News from The Mon Forum, 1/98

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NEWS 1: The Hongsawatoi Destruction Day Celebration

The HongThe Hongsawatoi Destruction Day is celebrated in librated area of
NMSP by the members of the party and the MUL members also attended that
occasion.   The celebration has four objectives, such as,
(1) to remember the destruction of Mon kingdom Hongsawatoi and how the Mon
people became under the rule of colonial Burmese Kings,
(2) to review the current situation of the Mon people, 
(3) to encourage the whole Mon people, to maintain their moral and physical
support to the struggle for the libration of Mon people,
(4) to restore Monland.  
In the statement of the occasion, it also mentions that the Mon country was
destroyed by the Burmese king in 1757 and many thousands of innocent Mon
Buddhist monks, women and children were killed by Burmese king "Alongphya",
under his policy "Kyu pin khote kyu nyote ma kyan" (ethnic cleansing
campaign).   Because of this ethnic genocide, a half population of Mon
people fled from their beloved homeland and went into Thailand.   Since
then the Mon population in the Monland became lesser.   After the
occupation of the Mon country, the successive Burmese kings also adopted
Burmanization policy and have prohibited the teaching of Mon literature and
the speaking of Mon language in the whole Mon area.  Thus, the Mon
population became lesser and lesser, they were afraid to show their real
identiy.
The current Mon people are also suffered from various kind of human rights
abuses, such as conscription of forced labour, forced portering and forced
buying of paddy from Mon farmers.  Various kinds of taxation are also
permanently demanded by the authorities.   Politically, the Mon people are
prohibited for the rights to freedom of association under the leadership
inner Mon political party, Mon National Democratic Front (MNDF).
The ceremony was closed with three slogens as below:
(1) The Mon people must have unity,
(2) The genuine Monland must be occurred,
(3) The Mon revolutionary must get victory.
Additionally, this ceremony is also cerebrated in many places of Mon State
with secret plan of the local Mon people and monks.   
If the Mon people are not under the yoke of Burman colony, the Mon can
create a very prosperous Mon country under their wise rulers according to
their past experience.   

NEWS 2: The regime changed the name of Hongsawatoi

The current Pegu is historically well-known as "Hongsawatoi (Hanthawadee in
Burmese), the old capital of successive Mon dynastries.   The Mon wise
kings ruled the Mon people and because of rich national resources in lower
part of Burma, the Mons established a very properous country in their
homeland.   However, the Burmans who have less of natural resources have
always tried to destroy Mon countries and occupied it and stay there. 
The current military regime in Burma put attempts to make Hongsawatoi as an
unwell-known and try to refuse the real past hostorical background of the
Mon people.   Therefore, since 1997, it replaced the name of Hongsawatoi
with a new name "Kanbawzathadi".   It claimed that the new name was come
from the hostorical background of "Bayinnaung King", a well-known Burman
king, who occupied the Mon country by forces in their second attempt to
establish Burman empire.   
The second dynasty of Burman stayed and ruled in Pegu only about less than
one hundred and the new name was come up.   To refer to that temporary new
name during the Burman ruled the Monland, the current military gave this
new name.   This is also an attempt of Burmanization policy of the military
regime.   
While the military regime tried to discovered the palace of Bayinnaung
King, it gave this new name for Pegu and attempted to abolish the
historical recognition of the Mon people, which ruled their homeland for
many hundred years.