အာဇာနည္သူရဲေကာင္းေတြလြတ္ေျမာက္ေရးသင့္မွာတာ၀န္ရွိသည္

september photos 2007

On 15 August 2007 the government of Burma removed subsidies on fuel causing a rapid and unannounced increase in prices. The government, which has a monopoly on fuel sales, raised prices from about $1.40 to $2.80 a gallon, and boosted the price of natural gas by about 500%. This increase in fuel prices led to an increase in food prices. Soon afterwards, protesters took to the streets to protest the current conditions.

While the IMF and World Bank had been recommending the lifting of subsidies for some time to allow for a free market to determine fuel prices, these organizations did not recommend removing all of the subsidies unannounced. The fuel is sold by Burma’s Oil and Gas Enterprise, a state-owned fuel company.

Initial demonstrations

In response to the increase in fuel prices, citizens protested in demonstrations beginning on 19 August. In response to the protests, the government began arresting and beating demonstrators. The government arrested 13 prominent Burmese dissidents including Min Ko Naing, Ko Ko Gyi, Min Zeya, Ko Jimmy, Ko Pyone Cho, Arnt Bwe Kyaw and Ko Mya Aye. The government newspaper New Light of Myanmar reported that these individuals actions caused civil unrest that “was aimed at undermining peace and security of the State and disrupting the ongoing National Convention.

On 5 September 2007, Burmese troops forcibly broke up a peaceful demonstration in Pakokku and injured three monks. The All Burma Monks Alliance demanded an apology by the deadline of 17 September but the military refused to apologize. This sparked protests involving increasing numbers of monks in conjunction with the withdrawal of religious services (Pattanikujana) for the military. The role of monks in the protests was significant due to the reverence paid to them by the civilian population and the military. After these events, protests began spreading across Burma, including Yangon (also known as Rangoon), Sittwe, Pakokku and Mandalay.

On 21–22 August 2007, participants on the 19 August protests were detained by local authorities. Their houses were searched without a warrant. These demonstrators could have been charged with up to one year in prison; under the 5/96 Law, that is used to condemn those who disrupt the stability of the state.

Escalation

On 22 September around two thousand monks marched through Yangon and ten thousand through Mandalay, with other demonstrations in five townships across Burma. Those marching through the capital chanted the Metta Sutta (the Buddha’s words on loving kindness) marching through a barricade on the street in front of Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi. Although still under house arrest, Suu Kyi made a brief public appearance at the gate of her residence to accept the blessings of the Buddhist monks. In Mandalay, estimated to have 200 monasteries, monks were said to have told people not to join the protests, which ended peacefully.

On 23 September, 150 nuns joined the protests in Yangon. On that day, some 15,000 Buddhist monks and laymen marched through the streets of Yangon in the sixth day of peaceful protests against the Burmese military regime. The All Burma Monks Alliance vowed to continue the protests until the Burmese military junta is deposed.

24 September
Monks protesting in Yangon, carrying the Buddhist flag

On 24 September eyewitnesses reported between 30,000 and 100,000 people demonstrating in Yangon, making the event the largest Burmese anti-government protest in twenty years. The BBC reported that two locally well-known actors, comedian Zargana and film star Kyaw Thu, went to Yangon’s golden Shwedagon Pagoda early on Monday to offer food and water to the monks before they started their march.
The marches occurred simultaneously in at least 25 cities across Burma, with columns of monks stretching up to 1 kilometer (0.6 miles). At the end of the march approximately 1,000 monks arrived to greet Aung San Suu Kyi’s home but were denied access by police. They chanted prayers before peacefully moving off. Later that day, the military junta’s Minister for Religion, Brigadier General Thura Myint Maung, warned the Buddhist monks leading the protests not to go beyond their “rules and regulations”.

Meanwhile, President George W. Bush introduced unilateral sanctions against the Burmese leaders during his speech to the UN General Assembly and encouraged other countries to follow its lead. The Dalai Lama also gave his blessing to the monks in their bid for greater freedom and democracy.

