BurmaNet News, October 8, 2010

[Editor]

October 8, 2010 Issue #4059


INSIDE BURMA
Canadian Press: Myanmar court to hear Suu Kyi appeal request one month
before her anticipated release
Irrawaddy: USDP faces poll challenge despite one-horse race
Mizzima: Six-party coalition to join forces on ethnic issues
Kaladan Press: Incessant rains inundate northern Arakan

ON THE BORDER
Network Media Group: Over 500 workers denied salaries

INTERNATIONAL
CNN: Imprisoned Liu follows in footsteps of Suu Kyi, Sakharov
Kaladan Press: Japan urged to support UN commission of inquiry on Burma

OPINION / OTHER
Irrawaddy: Rare Suu Kyi material published in audio book – Alan Clements

INTERVIEW
Jane's Intelligence Review: Generation of '88, Kyaw Kyaw, NCUB director



____________________________________
INSIDE BURMA

October 8, The Canadian Press
Myanmar court to hear Suu Kyi appeal request one month before her
anticipated release

Yangon, Myanmar — With just weeks to go before Myanmar democracy leader
Aung San Suu Kyi's scheduled release, the High Court has agreed to hear
arguments from her lawyers on whether to hear their appeal against her
latest stint of house arrest, her lawyer said Friday.

The court's response comes five months after lawyers for Suu Kyi filed a
request to appeal her case with the Special Appellate Bench, a multi-judge
panel in the remote administrative capital of Naypyitaw. The Nobel Peace
Prize laureate has already lost two appeals against an August 2009
conviction.

Suu Kyi is due to be released on Nov. 13, a week after the country's first
elections in two decades. There is wide speculation the junta will release
Suu Kyi as an olive branch to the international community, which has been
critical of how the vote has been organized. A pro-junta party looks
certain to win.

If an appeal were to be accepted, the outcome could coincide with her
actual release.

"The High Court will hear arguments from both sides on Daw Aung San Suu
Kyi's special appeal on Oct. 18," her lawyer Nyan Win said. He said the
announcement was posted at the court Thursday evening.

The court will decide whether to forward the case to the judges in Naypyitaw.

The 65-year-old Suu Kyi's opposition party won the last elections in 1990,
but the results were ignored by the ruling military junta. She has been
under house arrest for 15 of the past 21 years.

Suu Kyi is barred from taking part in the upcoming elections and her party
is boycotting the vote.

In August 2009, she was convicted of violating the terms of her house
arrest for briefly sheltering an American who swam uninvited to her home,
and she was ordered to serve three years in prison with hard labour. The
sentence was reduced to 18 months.

The trial drew global condemnation and the ruling was widely viewed as
crafted to keep her detained through the elections.

____________________________________

October 8, Irrawaddy
USDP faces poll challenge despite one-horse race – Wai Moe

Although the junta has been pressuring people to vote for the Union
Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) in the November elections, the
ruling generals face a challenge since the junta’s proxy party has an
infamous reputation among the public.

According to  sources in Rangoon and other cities in Burma, even
pre-election polls within the USDP showed the party may face a challenge
from the former ruling party, the National Unity Party (NUP), which was
formerly known as the Burmese Socialist Programme Party (BSPP), and other
political parties such as the National Democratic Force (NDF), the Shan
Nationalities Democratic Party (SNDP), the Democratic Party (Myanmar)
(DP-Myanmar).

In a pre-election poll held in August among soldiers at military
headquarters and bases across the country, the top generals were surprised
to see the USDP being beaten by their predecessors, the NUP, military
sources said.

The pre-election polls in the military came just a few days before the
Burmese junta, the State Peace and Development Council headed by Snr-Gen
Than Shwe, executed a major military reshuffle at the end of August.

More than a dozen generals, including junta No.3 Gen Shwe Mann and
secretary-1 Gen Tin Aung Myint Ooယ were ordered to retire from their
military posts to become candidates in the elections.

Despite the reshuffle, however, the generals are still struggling to get
more public support for the USDP, observers said.

