Today, as we Filipinos remember the declaration of Martial Law in the Philippines, we also express solidarity with the Burmese and ethnic peoples of Burma who have been under military regimes for 42 years. The military junta in Burma continuous to commit monumental lies infront of the international community. Its promised political reforms have not materialized and human rights continue to be violated, among them rape, forced labor policies, use of child soldiers, child labor, forced relocation and arbitrary arrests and detention of human rights activists. Systematic harassment and brutal persecution are still being used to weaken the opposition.
Love of freedom, unity and democracy are lessons we Filipinos learned from Martial Law. Our style of democracy has been the envy of nations, including the two EDSA “People Power” revolts that we staged against undemocratic or corrupt presidents.
But 2,673 kms away from the Philippines is another remaining dictatorial regime. Like the former martial law regime in the Philippines, the ruling State Peace and Order Council in Burma supresses fundamental human rights, silences legitimate dissent and treat its political opposition as enemies of the state.
Today, as we Filipinos remember the declaration of Martial Law in the Philippines, we also express solidarity with the Burmese and ethnic peoples of Burma who have been under military regimes for 42 years. The military junta in Burma continuous to commit monumental lies infront of the international community. Its promised political reforms have not materialized and human rights continue to be violated, among them rape, forced labor policies, use of child soldiers, child labor, forced relocation and arbitrary arrests and detention of human rights activists. Systematic harassment and brutal persecution are still being used to weaken the opposition.
Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, the leader of the Burmese democratic opposition National League for Democracy (NLD) is still under house arrest despite the clamor of the international community for her unconditional release.
To put on a facade of democratic reforms, the SPDC sponsored last May a bogus National Convention that would draft a constitution and lead to national elections next year. But the convention was composed mostly of delegates handpicked by the SPDC and its preceedings were dismissed as undemocratic by the international community.
Now the junta generals are pushing for their participation in the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) to be held in Hanoi, Vietnam next month. Sad is the fact that the EU, formerly the fiercest critic of Burma, have already agreed to rub elbows with the Burmese generals in ASEM.
For human rights advocates around the world who believe in putting pressures on the military government in Burma to exact reforms inside Burma, allowing the generals to join the ASEM meeting is a step backward.
Still, we challenge the EU and all the participants in the October meeting to use ASEM as a venue to confront Burma over its continuous human rights violations. The participants should go beyond detailing economic cooperation, and put on the table for discussion the junta’s poor human rights record. Needless to say, “corporate greed” should not rule over the supposed social and political responsibility of other nations in Burma.
We also call on the Philippine government and the other ASEAN members to support a genuine tripartite dialogue in Burma and put more pressures on the SPDC to undertake significant political reforms.
More than forty years of military dictatorship in Burma is enough. With the growing number of movements and organizations supporting Burma’s struggle for democracy and justice and the unrelenting struggle of Burma’s own people to reclaim civilian power, we cannot see the junta surviving another 42 years.
We believe that the lesson of 14 years of Martial Law in the Philippines will also be played out in Burma. When the Burmese people finally learn to stand on their own, then the generals in Rangoon will have no more choice but to bend to their people’s will.
Recent Comments