25 September
Protesters at Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon.

On 25 September the junta threatened demonstrators with military force and placed army trucks at Shwedagon Pagoda, the assembly point for monks leading the protests. Witnesses said 5,000 monks and laypeople marched into the Shwedagon. Civilians were forming a human shield around the monks; Reuters quotes one eyewitness: “They are marching down the streets, with the monks in the middle and ordinary people either side – they are shielding them, forming a human chain.”. Vehicles mounted with loudspeakers toured central Yangon, blaring warnings of military action. “People are not to follow, encourage or take part in these marches. Action will be taken against those who violate this order,” the broadcasts said, invoking a law allowing the use of military force to break up illegal protests. Reuters reported that the detained democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi had been moved to the Insein prison on Sunday, a day after she appeared in front of her house to greet marching monks.

Effective 26 September Burma’s junta imposed dusk-till-dawn curfews on the country’s two largest cities of Yangon and Mandalay. Additionally, gatherings of more than five people were prohibited. Meanwhile, truckloads of armed soldiers and riot police were sent into Yangon.

The crack-down
26 September

On 26 September pro-democracy figure Win Naing was arrested at his home in Yangon around 2:30 a.m. after being seen providing food and water to the protesting monks but was released from jail after one night, according to an anonymous friend and Western diplomat. He had been arrested on 8 March for holding a press conference with Burmese demonstrators against the national economic hardships. Prominent Burmese comedian Zargana was also arrested overnight. Troops barricaded Shwedagon Pagoda and attacked a group of 700 protesters with batons and tear gas. The police, beating their shields with batons, chased some of the monks and some 200 supporters, while others tried to remain in place near the eastern gate of the pagoda complex. Troops then sealed off the area around the pagoda, attempting to prevent the monks from making further protests. This failed to stop the marches, with up to 5,000 monks progressing through Yangon; some wearing masks in anticipation of tear gas being used.

Later in the day there were reports of at least three Buddhist monks and one woman confirmed killed in the firing by security forces in Yangon when thousands of people led by Buddhist monks continued their protest against the military junta. A doctor in Yangon’s general hospital confirmed that three injured monks had been admitted to the hospital after they were beaten up severely by the riot police at Shwedagon pagoda. The Swedish National Radio correspondent in Yangon reported that more than 300 people, many of whom are monks, were detained. He also reported a new sentiment in Yangon: “People come up to me quite spontaneously and voice their opinion in a way they never did before.” … “People feel great admiration for the brave monks” The Burma Campaign UK said its sources had reported the junta ordering large numbers of maroon monastic robes and telling soldiers to shave their heads, possibly to infiltrate the monks.


27 September
Japanese reporter Kenji Nagai lays dying after being shot, while the soldier who shot him stands nearby. Nagai is believed to be the only foreign casualty during the crack-down.

On 27 September the junta security forces began raiding monasteries across the country to quell the protests, arresting at least 200 monks in Yangon and 500 more in the northeast. Simultaneously, the army raided four other monasteries in parts of Yangon and arrested several monks. Sources confirmed that the army had raided the six storied Religious Science Monastery in Chaukhtatgyi Pagoda, Moe Kaung Monastery in Yan Kin township, Maggin Monastery in Thingankyun township, and Thein Phyu monastery in Thein Phyu area and arrested several monks. An anonymous diplomat also said the junta claimed soldiers now had the monks “under control” and “would now turn their attention to civilian protesters”.

Up to 50,000 protesters took to the streets in Yangon. Protesters bleeding from beatings by security forces were seen scattering and fleeing in Sule. Security forces were reported to be preparing to use insect spray to crack down on protesters. Eyewitnesses said fire engines and insect spray carrier trucks were seen near Theingyi market in downtown Yangon. The BBC received unconfirmed reports that fire crews were ordered to fill their machines with insecticide.

According to several news media the armed forces gave the protesters 10 minutes to disperse or face extreme action. The radio station Democratic Voice of Burma reported that nine civilians, including Japanese photographer Kenji Nagai, had been shot and killed by the armed forces. Nagai was working for APF Tsushin, a media company based in Tokyo. The Japanese embassy in Burma later confirmed Nagai’s death. Amateur video showing Nagai apparently being deliberately shot was aired on Japanese television. Later footage also showed a Burmese soldier taking Nagai’s video camera.