“Former Maj-Gen Aung Kyi of the USDP, the current labor minister, will
compete against veteran politician U Thu Wai , leader of the Democratic
Party (Myanmar) in Mingalartaungnyunt Township in Rangoon,” said an editor
with a private weekly in Rangoon speaking anonymously. “When they held
separate public meetings recently, more people attended to Thu Wai's talk
than his opponent's.”

Although the USDP is facing many different rivals in large cities like
Rangoon and Mandalay, “pro-democracy” candidates from different political
parties cannot really threaten the junta’s  plan for the USDP to secure
the election across the country as only two parties—the USDP and NUP—are
running in most of  constituencies.

While the USDP will contest in all 1,171 constituencies, except for some
so-called insecure places in border areas, for the lower house and upper
houses of parliament as well as regional parliaments, the NUP is scheduled
to run in 999 constituencies.

Unlike the 1990 elections, other political parties do not have capacity to
contest the current military junta-backed USDP and the former regime party
of the NUP. The NDF will contest in 161 constituencies, the SNDP in 156
and the DP-Myanmar in 47.

“The junta does not have to create false votes for the USDP as it made
sure from the beginning that there would be no major rivals in the polls,”
said a political reporter in Rangoon speaking on condition of anonymity.
“Even if other parties won in the elections, their seats would only amount
to around 10 percent of the parliaments, and the USDP has 172 candidates
more than its main rival, the NUP.”

“Though the NUP’s coverage is about 97 percent of all constituencies, they
are not as infamous as the USDP and could mount a challenge. However, with
a lead of 172 constituencies, the USDP can almost declare victory in what
is really a one-horse race,” the reporter said.

Tough campaigning by the USDP has also been reported in ethnic areas. The
All Mon Regions Democracy Party (AMRDP) said the USDP is facing a dilemma
after trying to force people to vote for them.

“They have organized people in some villages since the beginning of the
election campaign, but people no longer want to liste to their speeches
and seem less afraid of their threats,” said Nai Ngwe Thein, chairman of
the AMRDP.

The USDP was transformed from the junta’s mass organization, the Union
Solidarity and Development Association (USDA) in April. The USDA was
formed in 1993 one year after Than Shwe succeed the late Snr-Gen Saw Maung
as the junta head.

Since then, the USDA has been infamous among Burmese people as a tool of
junta suppression, including the deadly attack on pro-democracy leader
Aung San Suu Kyi’s convoy near Depayin in May 2003, as well as the brutal
crackdowns on monks and demonstrators throughout September 2007.

The USDP has been using state resources in development projects and social
activities in contravention of the election law in an attempt to improve
its public image during the election campaign.

Irrawaddy Reporter Lawi Weng contributed to this story.

____________________________________

October 8, Mizzima News
Six-party coalition to join forces on ethnic issues – Salai Tun

Six Rangoon-based political parties have agreed to increase co-operation
ahead of next month’s general election in the hope of enhancing their
prospects at the polls.

Around 30 leaders representing the Union Democratic Party (UDP), National
Democratic Force (NDF), Rakhine Nationalities Development Party (RNDP),
Shan Nationalities Democratic Party (SNDP), Chin National Party and
Democracy and Peace Party on October 2 formally entered into the alliance.

Details of the pact were disclosed yesterday. A key component of the
common platform is support for the right to self-determination for Burma’s
numerous ethnic groups.

“We will co-operate fully with ethnic people. We respect their right to
self-determination and will promote racial equality. Candidates from our
alliance will band together in conducting electoral campaigns,” NDF party
leader Khin Maung Swe told Mizzima.

He added: “In the future, we will co-operate to introduce a system in
which ruling power and law-making power can maintain the balance of power.
We will co-operate in working for the people in the future parliament. We
also agreed to establish joint negotiation and management committees.”

Symbolising the spirit of co-operation, NDF and UDP leaders, including
Khin Maung Swe and UDP secretary Thein Tin Aung, each attended the opening
ceremonies of both parties’ offices in Pegu (Bago) Division yesterday
morning.

“A NDF office was opened in Pegu. The UDP also opened an office in Pegu.
An American diplomat attended the ceremonies,” Khin Maung Swe added.

