1998 Eyewitness: 'I still remember

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Eyewitness: 'I still remember the sound of gunfire' 



           Aye Chang Naing was a student in Burma in 1988
           and took part in the demonstrations ten years ago.
           After the military crackdown he was forced to flee
           the country and now lives in Norway where he is
           the news editor for the Voice of Democratic Burma
           radio service. 

           These are his memories of those events: 


                     It was first frustration, pain and anger
                     that burst into explosion, then there
                     were hopes and dreams and finally,
                     we were left with permanent scars. 

                     I still vividly remember the sound of
           gun fire, people shouting for help, smoke from the
           crematorium chimney and the swearing of evil men
           during the summer of 1988 that claimed the lives of
           thousands of peaceful demonstrators. 

           I was a final year dentistry student. 


                          In March, the students from
                          Rangoon University staged
                          the first demonstration inside
                          the campus. I was there. 

                          'Beaten to death' 

                          I went back to my college to
                          inform my colleagues. When
                          I returned, I saw hundreds of
                          soldiers surrounding the
                          campus and I saw students
                          running away and crying. 

           Around 100 students were beaten to death or drowned in
           the lake that afternoon. I felt great pain and anger. 


                     The government may not feel the pain
                     that stays inside the mind of the
                     students but everybody knew that
                     once the universities were reopened,
                     the students would be there to stage
                     another anti-government
                     demonstration. 

                     Two days after the universities were
           reopened, there were widespread demonstrations at
           various universities and campuses throughout Rangoon. 


                          'Brutally crushed' 

                          It lasted for little more than
                          two weeks and it was brutally
                          crushed. 

                          There was more frustration,
                          more pain and more anger. 

                          It was 8th August 1988 that
                          the frustration exploded in
                          millions of Burmese
                          throughout the country. 

           The killings, shootings and beatings could not really help
           the military to end the demonstrations any longer. 

           Perhaps thousands were killed during those few days
           but it did not matter any more - the most important thing
           was to get rid of the government. 


                          'Hopes and dreams were
                          dashed' 

                          There was joy and hope once
                          the troops withdrew from the
                          streets. People from all
                          walks of life demonstrated,
                          demanding an end to
                          26-years of one party military
                          rule. 

                          In September 1988, these
                          hopes and dreams were
                          dashed. Thousands of army
           trucks and tanks rolled into the cities and towns. 

           The sound of gunfire day and night made it seem like the
           country was in the midst of civil war. 


                          Hospitals were filled with
                          dead bodies and injured
                          demonstrators. Smoke came
                          out from chimneys at the city
                          crematoriums almost
                          continuously. That left
                          permanent scars among
                          many citizens of Burma. 

                          I left a note to my parents,
                          saying that I'll be gone for few
                          months. 

                          Then I left my home
           immediately. 

           From Rangoon to Thailand, it took me about two weeks:
           first by bus, by foot, then by boat and then by bus again.

           I arrived in Thailand in September. It was ten years ago. 

           Like most students who left from Burma at that time, I
           did not think I would be in exile for ten years but the
           memory of 1988 is still like something that happened
           yesterday.