what the
junta considers to be several favorable conditions.

First, the junta knows that releasing Suu Kyi could be well enough to
relieve the concerns of China, Russia, Asean and other apologists for the
junta that have found it hard recently to defend the Burmese regime in the
international arena.

If the military rulers were sublimely tactful, they could even invite
either UN Special Envoy Ibrahim Gambari or Secretary-General, and allow
the Good Offices to take credit for Suu Kyi’s release.

In this manner, the junta could use the release of Suu Kyi to fend off
international criticism against the systematic crackdowns, forcibly
ratified constitution and scheduled election for 2010.

In fact, the military generals believe they can afford to release the
opposition leader without compromising with her. Indeed, in accepting her
freedom Suu Kyi could find herself in a Catch-22 situation where she
cannot criticize the government without finding herself back in a cage.

No political transition is likely to take place within the framework of
the current constitution. Even amendments made to the constitution in the
hope of gradual reform will not be possible within a military-dominated
parliament and the junta’s foreseeable power arrangement in a post-2010
Burma.

The question, therefore, is what the opposition can do to counter
military's strategy and achieve two most important results needed for
political transition—constitutional reform and the release of political
prisoners.

Over the past 20 years, the opposition parties in Burma have shown an
unyielding faith in the power of principles. Now it is time for them to
learn the principles of power.

Paradoxically, the first principle of power that the opposition should
pursue is a moral strategy. The National League for Democracy (NLD) and
other opposition parties should declare that they will not take part in
the 2010 elections unless the junta agrees to engage in political dialogue
with the opposition to negotiate a constitutional review and to release
the political prisoners.

This is not only a righteous strategy that will create a feel-good factor
among opposition members, but it can be used as a playing card to achieve
three concrete political gains.

First of all, it could motivate the opposition's own bases—NLD organizers
throughout the country and its supporters, as well as legitimate ethnic
political parties—most of whom have taken back seats in recent political
debates due to the NLD's defensive, reactive and passive policy.

NLD Chairman Aung Shwe, who has always avoided public communication,
should make himself available to Burmese-language shortwave radio stations
abroad to address the public to articulate why the NLD has decided not to
take part in the 2010 election and what the NLD demands are.

The party leadership should not take for granted that their cause is
self-evident. They must publicize their agenda and promote it with clarity
as a moral offensive.

Second, an election boycott could narrow the regime's bases—in particular,
the full participation of ethnic minority groups that reached ceasefire
deals with the military over the past 20 years.

All ethnic groups know the military's constitution is far below their
acceptable thresholds.

Although groups such as the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO) and the
United Wa State Army (UWSA) may be planning to take part in the 2010
election through their proxy ethnic parties, they will be afforded the
chance NOT to throw their weight behind the regime's terms and conditions,
especially it involves the disarmament of their troops.

The opposition’s rejection of the 2010 election will, therefore, lend
ceasefire groups political justification and strategic space (as the
regime will be busy dealing with the NLD) to resist the regime's
disarmament plan.

This will complicate the junta's political ploy or, in a worst case
scenario, lead to a resumption of localized arm conflicts between certain
ethnic ceasefire groups and the Burmese army. Such a situation would alarm
China since the most volatile areas are around the Sino-Burmese border
where formidable Wa and Kachin ethnic groups are based.

The third political gain the opposition could muster from a moral boycott
strategy is that it will force the international community—particularly
those who want to expedite the junta’s "road map"—to side with
opposition's reasonable demands.

However, before all that comes into play, the opposition parties must show
flexibility and articulate that it is not rejecting outright the regime's
road map.

If the junta accepts a constitutional review and the release of political
prisoners, the opposition can consider lending legitimacy to the road map.
The opposition should also make it clear that it welcomes international
humanitarian assistance to Burma, which is severely impoverished and
falling into deeper humanitarian crises.

All in all, this is high time for the opposition to occupy the moral high
ground and translate it into power and advantage. Of course, the route
will not be an easy one as the regime will impose its nastiest crackdown
on the opposition.

Some skeptics might also argue that it is nothing new for the Burmese
opposition to take up a righteous policy and yet still lose the game.

However, what the opposition has so far adopted is a reflexive and
ungainly position. What the opposition needs now to use the moral high
ground wisely and publicly, and transform it into strategy, well-timed and
coordinated toward achieving well-defined political gains.

This is the first principle of power the opposition should pursue and
should constitute its New Year resolution for 2009.