The six parties intend to field a total of 396 candidates to contest the
election on November 7.
____________________________________

October 8, Kaladan Press
Incessant rains inundate northern Arakan

Incessant rains yesterday night flooded large areas of Maungdaw and
Buthidaung townships in northern Arakan State, said sources in Maungdaw.

It is the second time this year that Arakan State has been hit by
torrential rains, and a resident of Shweza village said recent storms have
left many paddy fields flooded.

Officials have yet to say whether any areas have been affected by
landslides or if there have been any deaths from the floods, though two
fishermen were reported missing after they went to retrieve their fish
traps during the storm.

A municipal official from Maungdaw said only the main road, market and
mosque had so far escaped the flood waters, but that most of the township
and surrounding villages had been affected by the flooding.

“Water has crossed over the Maungdaw-Buthidaung road near block number 4,
and the Maungdaw general hospital is now under water,” the official said.

“If the waters don’t recede, residents will face problems in terms of
health, food and access to clean water.”

A teacher from Maungdaw said rural villagers began moving to higher ground
during the night for fear of the damage caused by flooding earlier this
year in which more than 100 people died and more than 10,000 were
displaced by torrential rains and landslides on June 14.

Others have complained that families in ground-level homes have been
forced to take shelter with other families living on the upper floors of
houses and apartments.

An elder in Maungdaw said that little help has been offered to affected
residents.

“Last year there was similar rainfall, but there was no flooding. Maybe
the water has not been able to flow to the sea because authorities have
been building embankments along the river in order to build fences,” the
elder said.

A labourer from Maungdaw also expressed concern about the embankment fences.

“If there were no fences on the embankment, there would be no flooding. If
the floods continue, what will happen to Maungdaw?”

____________________________________
ON THE BORDER

October 8, Network Media Group
Over 500 workers denied salaries – Zaw Gyi

Salaries of over 500 Burmese workers of a fishing net factory, who wanted
to quit has been deducted by the factory in-charge in Khong Khan town, on
the Thai-Laos border.

Burmese workers in the Ditchar Phannic fishing net factory wanted to quit
their jobs on 5 September because they were being harassed by the worker
in-charge of the factory and had no labour rights.

The factory in-charge agreed to their request but stopped their salaries,
Ko Tun Tun, a Burmese worker, said.

"The management pasted a notice on the board on the evening of 6
September, which said our request was communicated to the labour office.
Workers would have to leave the factory at 9 am on 7 September. The salary
would be delivered to the Immigration office. The factory in-charge lied
that he had already given salaries to 569 workers," Ko Tun Tun said.

The factory management did not tell us we had to leave immediately when we
made our request. The workers have faced a lot of problems and are worried
about being sent back by Thai immigration officers.

"At 3 am yesterday factory guards kept us at gun point and fired in the
sky," Ko Tun Tun said.

According to Thai labour laws, workers must take their salary from the
owner, Ko Nit from Migrant Assistance Program (MAP) said.

"There are labour laws in this country. Workers get salary from their work
place. They don't need to take the salary from the immigration office," Ko
Nit said.

Workers said they would leave the factory after they get their documents
and salaries, Ko Tun Tun said.

If a worker wants to change jobs he has to take legal transfer documents
from the owner.

About 1,000 workers demonstrated in this factory last September demanding
labour rights. At that time, workers had to work from 8 am to 8 pm on a
salary of 170 baht per day.

Even though the factory owner agreed to timings from 8 am to 5 pm at 157
bahts per day he violated the agreement later. Currently, the factory
owner has to pay an average salary of 4000 baht to each worker.

____________________________________
INTERNATIONAL

October 8, CNN
Imprisoned Liu follows in footsteps of Suu Kyi, Sakharov – Simon Hooper

The award of the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize to Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo
follows an occasional precedent of recognizing human rights campaigners
who are either imprisoned or subjected to state restrictions or
harassment.

In announcing the prestigious award, Norwegian Nobel Committee President
Thorbjoern Jagland cited Liu for his "his long and non-violent struggle
for fundamental human rights in China." Liu is currently serving an
11-year jail sentence in China for inciting subversion of state power.

