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ASSK and nonviolent struggle (r)



Re: ASSK and non-violent struggle 


First and foremost, I would like to acknowledge that it was a very well 
presented paper.

Most importantly, I like how it had been summed up in the conclusion 
part,as shown below:-

" >Conclusion

>The non-violent struggle is going on and on. The military rulers dare 
not opening the Universities and Colleges, which were closed since 1996 
December when Rangoon University students staged a demonstration. 
Peasant protest in upper Burma in 1997 was a victory. Workers strike in 
Pegu in 1997 met their demand. The monks' gathering in Mandalay was 
turned into anti-Muslim riots by the military intelligence. The campaign 
against "Visit Myanmar Year" was a success. The campaign against "No 
investment" under military rule is gaining momentum. Arms embargo, visa 
restriction and withdrawal of GSP by EU have impact. New investment 
sanction imposed by US is in force. The military regime turned to 
narcotic business to survive. SLORC (22) was dissolved by itself. It 
sacked its own generals.
Power struggle inside them is immense. It is conceivable that soldiers, 
like in 1990 election, will turn to the side of people. "


With this long line of success stories, it has proven us that nonviolent 
movement can bear fruits. As you have said, I hope that majority of 
soldiers are ready to show another round of support as they have shown 
in the 1990 election. 


Minn Kyaw Minn



>Date: 15 Apr 1998 07:46:16
>Reply-To: Conference "reg.burma" <burmanet-l@xxxxxxxxxxx>
>From: sayagyi@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
>Subject: ASSK and nonviolent struggle
>To: Recipients of burmanet-l <burmanet-l@xxxxxxxxxxx>
>
>Seminar on Theory and Practice of non-violence
>2-4-98 to 4-4-98
>
>Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and non-violent movement in Burma
>Presented by Dr. Tint Swe
>
>Non-violence history of Burma
>Burma gained her independence 50 years ago from British colony and
>Japanese occupation. Burma achieved independence through dialogue 
because
>Burma army had a limited role in liberation. It, along with Japanese
>forces fought against British. The allied forces defeated Japan. The
>independence hero, Aung San quit Burma Army to join politics. He and 
his
>colleagues negotiated British government to liberate Burma.
>
>Most of the resistance attempts against British since 1885 were armed 
till
>Burmese nationalism began to gather strength in 1920. The peasant (1) 
took
>arm to revolt in 1930 and the rebellion was quickly stamped out. During
>1930s, the students of Rangoon University had become prominent in
>nationalist activities. The Dohbama Asiayone (We Burmese Association) 
came
>into existence. The members, men and women took Thakin (Master) as a
>prefix to their names as a symbolic protest against colonialism. 
Gandhi's
>philosophy stretched out to Burma. The people wore only domestic
>traditional clothes and consume the local products. National schools 
were
>opened protesting the British colonial education. The workers (2) from 
the
>oil field at the center of Burma, Chauk and Yananchaung marched down to
>Rangoon. A well-known Buddhist monk, U Wisara staged a hunger strike 
for
>108 days before he died. Aung Kyaw was the first student beaten to 
death
>by Colonial police while demonstrating.
>
>The independence also gave birth the various armed insurgent groups, 
red
>and white communists and ethnic peoples. These armed groups, after 50
>years, are still fighting or holding arms till today. But I don't see 
any
>hope for them to realize their demands. Moreover, the 14 ethnic groups 
who
>had reached a temporary cease-fire agreement with the present military
>junta are not expectant to fulfill their desire either.
>
>Modern Burma
>All of sudden, all walks of life in Burma took part the popular 
uprising
>on 8-8-88. Civil disobedience and street demonstrations brought down 
three
>Presidents (3) of the Socialist regime. The military coupe of 1988 
forced
>thousands of students to flee to the borders and to hold arms. But the
>10-year experience taught them to sort more of non-violence. 
>
>Not-well-organized strike committees in 1988 transformed into legal
>political parties in 1989. Out of more 200 parties, the NLD became at 
the
>center of pro-democracy struggle. Aung San Suu Kyi was the first human