Min Zin, a Burmese journalist in exile, is a teaching fellow at the
University of California, Berkeley, School of Journalism.

____________________________________

January 2, Mizzima News
Leading saffron monk's memoir - U Pyinya Zawta

Burmese monks are known to have played an important role in their nation's
politics throughout its history. While they did not partake in mundane
political processes, they traditionally held positions of moral authority,
and dispensed wisdom and guidance to past kings, rulers and governments in
Burma. On some occasions, emissaries from the monasteries were despatched
on peace missions to avoid war with foreign powers.

Buddhist monks gave council to past monarchs, ranging from the first King
Anawrahta of unified Burma in Bagan, to the last King Mindon and his son
King Thibaw, guiding them on how to properly conduct themselves as
responsible rulers. Burmese monks fulfilled their obligations toward their
religion and the people in the past as royal advisers, and most
importantly, as the guardians of sacred rights and responsibilities of all
citizens.

Burmese monks continued to play an important role in national affairs even
after Burma fell under British colonialism, in 1886. During the Colonial
era, a monk leader U Ottama brought political enlightenment back to Burma
and eventually helped lead the nation to independence from Britain. His
lectures inspired generations of followers including Ko Aung San who later
became the father of Burma's Independence. Another brave and defiant monk,
U Wisara, died in prison after a 166-day hunger strike in 1929, but still
helped reawaken political consciousness in Burma, and with his final
words, to "never forget," urged the people to persevere until independence
was obtained from Britain.

After the 1948 independence, numerous political and social organizations
proliferated in Burma. During this period Burmese monks formed the All
Burma Young Monks' Union (ABYMU) to continue championing the causes of
their people.

But after the 1962 military coup, General Ne Win abolished all civil and
political organizations in Burma, and the ABYMU was banned in 1964. Even
though barred by the military, young Buddhist monks remained at the
forefront of political movements from the 1974 U Thant crisis, to the
1975-1976 one hundred years' anniversary of labor unrests in Burma.

During the nationwide uprising in 1988 when one government faction after
another failed to control the county, monks used their authority to
prevent anarchy and chaos and provided sanctuary to the public. After the
military took back power through another coup on September 18th, 1988, the
All Burma Young Monks' Union was again established, as an Upper Burma
branch in Mandalay and as a Lower Burma branch in Rangoon, and monks
joined the people's protest against the return of the military
dictatorship.

In 1990, the National League for Democracy (NLD) members, student
activists, and ordinary citizens made alms donation to the monks marching
peacefully on Zay-Cho and 26-B roads in Mandalay, marking the two year
anniversary of the '88 uprising. When the army forcibly tried to stop the
procession, unrest broke out and many monks were brutally beaten. Since
the authorities prevented the monks from alms collection by egregiously
violating Buddha's Dharma, two monk leaders, U Raza Dama Bewitha and U
Kovida Bewitha of the Upper Burma Young Monks' Union called for a
religious boycott dubbed 'Overturning of the Alms Bowl,' against the SLORC
government, for the first time.

Led by monks from major monastic academic institutions, the Young Monks
Union in Rangoon joined the boycott movement, as prescribed under Buddha's
Dharma laws, and they affirmed their pledge with obeisance toward the Shwe
Dagon Pagoda, on 3 October 1990, the Tha-din-kyut full moon day of Burmese
year 1352, at the Ngar Htait Kyi Pagoda pavilion.

With prompting from U Ahnt Maung, a high ranking member of the
government's religious affairs department, the military junta in panic
arrested and sentenced to long prison terms senior monks from renowned
monastic academies, members of the Rangoon Young Monks' Union, and monks
from other Sangha academies. Tragically Ashin U Arsara from the Thayettaw
monastery died in Thayet prison and Ashin U Zaw Tika from the Shwebon
Pyint monastery died in Insein prison, both from torture and inhumane
conditions. The fates of many other monks taken away by the government
during the 1990 boycott protest remain unknown.

Finally, after almost two decades since many monks were arrested and
imprisoned, the monks' resistance against military oppression in Burma
seemed to have all but evaporated. But the Saffron Uprising in 2007 proved
that the monks' resolve to defend the future of Burmese Buddhism and their
people was growing only stronger, not weaker.

Before the leading monks' organization the 'All Burma Monks Alliance' was
founded during the Saffron Revolution, many smaller monks' coalitions had
already been established. As the first step, the All Burma Young Monks
Union organized a central working committee with five leading monks from
Rangoon and one from Mandalay, selected from many monks' organizations. At
the same time various smaller local monks' organizations were being
created, in Pegu, Pye, Magwe, Moulmein, and Arkan areas. The famous
leading monk, Ashin U Gambira, who was arrested last year, and six other
monks led the formation of the Rangoon Young Monks' Union to represent
monks from the Rangoon area.