Reacting to the award, Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Mao
Zhaoxu said Liu was a "convicted criminal" whose actions had been "in
complete contradiction to the purpose of the Nobel Peace Prize."

Unless Liu is released to collect his prize in Oslo in December, he will
join a short list of laureates including Myanmar pro-democracy leader Aung
San Suu Kyi and Soviet dissident Andrei Sakharov who have been unable to
receive their medal in person.

Suu Kyi was awarded the prize in 1991 for her "non-violent struggle for
democracy and human rights" one year after her pro-democracy party won a
landslide win in national elections. But the result was suppressed by the
country's military rulers. Suu Kyi was placed under house arrest and has
remained in detention for most of the time since then.

Her acceptance speech was delivered by her son, Alexander Aris, who said:
"It is my deepest hope that... the ruling junta may yet heed such appeals
to basic humanity as that which the Nobel Committee has expressed in its
award of this year's prize."

Myanmar's leaders said earlier this month that Suu Kyi would be released
in November days after the country's first elections in two decades. But
Suu Kyi's lawyers have expressed skepticism about the junta's pledge.

Sakharov, a Soviet nuclear physicist turned human rights campaigner, won
the award in 1975 but wasn't allowed to leave the Soviet Union to collect
his prize. Instead, his acceptance speech was read by his wife, Elena
Bonner Sakharova.

"I beg you to remember that the honor which was thus granted to me is
shared by all prisoners of conscience in the Soviet Union and in other
Eastern European countries as well as by all those who fight for their
liberation," Sakharova said, on behalf of her husband.

In 1979 Sakharov was exiled to the closed city of Gorky, now Nizhny
Novgorod, and lived under constant state surveillance until his return to
Moscow in 1986 as Mikhail Gorbachev's policy of perestroika saw many
dissidents freed.

In 2009, Norwegian Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Store raised concerns about
the treatment of Iranian Nobel Peace laureate Shirin Ebadi, claiming that
the 2003 winner's medal had been confiscated by the Tehran regime. Norway
also claimed Ebadi's husband had been arrested and severely beaten.

But Iran denied confiscating the medal, and said Ebadi was the subject of
a tax evasion probe.

Ebadi received the prize for her focus on human rights, especially on the
struggle to improve the status of women and children. Following the arrest
of her sister, she told CNN earlier this year that she said she had been
warned to stop her human rights activities.

"In the past six months they have put significant pressure on me as well
as on members of my family; my husband, my brother and my sister, who were
summoned on several occasions to the intelligence ministry and told that
if I did not cease my human rights activities they would be arrested."

Argentinean human rights campaigner Adolfo Esquivel was awarded the Nobel
Peace Prize in 1980 after spending more than a year in prison without
trial between 1977 and 1978. He was cited for raising awareness about the
"dirty war" carried out by Argentina's military rulers which saw thousands
of political opponents "vanish without trace," according to the Nobel
Prize website.

In 1960, the Nobel Committee awarded the peace prize to the then-president
of the African National Congress, Albert Lutuli, for his work opposing
South Africa's apartheid regime.

Lutuli spent almost a year in detention between 1956 and 1957 on treason
charges which were later dropped. A series of travel bans confined Lutuli
to a 15-mile radius around his home and in 1960 he was arrested and given
a suspended jail sentence for publicly burning his identity papers in a
gesture of solidarity with demonstrators killed in the Sharpeville
massacre.

Lutuli's ANC comrade, Nelson Mandela, imprisoned from 1964 until 1990, had
to wait until after his release to win the Nobel Peace Prize, sharing the
honor with apartheid South Africa's last president F.W. de Klerk, for the
pair's work in ending racial segregation.

Anti-Nazi campaigner and journalist Carl von Ossietzky was the first Nobel
Peace laureate to be awarded the prize while in prison in Germany in the
mid-1930s. Von Ossietzky had already served a seven-month jail term
between 1931 and 1932 for betraying military secrets after publishing an
article revealing details of Germany's secret rearmament.