>being who was brave to openly criticize the powerful military regime 
that
>had ruled for three decades. She spoke nothing but the truth. However 
it
>was interpreted as confrontation. The slogan of NLD in 1989 was, "It is
>our duty to oppose all unjust decrees". Aung San Suu Kyi toured through
>out Burma and met the people of all kinds. She talked about democracy,
>discipline and unity. She encouraged the people to defend their rights 
in
>whatever means possible.
>
>In 1989, under strict martial law she laid a bouquet at Myaenigon, 
Rangoon
>where 40 civilians were suffocated to death in a police van. Once, 
while
>she and her party colleagues were touring in Delta region, the whole
>harbor was full of troops, most of streets were blocked, sandbagged and
>barbwired, hundreds of soldiers posted all over the town, Bassein. As
>their vehicles were not allowed to drive, she got out and walked. It 
was
>on 14-1-89. A captain came running up to try to stop her so she asked 
him
>if she were under arrest. The captain said, "No". So she said, "In that
>case I am going." So off she went straight in front of a couple of
>sheep-looking soldiers with guns at the ready. Pandemonium reigned. But
>the soldiers released the cars in a minute and removed the blocks from 
the
>road.
>
>When she branded General New Win as a fascist, she was put under house
>arrest from 20-7-89 to 10-7-95. In her absence, the leadership of NLD 
led
>the party to win a landslide victory in 1990 election. The victory of 
NLD
>was expression of non-violent political defiance of the entire people. 
In
>1991 she was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. Soon after that she 
received a
>number of prestigious international awards. She became the symbol of
>democracy, peace and struggle for human rights. 
>
>As soon as her release, she arranged weekend meetings with the people 
at
>the gate of her house. Thousands of people braved gathering to listen 
to
>her. She continued saying the truth. But she wisely criticized the
>policies and unjust deeds of the military rulers. However, after a 
couple
>of months, the meetings were barred. She organized annual celebrations 
at
>home, which was the sole place where NLD could exercise its political
>proceedings. She invited intellectuals and writers to speak to her 
party
>members. The entertainment troop, Anyein (4) from Mandalay, which
>celebrated the water festival at her house in 1996, was arrested. She 
and
>her senior colleagues tried to visit Mandalay to appear before court as
>witness. But they were not allowed to go. 
>
>The most daring decision made by NLD in November 1995 was to walk out 
of
>the sham National Convention which was to write a new constitution, 
that
>would allow the army permanent highest role in politics. Since then the
>National Convention was unable to continue. 
>
>As her phone line was continuously cut off, she tried to send her 
message
>to the world by various means. She wrote a series of "Letters from 
Burma"
>in the Mainichi dailies. She made numerous radio and video interviews. 
She
>sent the written, audio-recorded and video-recorded messages to the
>international conferences and meetings. She made exclusive interviews 
with
>foreign journalists and organizations. She regularly met with diplomats 
in
>Rangoon. She called the press conferences before the military junta 
did.
>She responded unfounded allegations.
>
>As restrictions and suppressions on NLD were increasing day and night, 
the
>party issued relevant statements. Although the NLD was allowed to use 
only
>a typewriter, it continued distributing the party instructions to 
township
>party offices. NLD wrote letters to the Chairman of the military regime
>expressing atrocities and unlawful acts upon the party. One of the
>examples was a letter written to General Than Shwe mentioning all
>atrocities, arrests, bringing down the party signboards through out the
>country. NLD keeps saying its legitimate right as the legal political
>party, which must have to organize meeting, to print party circulation 
and
>to meet its party members.
>
>When the executive members of NLD were once summoned by the junta, the
>military minister called the name of Aung San Suu Kyi as Daw Suu Kyi
>omitting the prefix of father. The NLD executive promptly corrected 
that
>there was no Daw Suu Kyi in NLD. The minister had to voice accordingly.
>