Soldiers fired both into the air and directly at students marching toward a high school in Tamwe township in Yangon. Primary school children were inside the school at the time and were reportedly hit by bullets, as were parents arriving to pick up their children. Unconfirmed eyewitness reports say 100 people were shot. Up to 300 of the students outside were arrested after a military truck rammed into the crowd.

Some 50,000 protesters are reported to have demonstrated peacefully in Akyab while soldiers were stationed at seven key places, including government buildings, Lawkanada temple, and Akyi Tong Kong temple.

In the evening, the Burmese state television reported that nine people had been killed in a force crackdown on pro-democracy protesters in Yangon. It added that eleven demonstrators and 31 soldiers had been injured.

At the end of the day, it was reported that the junta had formed new regiments to crackdown on protesters. According to sources close to the military, Senior General Than Shwe took direct command after several commanders refused to use force to crackdown on protesters. Newspaper The Guardian published a report of a letter received by Burmese exiles in Thailand, allegedly written by disgruntled military officers, expressing support for the protests and stating, “On behalf of the armed forces, we declare our support for the non-violent action of the Buddhist monks and members of the public and their peaceful expression…”. The letter also announced the formation of a group called the Public Patriot Army Association. The Guardian was unable to confirm the authenticity of the letter itself before the story was published.

28 September

On 28 September Yangon was emptier than the previous days, as people were afraid of violent reprisals from the army, though many still took to the streets chanting such phrases as “wrongdoers who kill monks” as well as “the military science given by general Aung San is not supposed to kill the people” (i.e. the military isn’t supposed to kill the people).

The Burma government attempted to dampen public awareness and communications around the protests by cutting Internet access. Troops specifically targeted those caught carrying cameras and beat them. On 28 September after the killing of Japanese photographer Kenji Nagai by the junta, Japanese Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda said he regretted the killing and demanded a full explanation of his death. The Association of Southeast Asian Nations was urged to join the push for a UN mission to Burma, while the United Nations Security Council urged restraint from the government.

Helfen ohne Grenzen (Help without Frontiers) reported that soldiers from the 66th LID (Light Infantry Division) had turned their weapons against other government troops and possibly police in North Okkalappa township in Yangon and were defending the protesters. While soldiers from 33rd LID in Mandalay were also reported to have refused orders to take actions against protesters, other reports state many soldiers remained in their barracks. Later reports stated that soldiers from the 99th LID were being sent in to confront them.

According to ABC, the military crackdown claimed hundreds of lives. The official toll remains at 13 killed. Kenji Nagai, the Japanese photo journalist, is believed to currently be the only foreign casualty of the unrest. However, it is possible that the death toll may be many times greater than officially reported.

Speaking before the UN General Assembly, the UN Human Rights Council’s Special Rapporteur Paulo Sérgio Pinheiro said that independent sources reported 30 to 40 monks and 50 to 70 civilians killed as well as 200 beaten.

Democratic Voice of Burma puts the number of deaths at 138, basing their figure on a list compiled by the 88 Student Generation group in Myanmar. The Executive Director of the DVB, Aye Chan Naing, told the Associated Press that “[t]his 138 figure is quite credible because it is based on names of victims, I also think the figure is accurate because of the pictures coming from inside Burma. The way they were shooting into the crowds with machine guns means dozens of people could have died.”

A report in the Daily Mail states that “thousands of protesters are dead and the bodies of hundreds of executed monks have been dumped in the jungle”, the report is based on information provided by Colonel Hla Win, who defected from the army some days prior to the report, he is quoted as having said “Many more people have been killed in recent days than you’ve heard about. The bodies can be counted in several thousand.”.

Australia’s The Age reports that, after two non-protesters were shot in northwest Yangon, “the army came back, gave the families 20,000 kyat (~$20) each and took away the corpses.”

Reports forwarded by Times Online stated that the abbot of Ngwe Kyar Yan monastery in north west Yangon was so severely beaten by soldiers “that he died on the spot”; the soldiers had been lining monks up against a wall and smashing each of their heads against the wall in succession before throwing them into trucks.

The final death toll still remained 31 confirmed by the UN human right envoy to Burma, Paulo Sergio Pinheiro.