In February 1933, with Hitler consolidating his grip on power, von
Ossietzky was arrested by secret police and imprisoned, first in Berlin
and then in concentration camps at Sonnenburg and Esterwegen-Papenburg
where fellow prisoners said he was forced to perform heavy labor despite
suffering a heart attack.

Having been cited for the peace prize for 1935, Berlin refused to release
him to collect the award in 1936 and demanded that he decline the honor,
which Von Ossietzky refused to do. Suffering from tuberculosis he remained
in captivity and then in hospital under surveillance until his death in
1938.

According to the Nobel Prize website, Von Ossietzky's last public
appearance was at a court hearing at which his lawyer was sentenced to two
years hard labor for embezzling most of his prize money.

____________________________________

October 8, Kaladan Press
Japan urged to support UN commission of inquiry on Burma – Tin Soe

The Burmese Rohingya Association of Japan (BRAJ) has urged Japan to back
the establishment of an International Commission of Inquiry on Burma by
supporting a resolution on Burma to be presented at the autumn session of
the UN General Assembly, said BRAJ President Zaw Min Htut.

BRAJ members met senior officers at the Foreign Ministry in Tokyo on
October 4 to appeal to the Japanese government to support the proposed
commission.

BRAJ“The Japanese government should publicly and officially support the
establishment of an international commission of inquiry into human rights
violations and crimes against humanity committed against Rohingya and
other ethnic minority people in Burma,” the group stated in a letter to
Japanese Foreign Minister Seiji Maehara.

A press release issued by BRAJ following the meeting in Tokyo said the
group had also submitted documents to the foreign minister related to
human rights violations and inhuman acts perpetrated against Rohingyas by
the Burmese military, which amounted to crimes against humanity.

The BRAJ letter to Seiji Maehara outlined the growing support for an
inquiry into human rights abuses by Burma’s ruling junta against Rohingya
in Arakan State.

“These calls have strengthened following the March 2010 report of the
special rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Burma, Tomas Ojea
Quintana, to the UN Human Rights Council, which recommended the UN to
consider the possibility of establishing a Commission of Inquiry. Former
UN special rapporteurs Paulo Sergio Pinheiro and Yozo Yokota, also support
the establishment of an International Commission of Inquiry,” the letter
stated.

“Establishing an International Commission of Inquiry would be a major step
toward ending the cycle of human rights violations against Rohingyas and
other ethnic minority peoples and end impunity in Burma,” said BRAJ’s Zaw
Min Htut.

BRAJ has further urged Japan to join the growing numbers of nations that
have expressed support for the commission, including the United Kingdom,
France, Canada, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Netherlands, the United
States, Australia and New Zealand.
Burma has been ruled by an oppressive military regime since 1962 and has
one of the worst human rights records in the world, according to numerous
reports. Critics charge that the State Peace and Development Council has
perpetrated numerous inhuman acts including rape, murder, torture, forced
labour, forced relocation, forcible recruitment of child soldiers, the
destruction of villages, and the expulsion of villagers from their homes.

Critics further charge that these acts are widespread throughout Burma as
well as in northern Arakan State, where ethnic Rohingyas are concentrated.

A report titled “Crimes against Humanity in Western Burma: The Situation
of the Rohingyas” from June 2010 by the Irish Centre for Human Rights in
Galway stated that Rohingyas in western Burma have been the victim of
human rights violations amounting to crimes against humanity.

The report concluded that for decades the Rohingyas of northern Arakan
State have suffered grave rights violations, which have prompted more men,
women and children to flee Burma in the hope of finding peace and security
elsewhere.

The Irish Centre for Human Rights said the report was based on extensive
research conducted during fact-finding missions in Burma, Thailand and
Bangladesh by experts in international criminal investigation.

On July 30, a bipartisan group of 32 US senators, led by Dianne Feinstein
(D-California) and Judd Gregg (R-New Hampshire),  submitted a letter to
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton calling for the US government “to
support the establishment of a UN-led Commission of Inquiry to investigate
crimes against humanity and war crimes” in Burma.

The previous month, nearly 60 members of the US House of Representatives
wrote a letter to President Barack Obama urging him to take action on
Burma in the UN Security Council.