>The official statements of NLD were smuggled out of the country by 
various
>means. They were translated, printed and sent to concern organizations,
>UN, Amnesty International, UNHRC, UNHCR, Asia Watch etc. Many exile
>Burmese groups translated and published the letters, statements and
>messages of Aung San Suu Kyi and NLD and sneaked around Burma. The 
radio
>stations, RFA (5), BBC, VOA and DVB (6) are good source of information 
for
>the people of Burma where all newspaper, radio and TV stations are run
>only by the government and total censorship is strictly imposed.
>
>Aung San Suu Kyi called for a dialogue to solve the problems of the
>country. Whenever there is a chance she insisted calling the 
substantive
>dialogue with the military. But, in 1997, the NLD turned down to talk 
to
>the authorities, as the later wanted to exclude Aung San Suu Kyi. NLD
>clings to the principles and collective decision-making.
>
>Violence is not the right way
>Alen Clements wrote a book, "The Voice of Hope", which was an exclusive
>interview with Aung San Suu Kyi. In his book, she was introduced, 
"...Aung
>San Suu Kyi- recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize and numerous 
prestigious
>international awards for her courageous leadership in a non-violent
>struggle to bring justice, freedom and democracy to the people of 
Burma."
>"In her inspired campaign, Aung San Suu Kyi advanced in the foot steps 
of
>Mahatma Gandhi, Min Luther King, employing tactics of non-violence and
>civil disobedience in pursuit of democracy. Her essential message of
>self-responsibility, rooted in Buddhism, developed into a high-minded
>political ideology that she calls Burma's revolution of spirit."
>
>Alan Clements: I'm struck by the major distinction among leaders of
>non-violent political movements. There appear to be two basic paradigms 
of
>non-violence. One version is rooted in the belief in God; meaning that 
its
>power and inspiration come from a theistic or monotheistic 
understanding
>of universe, life and human kind as seen in the movements led by Martin
>Luther King, Mahatma Gandhi, Vaclav Havel and Nelson Mandela prior of 
his
>formation of Umkhonto (7). Each of these leaders, to a greater or 
lesser
>extent had conviction in either a Christian or a Hindu conception of
>existence. Where as the second version is rooted in the belief in 
anatta-
>the Buddhist concept of emptiness, or inter relatedness, without any
>permanent god, entity, or thing figure behind the evil. His Holiness 
the
>Dalai Lama of Tibet is one example. Another one is Vietnamese Buddhist
>monk, Thich Nhat Hahn who, as you may know, led a non -violent peace
>movement during the Vietnam war and was nominated for the Nobel Peace
>Price by Martin Luther King in 1968. And of course there's you, Aung 
San
>Suu Kyi, a dedicated Buddhist. When you look at these examples, all the
>theistic expressions of non-violence have been successful in their
>struggles, whereas the Buddhist have not been successful in bringing 
about
>political change - Thich Nhat Hahn admits this in his writings and the
>Dalai Lama states that 'time is quickly running out in Tibet'. While in
>your own struggle here in Burma, the results remain uncertain as SLORC
>repression tightens daily. May I ask you for your impressions on this
>distinction that I've raised?
>
>Aung San Suu Kyi: But in Vietnam, especially in South Vietnam, there 
are
>so many Christians, and so many of them were in key positions during 
the
>war. Ngo Dinh Diem was a Catholic. I think that's one of the reasons 
for
>the failure of the Buddhist movement, because there were so many
>non-Buddhists holding power. The Buddhist movement could not activate
>those who were crucial to the situation.
>
>AC: Well, coming back to the question, is there anything to be said 
about
>the conviction of those who have God in their souls vis a vis those who
>see anatta as their truth?
>
>ASSK: I wonder whether it isn't something more practical than that.
>Organized movements are essential to the way in which Christianity 
works.
>Their churches are organized that way, whereas Buddhism is not really
>organized around their monasteries. Although one might go to the local
>monastery, or have one's favorite monastery in which to worship, one 
does
>not necessarily stay confined to that one monastery only. It's not like
>Christians who go to the same church for years and years, and so doing