Monks from upper Burma in Mandalay formed the Federation of All Burma
Monks' Union and helped organize monks' reading groups, libraries, and
literary discussion groups, among other activities. Young Monks' Unions,
like Students' Unions, were being formed all over Burma with the sole
intention of ending the military dictatorship in Burma. During the mean
time, Young Monks' Union members helped other monks' organizations to
coordinate, consult and exchange ideas by helping them communicate with
each other. When the regime became suspicious at times, new monks and
civilians were used as dispatchers. And on occasion, meetings were
cancelled in order to evade the junta's relentless assaults.

Since 2005, there was a growing realization that a mass movement to
overthrow the Burmese dictatorship was becoming inevitable, and many
activist groups began expanding their underground movements in
anticipation.

When the military junta suddenly increased the price of fuel on August 15,
2007, impoverished people in Burma faced an unprecedented level of
hardship. When small demonstrations broke out against the severe economic
conditions, government thugs' organizations named, Swan Ahh-shin, Union
Solidarity and Development Association (USDA), and riot police were sent
in to violently suppress the peaceful protests, and swiftly ended the
public outcry.

In order to come to the rescue of frightened and battered citizens
suffering under severe economic hardships, the monks took it upon
themselves to unite all of the monks' unions and to create a larger monks'
alliance at a meeting scheduled for September 9, 2007 at a monastery in
Mandalay.  By September 4 many monks had left their monasteries and were
on the way to the meeting.

But on September 5 when the Pakokku monks came out to chant the peaceful
prayers of the 'Metta Sutta,' - the sutra of loving kindness to radiate
the spirit of love to all beings - in sympathy with the suffering public,
the local government militia brutally attacked the monks and tied them to
electric poles, beat them with rifle butts, and arrested them. News of
these actions spread quickly, and the next day unrest broke out and cars
were burnt in Pakokku.

Burmese monks from all over the country felt compelled to respond to such
shocking violence against revered Buddhist monks who were marching
peacefully. When the monks gathered on September 9 as previously agreed,
the meeting was forced to move to a new location for fear of detection by
the authorities. Finally, monks at the meeting unanimously decided to
boycott the military if the government failed to comply with the following
demands by a given deadline.

The monks demanded that the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC)

   1. Apologize to the Pakokku monks, by midnight of September 17
   2. Reduce the prices of fuel oil and basic commodities
   3. Unconditionally release Aung San Suu Kyi and all other political
prisoners
   4. Hold dialogue with the democratic political opposition
representatives in order to begin a national reconciliation process

The ensuing united monks' organization was named the 'All Burma Monks'
Alliance' (ABMA) and the monks decided to proceed with boycotting the
military on September 18, 2007 after the regime failed to meet the demands
before the deadline.

Members of All Burma Monks' Alliance

   1. All Burma Young Monks' Union
   2. Federation of All Burma Monks' Union
   3. Rangoon Young Monks' Union
   4. Sangha Duta Council of Burma

The executive founding members of ABMA

   1. U Pakada   (Pannasara )
   2. U Medhavi
   3. U Kheminda
   4. U Aww Ba Tha
   5. U Tay Za
   6. U Gambira

The announcement of the above formation of the ABMA was handwritten,
photographed, and published via email media sent from a handheld camera,
since computer communications were disrupted or unavailable.

During the Saffron uprising, generous provisions of food and essential
services were donated to the monks by a caring public. There were
exemplary unforgettable individuals like one outstanding patron who took
diligent care of the monks.

On September 18, 2007 the ABMA effectively began the boycott against the
SPDC regime, and the event became known as "the Saffron Revolution." The
United Nations and the rest of the world were forced to acknowledge the
Burmese people's struggle for freedom from brutal military dictatorship.

Much of the credit for the Saffron Revolution was since given to famous
organizations or people, but the real contribution to the Saffron
Revolution was made by the monks and people who genuinely shared the
grievances of ordinary citizens, and who took unified and daring actions
inside Burma.

Many Burmese people were aware of the 2007 Saffron Revolution and people
from all over the world had also taken notice and became more interested
in Burma, since 'The Golden Uprising' - as it was known in Burmese -
eventually brought the UN Secretary General's special envoy, Mr. Ibrahim
Gambari, to Burma.