Since last May, the US Campaign for Burma has organized campaigns and
rallied thousands of free Burma activists to send emails to President
Obama urging him to support the UN-led commission of inquiry on Burma.

International support for the commission has continued to grow, according
to the human rights NGO Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW).

CSW wrote to the European Union foreign ministers to call on the EU to
secure a recommendation for the commission of inquiry at the forthcoming
UN General Assembly.

“We urge other governments and the EU to join the 10 countries in building
an international coalition to establish a UN Commission of Inquiry,” said
Benedict Rogers, CSW’s East Asia team leader and author of Than Shwe:
Unmasking Burma’s Tyrant.

“A full international legal investigation into the regime’s widespread and
systematic use of rape as a weapon of war, forcible conscription of child
soldiers, use of forced labour, torture, destruction of villages and
killings is much-needed and long overdue. The crisis in eastern Burma is
Asia’s Darfur and cannot be ignored any longer,” Rogers said.

____________________________________
OPINION / OTHER

October 8, Irrawaddy
Rare Suu Kyi material published in audio book – Alan Clements

Twenty years after Aung San Suu Kyi’s internationally recognized 1990
election victory, as the peoples’ choice to lead Burma into a new era of
democracy and prosperity after four decades of totalitarianism and terror,
Burma’s democratically elected leader remains locked away. She has now
completed 12 years of house arrest, one of  more than 2,100 fellow
political prisoners, including 262 Buddhist monks and nuns, leaders of
Burma’s 2007 “Saffron Revolution.”

These courageous pro-democracy activists are not alone in their
incarceration. Burma is a network of prisons within a prison—an entire
population held hostage by its own army, which is a military machine of
400,000 soldiers that acts more like a terrorist organization than an
honorable institution.

The commander of this resource-rich nation is Snr-Gen Than Shwe, a
seemingly heartless, xenophobic tyrant whose singular preoccupation is
power. Foreign Policy magazine recently ranked the “vainglorious general”
third among the world’s worst dictators, edged out of the top spots only
by  Kim Jong Il of North Korea and Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe.

Although Than  Shwe openly declares he is a devout follower of Buddhism,
the basis of which are ahimsa (harmlessness) and hiri and ottappa (moral
shame and conscious regret), he seems devoid of both conscience and
compassion.

Over the past 20 years, under his command, more than 3,000 villages in the
border areas of the country have been ethnically cleansed. More than a
million refugees have fled into neighboring Thailand, Malaysia and
Bangladesh. Dozens of Buddhist monasteries have been laid waste, their
clergy beaten, gone missing or killed. And within the numerous prisons and
forced labor camps unremitting torture is routine.

Such atrocities and many others have been routinely documented by
governments, the United Nations, and Amnesty International. Burma is a
hell-hole for human rights, and Than Shwe is decidedly one of the most
ruthless dictators in the modern era.

It is no mystery why the general is afraid of “The Lady,” as Suu Kyi is
often called. During Suu Kyi’s rare periods of freedom, when traveling the
country, tens of thousands of admirers would often spontaneously gather to
glimpse her—whereas Than Shwe is forced to travel in an armored vehicle
surrounded by truckloads of soldiers.

Suu Kyi’s father, Gen Aung San, who negotiated Burma’s independence from
Britain, founded the very army that Than Shwe has now high-jacked.

The battle of dictatorship versus democracy in Burma is an epic one. It is
 a battle between Suu Kyi’s love of freedom and Than Shwe’s fear of it.
Within this archetypal context we have the international community’s
escalating call to the International Criminal Court to charge this
despotic general with war crimes and crimes against humanity.

Meanwhile, Than Shwe scheduled a nationwide general election for November
7 this year. Condemned by almost every world leader, Than Shwe’s sham is
designed to legalize military rule in Burma under a 2008 constitution,
which was written to create an eternal military dictatorship. In other
words, a transparent attempt is being made to enshrine Than Shwe’s
totalitarian control over Burma under the guise of a so-called civilian
government formed by acting and retired generals and, of course,
politically cleansed of opposition voices.

Essentially, this pseudo-government will be under the Orwellian control of
the country’s military chief, aka “Big Brother” Than Shwe, and the people
of Burma will become the permanent subjects of the military.