>develop congregational relationships. Perhaps your parents too went to 
the
>same church and you know a lot of people through your ongoing 
association
>with them. You also know what their parents were like and what
>affiliations they had. I think this is the way the base for organized
>movement is formed. I have often thought that this is probably one of 
the
>reasons why Christian-base political movements tend to take off quickly
>and efficiently. The organization is already there. Look at Latin 
America,
>you'll find that a lot of their political movements against the
>dictatorships, although they were not non-violent, were church-based,
>which made them take off rather quickly. Even in Islamic countries they
>have the mosque, which is formally organized, with regular mosque 
meetings
>taking place weekly. This sort of formal organization does not exit in
>Buddhist countries.
>
>AC: So obviously you don't think that the success of these movements 
had
>anything to do with convictions in God.
>
>ASSK: I think that it's just the fact that they can meet regularly. 
Even
>in India the government cannot say that Muslims must not go to the 
mosque.
>It would create such a reaction. They must allow them to go to the 
mosque,
>so they can always meet regularly a minimum of once a week. Whereas, 
where
>can Buddhists meet? If the Buddhist started meeting once a week at a
>particular monastery, the MI (8) would be on to them immediately to 
find
>out what the meeting was about. But you can't stop people from going to
>church. In the Eastern European countries they tried this but once the
>focus of Western countries was on them and they needed Western loans, 
they
>could not tell people any more: "Don't go to church." It was so in 
Poland.
>There was a great deal of church-based political activities.
>
>AC: But what about choosing violence out of compassion, if it's the 
right
>word, rather than using it as an option in stead of cowardice?
>
>ASSK: It depends on the situation and I think that in the context of 
Burma
>today, non-violent means are the best way to achieve our goals. But I
>certainly do not condemn those who fight the just fight, as it were. My
>father did, and I admire him greatly for it.
>
>AC: I know that in Western countries it's been very easy for a lot of 
us
>to see the military machine as a body for violent aggression. In so 
doing
>we often polarize them from ourselves, judging them as the antithesis 
of
>ahimsa or non-violence. But I wonder if there is a way not to divide so
>sharply those who use weapons justly from those who would never use
>violent means under any circumstances?
>
>ASSK: Take Burma for example, during the time of resistance against the
>Japanese. The Burma Army was born out of the people and was part of it.
>And certainly, during the time of the Japanese resistance, the people 
did
>not think the army as 'them' and of themselves as 'us'. Even after
>independence, as long as Burma was a democratic country, there was not
>this division between the military and the civilians. This 'them and 
us'
>syndrome came in after the military took over power and became an 
elite.
>The privileged and the unprivileged! That's is what all amounts to.
>Privilege because they've got guns, money or power and the others don't
>have any of those.
>
>Above-ground and under-ground organizations
>In Burma, since 1962, there was no non-governmental organization, which
>was free from government control. The government orchestrates all
>organizations including religious bodies. The students' Union was blown 
up
>by dynamite on 7-7-92. Since then the students movement went 
underground.
>The monk body (9) was restructured. That attempt divided the Sangha.
>Workers unions were totally dissolved and forced them to become
>underground. All anti-government movements were totally organized
>underground.
>
>In 1989, political parties mushroomed as the aboveground organizations,
>which are more important in non-violent struggle. But 230 political
>parties reduced to 70 in the wake of 1990 election. After the election 
the
>number became only 10 because they were vanished by force. More than 
100
>elected Members of Parliaments were ordered to resign. So some 
political
>parties, CNLD (10), ALD (11), UNLD (12), DPNS (13) and etc. went
>underground. So also some representatives to the internationally 
condemned
>National Convention went exile. About 20 elected MPs went exile and 