But the Saffron Revolution did not simply emerge without effort. The
Saffron Revolution was born of the leadership of the All Burma Monks'
Alliance - ABMA - the joint organization of four original monks' unions
and the extraordinary courage of the member monks, and their ability to
unite for the sake their people. The uprising took place precisely because
of the determined leadership of the All Burma Monks' Alliance (ABMA).

The All Burma Monks' Alliance (ABMA) was founded on 9 September 2007.
Numerically it lines up as 9-9-9, when 2 and 7 from the year 2007 are
added and also when all numbers 9+9+2+7=27 are added, including the sum of
27; 2+7=9.

After the thugs hired by the junta government attacked a group of monks
marching peacefully in Pakokku, on 5 September 2007, the ABMA made four
demands to the Burmese military government, with 17 September 2007 as a
deadline to respond. The ABMA announced via local media that if the
military failed to accede to its demands, the monks would carry out a
boycott against the government officials beginning on 18 September 2007.
Numerically digits of the date 09 18 2007 also add up to numeral 9.

September 18, 2007 was the 19th anniversary of the military coup and
therefore an important date for Burma's generals. It also became a
symbolically significant day for the Burmese monks, as the severe moral
rebuke by the monks against the army junta, called 'overturning of the
alms bowls,' was to begin on that same day. As early as 5:00 AM on 18
September, reporters began calling the ABMA leaders about the monks'
boycott against the military. The reporters continued calling every hour
on that day, asking whether the monks' boycott -- of refusing alms from
military families, effectively denying them important religious merit --
would still be taking place. Early on, while events were still unfolding,
it was very difficult to predict the day ahead. But, at that moment it
became evident that the honor and esteem of Burmese monks and their
religion was terribly at stake. As the gravity of the risk we had taken
became clearer, we anxiously continued reassuring the public that
conditions were good and that monks were proceeding with a boycott against
the Burmese military. Still, we were not able to give a real encouraging
answer, yet. Till noon of that day we were not quite sure of the outcome
of the decision we had made while we responded to the inquiries about the
monks' boycott.

The dramatic event of the 18 September 2007 Saffron Revolution was similar
to the '8-8-88' uprising in Burma. Even as news media were reporting the
rising momentum for countrywide mass protests in 1988, no one dared
predict the inevitability of 8-8-88 uprising with confidence. Even at 7:00
and 8:00 a.m. there was still no certainty that the uprising was to take
place. Only at 9: a.m. on 8 August 1988, when marchers from labour and
student movements joined and advanced together along the promenade could
we let out a sigh of relief.

In spite of heavy army roadblocks, the Burmese monks had also successfully
staged a protest against the SLORC military government for the first time
on 3 October 1990, the full moon day of the lunar month Thadingyut, (the
end of Buddhist Lent), Burmese year 1352, at Rangoon's Ngar Htait Kyi
Pagoda.

The most anxious moment on 18 September 2007 was at noon after our daily
meal, as we watched the day's events with anticipation and saw nothing
unusual. But after that moment many monks began gathering at Thingan-Kyun,
Kyaikasan, and Shwedagon pagodas.

The authorities moved to close down the monks' quarters at Kyaikasan
Pagoda, and monks from the Thingan-Kyun monastery began arriving at the
Kyauk-sar-daw historic pagoda of the Magin monastery. The government and
its violent militia organizations, the USDA (Union Solidarity and
Development Association) and Swan Ah Shin (SAS-force of violence) were
sent into pandemonium. Meanwhile, the monks began to arrive and seated
themselves with great dignity and grace on the ground of the Kyauksardaw
Pagoda. And then there was only utter silence.

Until suddenly, when sounds came from the distance, we only listened,
listened for the sounds. It was 1:30 PM on 18 September 2007, and the
resounding murmurs of the monks' Metta Sutta prayers could now be heard
from afar. The monks were praying and chanting to emphasize their rebukes
against the military for violating Buddha's teaching.

Soon after, the phones began to ring constantly, and the news of monks
chanting the Metta Sutta and marching to the Shwedagon Pagoda in Rangoon
and to other pagodas and monasteries in Taunggote, Pakokku, and
Kyaukpadaung began to reach us.

Then phone calls from news media started to come in. And it was recorded
that the All Burma Monks' Alliance had survived this great day. Followed
by more dramatic days
.

May freedom come to the people of Burma soon


The writer is the founding member and Foreign Executive Director of the
All Burma Monks' Alliance