Many say that history has proved that tyrants fall. But does Than Shwe
face this fate?  His wealth is enormous, thanks to his control over oil,
gas, and timber reserves. He has one of the largest standing armies in the
world. He has big trading partners in his pocket, including Thailand,
Singapore, China, South Korea, India and Russia.

In my study of Burma’s ancient culture—one steeped in the teachings of the
Buddha—we find a recurring principle: cause and effect. In short, good
causes lead to good effects and vice versa. The vast majority of people in
Burma understand this principle as the operating system that determines
both harmonious and negative relationships.

As a Buddhist, Than Shwe knows this principle but is clearly misguided in
its application. Than Shwe operates within a temple of illusions; a form
of megalomania known in Buddhist terminology as moha. As Goethe once said,
“There is nothing more frightening than active ignorance.” That’s moha.
That’s Than Shwe.

The wise, it is said, know that true change can only come from within. Suu
Kyi calls this principle “a revolution of the spirit.” She states that for
self-responsibility to be genuine “one must first learn to free their own
mind from greed, anger and delusion before there can be any real and
lasting change in society.”

Not long ago, Suu Kyi was able to leak a message to the world. She called
on the people of her country to boycott Shwe’s sham election. She told
them not to vote, and also encouraged them to explain to others the
importance of not voting. Her words speak to a collective act of
conscience. Even the military can participate in the boycott and not vote.
The whole country can stay home on November 7 and leave the ballot boxes
empty. This is Suu Kyi’s nonviolent activism. It is an example of using
the power of conscience and choice, not violence or a gun.

Those of us on the outside have the opportunity to utilize our moral
courage and stand in solidarity with three things. The first is with a
boycott of the election within Burma. Second, we can support the
international call for the immediate release of Suu Kyi and all other
political prisoners, including the monks and nuns. Third, we can join her
courageous call for dialogue and reconciliation with her oppressors.

In a world addicted to weapons and war, Suu Kyi’s message of achieving
freedom through non-violent means rings louder today than ever. It is a
message for the planet.

As a former Buddhist monk in Burma, and later a journalist and author, I
had the good fortune of co-authoring a book of conversations with Suu Kyi
in 1995 and 1996, soon after her release from her first six years of
detention. “The Voice of Hope,” (published in 11 languages) provides not
only an unprecedented glimpse into the heart and mind of one of the
world’s most courageous spiritual and political leaders, it offers the
global community an impassioned call to action.

More recently, over 50 hours of recordings previously believed lost in
Burma have been recovered. Combined with existing materials, this
unprecedented archival collection of audio, video footage and still images
(perhaps the largest collection in the world) of  Suu Kyi and her key
colleagues and mentors reveals these heroic freedom fighters reflecting on
the politics of liberation, within Suu Kyi’s Rangoon home, the very heart
of Burma’s revolution.

This timeless material, once restored (some was damaged from being buried
in a forest for the past 15 years), will be used to create an enhanced
interactive multimedia edition of “The Voice of Hope,” which will include
key sections of audio, video, photographs, and interviews that have never
been heard or seen. They document Suu Kyi’s innermost philosophical,
spiritual and political views, as well as those of her key colleagues,
mentors, and teachers, as they inform what many consider to be one of the
most inspiring spiritually-oriented non-violent political revolutions
ever.

To assist in the production of this extraordinary project, the restoration
of the recordings is crucial. A restoration expert who has done
considerable work for the Smithsonian Institute estimated the cost at
approximately US $ $30,000, with an additional $70,000 needed to produce
the materials for our intended purposes.

