State Terrorism, Agonies of Myanmar & Regional Stability (1)

by Mg Yin

PART. I
1. State Terrorism & Agonies
1.1. Under the Military Dictator’s Repressive Shoes

With teary eyes, when we quietly looked at this photo, we could not even find any representative word to express our sorrows and sadness for a dead body of monk floating in a river of Yangon. For the country, that monk sacrificed himself during the juntas’ violent crackdown on peaceful protests.

Unbelievably, indeed unacceptably, on the ground of a gentle Buddhism country, a military regime and its army force has been killing its own people since 1962.

This time in Sept 2007 the juntas killed Buddhist monks and eventually the actor masks covering their true evil faces peeled off.

1.2 Agonies: Living with Fear

During the inhuman crushes on monks-led protests, workers from the cemetery incineration plant in Yangon had reported to DVB (Democratic Voice of Burma) that the military authorities forced them to burn all bodies of arrested people who got gunshot and deadly bashes in the violent crackdown. All the bodies brought to cemetery must be burnt regardless of dead or still-alive, (some are seriously injured and still alive, some are still conscious, but some not). Whatever the conditions were, “Burn it, this is the order from above, No excuse and No complaint!” military officers ordered the cemetery workers.

On-going mid-night raids on student leaders’ and protestors’ houses, monasteries, hunts for pro-democracy supporters, increasing numbers of mysteriously missing people and crimes committed by junta’s puppets are the current image of state terrorism and agonies of our people.

The juntas ignore the humanitarian affairs of its 52 million people and in their recent crushes they dumped the dead bodies of monks into the rivers and burnt both dead and the severely injured and still-alive people hit in the protests.

“Oh! Lord Buddha! Are they really human?”, people’s whispery cries echoed across the country and to the world.

Even after the UN envoy Mr. Gambari’s visit, the regime continues several arrests of monks. 88 generation student leaders’ houses are raided and if the military spies did not find the students at home, they arrested parents and relatives in stead. No excuse even for 6 year old child [ Ref: Mizzima and DVB News]. People actively participated in the recent protests are threaten and arrested.

The blood streams of our monks and innocent people flowing in the streets of Myanmar are not dried yet. These streams are rooted from the massacres and bloodsheds brutally driven by the military juntas within the past four decades.

These blood streams are not only from the recent monk uprising, but also from the 1974, and 1988. This home land is so-called Burma or Myanmar, a gentle Buddhist country where the Theravada Buddhism is developing well.

Unlike in 1974 and 1988 strikes, the world is watching the juntas this time around the clock with the effort of IT age and the people around the world are now witnessing how the military regime’s state terrorism of violently killed its people and Buddhist monks who are highly respectful for Buddhists.

1.3 Bloody Milestone of Dictatorship

Looking back in 1962, student demonstrations and protests against the regime were brutally put down. Former dictator General Ne Win ordered the army force to kill the hundreds of university students and dynamited the Student Union building into pieces.

Student-led demonstrations and protests against Ne Win's rule continued repeatedly in 1965, Dec 1969, Dec 1970, Dec 1974, Jun 1975 and Sept 1988 Sporadic and in all protests, Ne Win and his military troops crushed brutally and the worse was the several rounds of massacre across the country in 88 general strike. Hundreds of people and monks were believed to be killed in Yangon alone and thousands killed across the major cities in Myanmar.

Now again in the bloody September 2007, the military and security force killed hundreds of Buddhist monks, innocent people including international journalist.

Why the military dictators solved any uprisings and problems with violent crushes? The answer is that they never hesitate to maintaining their power in all possible means; easiest way is killing its own people to create fears among us. But the revolution atmosphere had redeveloped in the streets of Myanmar.


Can they, military juntas, think? Myanmars would say definitely “YES”. The junta can cleverly think for their own interests, but not for 52 millions people. They know how to play political games, though they shouted that they focus only on “the national politics”. For instance, the juntas used Nobel Peace Laureate Daw Aung Sun Su Kyi as a state hostage whenever they blocked in dead-ends under external pressures.

1.4 Military Dictator’s Policy

“To all the people and entire nation, I hereby remind you all to bear in your mind that if there are mob disturbances and protests on the streets in future, if my army shoots, it will not fire into the air just to scare you, but it exactly hits you.”

This is a ruling-policy of former dictator Ne Win declared to the people by looking straight at the TV cameras when he retired from politics in 1988. Although neo-military-dictator General Than Shwe and his followers kicked their former lord Ne Win completely out, they fully adapted Ne Win’s policy of killing people in any uprising against them.

However, after 1988 general strikes, despite the suspension of aids by the U. S, the U. K., Japan and Germany, Myanmar people got no response and effective reactions against the regime from international bodies. The United Nations did not take any actions which consequently allowed military regime to repeat violent crushes on its people and massacres.


1.5 Never Ending Story

"To prevent the disintegration of the Union, we, Tatmadaw (military force), inevitably take over the state power", former dictator Ne Win claimed in 1962.

"To save the country from the risk of falling into the abyss, we, Tatmadaw, inevitably controlled the state power as a historically-given-duty", dictators Gen. Saw Mg and Senior General Than Shwe claimed in 1988 when they seized the state power from former dictator Ne Win.

These are the claims military juntas used to be taken power. Every time they seized the state power, their one-way solution is either massacres or bloodsheds.

They never hesitate to kill their own people, but always hesitate to sit together in a peace table for a wisely dialogue to build the true national unity. Surest is that once they tasted the power, they will never give it up and attempt to hold it till the last minutes of their life in all means.

Military regime is not a legal government selected by its people. They dishonored the outcome of 1990 election organized by the junta themselves. They break their promise themselves to return the state power to the public once they successfully completed their duty of organizing the 1990 election.

Until after 19 years, thousands of people are still protesting against them and demanding the military junta to return to the barracks.

“We deserved democracy, human rights, freedom and justice” people peacefully demanded.

“May all beings getting well, happy and free from all sorts of dangers, worries and poverties” monks peacefully expressed their desire by chanting and praying on the streets.

In return, “You all are destructive elements. Go home, shut up your mouths. Or we fire!”, Buddhist monks and people received junta’s inhuman threats followed by open fire to the protestors on the streets. This is 45 years-long story repeatedly happened in our home.

In result, people are running for their life-and-death and shouting back to the security force - “ Military technology given by our Bo Gyoke (General Aung Sun) is not to kill us!”

Why the military junta gaining from strength to strength within 19 years?

Why their relatives getting richer and richer while we all, Myanmars, suffered from poverty, lack of standard education and health in a resource-rich country?

How can they, military regime, brutally abuse its people?
Is our affair really internal, or regional or global issue?
Who are supporting the survival of such abusive government for what sake?


Mg Yin

(to be continued PART II and III…………)

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