formed
>the parallel government, NCGUB (14) on 18-12-90.
>
>The Democratic Voice of Burma radio station comes into existence on
>19-7-93. The NCGUB opens offices in various friendly countries. 
Organizers
>and MP from NLD went exile and formed the NLD/LA (15). The armed ethnic
>groups joined with democratic forces under the name of NCUB (16). 
Numerous
>Burmese expatriates joined the pro-democracy groups. The NGOs from 
western
>countries are very much in support of the democracy struggle. The
>diplomatic efforts of the NCGUB exert international pressure on the
>military regime. The Free Burma Coalition based in the USA plays a role 
to
>impose sanctions by the US. The UN General Assembly passed resolutions 
on
>Burma since 1992 strongly against the human rights violations of 
various
>kinds. The Human Rights yearbook was printed every year by HRDU (17).
>
>Thailand and India are two neighboring countries, which provide shelter
>for the pro-democracy activists. The PDC (18) was key coalition for
>non-violent activities through the eastern border while the CNAB (19)
>operates from the western border of Burma. These two non-violent groups
>are coordinating and taking various nonviolent actions. Thousands of 
"From
>Dictatorship to Democracy (20) (by Gene Sharp) have been printed and
>imported into Burma. "Thought of Gandhi" was translated into Burmese 
and
>English and smuggled into Burma. The popular "Water Festival Songs and
>Chant" cassettes (21) were produced and distributed. Many inside people
>have been arrested and jailed for possession and distributing of those
>materials. The "Beyond Rangoon" film attracts many outside people who 
do
>not know much about Burma.
>
>Conclusion
>The non-violent struggle is going on and on. The military rulers dare 
not
>opening the Universities and Colleges, which were closed since 1996
>December when Rangoon University students staged a demonstration. 
Peasant
>protest in upper Burma in 1997 was a victory. Workers strike in Pegu in
>1997 met their demand. The monks' gathering in Mandalay was turned into
>anti-Muslim riots by the military intelligence. The campaign against
>"Visit Myanmar Year" was a success. The campaign against "No 
investment"
>under military rule is gaining momentum. Arms embargo, visa restriction
>and withdrawal of GSP by EU have impact. New investment sanction 
imposed
>by US is in force. The military regime turned to narcotic business to
>survive. SLORC (22) was dissolved by itself. It sacked its own 
generals.
>Power struggle inside them is immense. It is conceivable that soldiers,
>like in 1990 election, will turn to the side of people.
>
>* "The Buddha has said that good friendship is one of the greatest 
gifts
>of life. In our struggle for democracy in Burma we need more good 
friends
>- people who cherish freedom and desire to help us gain ours". [U Tin 
Oo
>(23)]
>
>* "But what I do fear is that I would be so weak that I would choose 
the
>easiest way out, lie around in bed all day and read some book on the
>collapse of yet another totalitarian regime..." [U Kyi Maung (24)]
>
>* "Burma should be helped at a time when help is needed. And one day we
>hope to be ourselves in a position to help others in need". [Aung San 
Suu
>Kyi]
>
>
>Tint Swe
>3-4-98
>
>Footnote:
>1 Saya San rebellion
>2 Thakin Pho Hla Gyi
>3 U Ne Win, U Sein Lwin and Dr. Maung Maung
>4 U Pa Pa Lay and U Lu Zaw were sentenced to 7 years on 18-3-96.
>5 Radio Free Asia
>6 Democratic Voice of Burma
>7 the military wing of the ANC's struggle in South Africa
>8 Military Intelligence
>9 Sanga Maganayaka
>10 Chin National League for Democracy (CNLD)
>11 Araken League for Democracy (ALD)
>12 United Nationalities League for Democracy (UNLD)
>13 Democratic Party of New Society (DPNS)
>14 National Coalition Government of the Union of Burma (NCGUB)
>15 National League for Democracy (Liberated Area)
>16 National Council of the Union of Burma (NCUB)
>17 Human Rights Documentation Unit (of NCGUB)
>18 Political Defiance Committee (PDC)
>19 Committee for Non-violence Action in Burma (CNAB)
>20 Printed by NLD/LA (West)
>21 Produced by CNAB
>22 State Law and Order Restoration Council became State Peace and
>Development Council on 15-11-97.
>23 The Vice-Chair of the National League for Democracy
>24 The Vice-Chair of the National League for Democracy
>
>
>
>
>
>


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