Saturday, June 17, 2006

Aung San Suu Kyi's birthday

I don't know what a "self arrest" is but it'd be terrific if this proposed protest became a tidal wave of opposition to what's been happening for Aung San Suu Kyi and all those who've been incarcerated simply because they want a free Burma!

Though, the question is, would the Burmese leaders pay any attention? They seem to have ignored every other attempt to bring about change.

Bangkok Post Breaking News: Burma activists to mark Suu Kyi birthday
Hundreds of Burma pro-democracy activists from around the world plan to "arrest themselves" on Saturday to draw attention to opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi's ongoing detention on her 61st birthday.

Hundreds of activists in Thailand, in 35 US states and in 13 other countries are taking part in the self-arrest to demand the release of Suu Kyi, who has spent the last three years under house arrest in Rangoon and was recently sentenced to another year, said Aung Din, policy director of the US Campaign for Burma.

"We are organising these events to honour Aung San Suu Kyi but also to press for a Security Council resolution. The longer the UN waits, the more people will die in Burma," said Aung Din, in a statement made available in Bangkok.

Self-arrests are planned in the US, Australia, Canada, Costa Rica, France, India, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, Netherlands, Saudi Arabia, Sweden, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, Britain and even in Burma.

"The world is waking up to the struggles of this amazing woman," said Aung Din. "She is the Nelson Mandela of Asia."

Suu Kyi, the daughter of Burma independence hero Aung San, turns 61 on Monday. She has spent the past 10 out of 17 years under house arrest in her family's Rangoon residence.

Burma's ruling junta on May 27 extended Suu Kyi's detention for another year, directly snubbing a personal appeal by United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan for her immediate release.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

The 'self-arrest' is when someone volunteers to stay inside their home for a specified period of time. Most likely, this will be just for the day, but its quite possible some groups will be doing things differently. Then, the arrestee has visitors to discuss Burma and Burma issues.