Towards this goal, over the last year, “The Voice of Hope” has been
professionally recorded and the 13 hour long unabridged audio book is
available for instant download on a computer, iPod or MP3 player. Beyond
the basic cost of the download, additional contributions will go towards
the realization of this important project to preserve an interactive
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INTERVIEW

October 8, Jane's Intelligence Review
Generation of '88, Kyaw Kyaw, NCUB director

A director of the National Council of the Union of Burma tells Samuel
Blythe that he remains optimistic about the prospects for democracy in
Myanmar but mindful of the challenges ahead.
The decision by Myanmar's ruling military junta to call the country's
first general elections on 7 November, the first in 20 years, has received
a cold welcome from the opposition and activist community. Kyaw Kyaw, a
member of the pro-democracy '88 generation student protest group, views
the forthcoming elections as "a booby trap rather than a boon for
democracy". He told Jane's : "If we cannot resist this process, the
military will legitimise itself through the constitution and further
consolidate its power. If this happens, we may find ourselves facing sham
elections again in 2015 and even 2020."

This is not the view of all Myanmar observers. An assemblage of local
politicians, activists, businessmen and some aid groups argue that even a
sham democracy is better than nothing and that calling elections could
mark the first stage in a journey towards democracy, albeit prolonged.
Kyaw Kyaw believes small political parties can only hope to win one or two
seats in the legislature, where they will be "swamped" by
government-controlled parties, while military delegates automatically
receive a quarter of seats. He also believes the regime has handpicked
candidates, "preferring businessmen to politicians, even pro-military
politicians" because they will look to business interests rather than
their constituency and feel beholden to the military for favours.

Kyaw Kyaw is realistic about his ability to engineer a boycott. Although
he draws on a network of activists, the opposition forces are weak, having
been routed by the military in 2007 when it suppressed countrywide
protests and incarcerated more than 1,000 suspected political operatives.
Kyaw Kyaw told Jane's: "All we can do is to educate the public about the
flaws in the 2008 constitution, the elections and the implications for
their future, and future generations."
Domestic defiance

With the efficacy of the exiled opposition movement in question,
governments and aid agencies are increasingly diverting democracy funds to
in-country programmes designed to support civil society. Although he
foresees a tightening of funds, Kyaw Kyaw believes the exiled opposition
will remain relevant "as long as we can prove we have the capacity to
impact the inside movement".
He is sceptical that foreign agencies can directly promote democracy. Kyaw
Kyaw said: "The military closely monitors and manipulates foreign aid
agencies. When activists work with them, they are exposed, and come under
heightened íscrutiny, making it impossible to work effectively."

At the same time, Kyaw Kyaw openly acknowledges that the movement suffers
from a range of problems, including a lack of strategic planning and "a
common mission, goal and a vision of tomorrow". He also believes that
exiled dissidents are often marginalised by their outside perspective. He
said: "They have been indoctrinated in the language of democracy and human
rights, so their language does not match with what average people inside
the country are thinking about. Real change both within the opposition and
within the regime will come from empowering the bottom to rise up and to
fight rather than from a superficial quick-fix at the top."

Coming storm

Kyaw Kyaw has a varied tactical repertoire drawn from the non-violent
methods advocated by the Albert Einstein Institution. Although he believes
a countrywide uprising may be needed to topple the regime, he noted that
"street protests are only one of 198 methods of non-violent defiance".
Chief among his tactics is to strategically 'push' the junta to reform,
while 'pulling' out its supporters and fostering internal dissent.

Chief among Kyaw Kyaw's targets is the military. He claims he has
penetrated the institution and is undermining it from within. Pointing to
entrenched staffing and morale problems, and the military's failure to
modernise, Kyaw Kyaw believes that "vertical and horizontal power
struggles are likely to emerge among the top brass, as well as the rank
and file". He said: "One might think that high ranking officers are
enjoying their positions but they realise that they are being used."

Kyaw Kyaw is hopeful that factions within the military will again take up
the mantle for reform. In 1988, military units joined protests, and
several former high ranking army officers joined opposition leader Aung
San Suu Kyi to form the National League for Democracy, which went on to
win elections but was prevented by the junta from taking power. Kyaw Kyaw
is also working to embolden citizens to confront the government on
pressing social concerns. He believes if enough people demand better
governance the military will ultimately be overwhelmed and collapse.
This may seem an ambitious agenda, particularly given the junta's tight
control over society.

However, Kyaw Kyaw is confident that civil movements are preparing
themselves for potential opportunities for change. He said: "We are
building for another round of mass mobilisation that will eventually lead
to real change in the country."