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Daw Suu's Letter from Burma #8



Mainichi Daily News, Monday, January 15, 1995

Burmese Are Always Ready to Celebrate a Festival
"Christmas in Rangoon"
(Letter from Burma No. 8)
by Aung San Suu Kyi

	Burmese people love festivals.  There is something to celebrate every month
of the year.  There are the better known festivals such as /Thingyan/ (the
water festival) in April and /Thidingyut/ (the light festival) in October as
well as lesser known ones such as that connected with the religious
examinations held for monks.  In spite of the large number of our own
festivals we are not averse to celebrating those of other countries and
cultures.  Whether it is the Muslim /id/ or the Hindu /divali/ or Chinese
New Year or Christmas, the Burmese are quite ready to take part in the fun
and feasting.
	When I was a child there used to be Christmas fairs in aid of various
charities where Santa Claus, sweltering in his full regalia of thick red
robes and flowing white cotton wool beard, would be in charge of the lucky
dip counter.  At one of those fairs I won a bottle of whiskey, which was
then a rare and expensive object.  Of course to me it was a total
disappointment as I had been hoping for a toy or at least a packet of
sweets, and I was thoroughly puzzled by the number of old men (at least they
seemed old to me then) who congregated to congratulate me on my great good
fortune.  My mother advised me to give away the bottle to one of the
enthusiastic throng around me, which I did willingly, but I could not
understand why the recipient was so effusive in his thanks.  The whole
incident somewhat diminished my faith both in lucky dips and in adult taste.
	Christmas in Rangoon is not yet quite the commercial festival it has become
in many of the larger cities of Asia.  But there is an increasing selection
of Christmas decorations, all made in Asian countries, and Christmas cakes
on sale during the season.  Christmas is seen as a time for eating together
and exchanging gifts in an atmosphere of mutual good will, whether or not
one belongs to the Christian faith.
	Carol singing is an activity which instantly recalls pictures of rosy
cheeked children and hearty adults, all wrapped in thick coats with colorful
scarves wound around their necks, standing under a Victorian lamp amidst a
gentle swirl of snowflakes.  Thick coats, woolly scarves, Victorian lamps
and snowflakes are not part of any Christmas scene in Rangoon, but here too
we have carol singers, usually groups collecting for charity.
	A carol singing group which has been coming to our house every Christmas
since my mother was alive is from a Christian institution for the blind.
Last week they came again after a gap of six years.  The blind singers and
guitarist were led by three or four sighted persons as they made their
rounds, part of the way on foot and part of the way on public buses.  By the
time they reached our house it was late in the afternoon, but their voices
were still strong and fresh as they sang of peace and joy and goodwill among
men.  Later we talked over coffee and sesame crisps and I learnt that the
sighted members were themselves children of blind parents and that there
were in the institution several blind couples with young children, none of
whom suffered from any visual defects.  It sounded as though the inmates
were on large family, no doubt with the usual quota of family difficulties
but quietly determined to lead a full, independent life.
	The next day came another group of carol singers from an international
organization.  They too were collecting for charity and among them were many
non-Christians.  The day had been warm and there were a large number of
outsized mosquitos swooping and attacking with the swift aggression of
dive-bombers.  The song of Rudolf the Red-Nosed Reindeer in cold, snowy
Santa Claus country sounded a little surreal under the circumstances but it
did not detract from the seasonal cheer.
	Because they knew my sons were coming, friends had commandeered from other
friends a potted plant (perhaps a species of Chamaecyparis?) That
approximated to a Christmas tree "for the children" and decorated it with
lights and baubles.  We produced presents to pile at the foot of the tree
and on Christmas day itself gave lunch to all our regular helpers, numbering
about 100.  After giving out the presents, we had a lucky dip.  In
remembrance of the time when I had been so disappointed by the bottle of
whisky, I had chosen prizes which were entirely different.  The best one was
an "executive stress tester" which proved immensely popular.  Of all those
who tried it out to see who had nerves of steel we discovered that two young
men who came from a part of Rangoon known for its strong political
traditions did best.  They were careful and steady and had tremendous powers
of concentration.  Such are obviously the qualities necessary for those who
wish to pursue politics in Burma.  Let us hope the New Year will bring the
right atmosphere of goodwill in which these qualities will be allowed to flower.

***

(This article is one of a year-long series of letters, the Japanese
translation of which appears in the Mainichi Shimbun the same day, or the
previous day in some areas.)