|
|
Europe
Anti-AFSPA Protestors Demand "Free Burma and Aung San Suu Kyi"
By Bobby Ramakant Asia Correspondent
 | Aung San Suu Kyi | The ongoing solidarity fast in support of Irom Chanu Sharmila's struggle to repeal Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) has broadened its agenda congruent with the declarations of past New Delhi (2005) and Lahore (2006) Peaceful South Asia Conventions – demand for a Free Burma and Free Aung San Suu Kyi.Aung San Suu Kyi is imprisoned under the 1975 State Protection Act in Myanmar (Burma), which grants the government the power to imprison persons for up to five years without a trial. She has been intermittently under arrest of one kind or the other since 1990. Irom Chanu Sharmila – the iron lady of Manipur in India , has been on a continuous fast since 2000 demanding repeal of AFSPA. Despite the restrictions of house arrest, Aung San Suu Kyi continued to campaign for democracy, similar to Irom Sharmila, who has been under confinement and steadfastly protesting against AFSPA since past 7 years now. Filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt has endorsed this fast along with hundreds of other organizations and individuals globally. Countless people are fasting for five days (13-17 September) in Keishampat junction, Imphal, Manipur, to lobby more support to the anti-AFSPA campaign. Significant others from different countries in the world have signed up on www.ashaparivar.org to fast for varying durations from September 13 to support the campaign. The launch of this five days solidarity fast came two days after the 'Apunba Lup' observed Anti-army Act Day on September 11 here to mark the completion of five decades of the act in the North-East. The present UPA Government had constituted the Justice Jeevan Reddy Commission in 2004 to review AFSPA in response to an intensive campaign led by 'Apunba Lup.' By 1988, Burma was burgeoning with pro-democracy movement, fueled by the energy and idealism among the country's young people. There were demonstrations against the repressive, one-party socialist government. Aung San Suu Kyi was drawn into the pro-democracy movement, which was snuffed out by State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC), which seized power on September 18, 1988. Thousands of pro-democracy advocates were killed.Next came a general election in 1990, which political parties were allowed to contest. Aung San Suu Kyi, who was leading the National League for Democracy (NLD), won a landslide victory, with 80% support. SLORC leaders refused to accept the election results putting the elected pro-democracy leaders under house arrest, including Aung San Suu Kyi. Despite the restrictions of house arrest, Aung San Suu Kyi continues to campaign for democracy. She was awarded the Nobel Prize for peace in 1991. The protests of Sharmila and Aung San Suu Kyi represent the most ideal form of peaceful struggles for a democratic demand. Their victory is essential for the strengthening of democracy in South Asia and for the respect for human rights around the world. Their victory will determine whether the voice of common citizen will be heard or the state will continue to trample over people's rights with anti-people laws and policies. (Bobby Ramakant is a development journalist writing for newspapers in Asia and Africa. He can be contacted at: bobbyramakant@yahoo.com)
Related Articles WHO Award Shines Spotlight on Thailand's ... When People with HIV Can Live Normal Lives ... UK's Decision to Consider Vaccinated Indians ... Step Up Pace Globally If Universal Vaccination ... Will Inclusion and Accountability Take ... Were People the Missing Link in Covid Response? World Localization Day: Peasants Rise Up to ... Save Lakshadweep: Stop 'Reform' Which Is Not ... Tobacco-Caused Diseases Are a Bane to the ... Do It Right the First Time, Every Time! Keeping Workforce Healthy Is Also a Smart ... Should Asia Pacific Lead World with Robust ... Will Post-2015 Development Agenda Integrate ... Nepal Leading Tobacco Control in S. Asia: Will ... Regular HIV Prevention Counselling Reduces ... Strong Tobacco Taxation Policy Adopted despite ... Biggest Killer of Kids Under 5 Is Pneumonia Scaling Up Natural Fertility Awareness Methods ... Should Asthma Control Us or We Control Asthma? Coordinated Approach Needed to Overcome ... Lung Health Needs Attention Should Tuberculosis (TB)-Preventive Therapy ... Responding to TB, HIV, COPD and Tobacco ... "Good Health Is India's Basic Need": Easier ... Int'l Day Against Drug Abuse, Illicit ... World Now in Early Days of 2009 Influenza ... One-Third Preventable Deaths Can Be Averted by ... Politics: Allocation of Resources If G20 Agrees, Health Financing Might Come ... Neglect of Tuberculosis Control among ... Is It Ethical to Provide TB Treatment without ... Youth against Cross-border Tobacco Advertising ... Vitamin A Supplements Reduces Child Mortality ... Mayawati Ji, Why Did We Get Bulldozers Instead ... How Will the World Begin to See TB Care as a ... Will recession impede TB care and control? Kala Azar Patients Lack Adequate Diagnosis and ... Further Dilution of Pictorial Tobacco Warnings ... Village Community Radio Will Give Voice to ... Citizens of India-Pakistan Stand Up for Peace Another Blow to Enforcement of Tobacco Control ... Addressing HIV and IDU Issues Vital for TB ... Effective Tobacco Control Policies in Nepal ... Countries Unite against Tobacco Industry Abuse India Agrees That Tobacco Industry Puts ... National Partnership for TB Care and Control ... Need to Refrain from Communal Politics in India India Embraces Smoke-free Policies on ... 3rd Global Tobacco Treaty Action Guide 2008 ... Uphold Public Health over Corporate Interests Bringing Diabetes to Light Andhra Pradesh Should Gear Up to Enforce ... Pictorial Warnings on Tobacco Products in ... HDN and the International HIV/AIDS Alliance ... 'We Reject Indo-US Nuclear Deal' Campaign ... Help Aamir Khan to Keep Promises and Quit ... Indian Court Serves Notice to Amitabh Bachchan ... NAPM Opposes the Indo-US Nuclear Deal Overcoming State Suppression, Prof. Agarwal ... 10-Day Fast in Support of Dr. Binayak Sen ... Will South Korea Reaffirm Commitment to TB/HIV ... Activists to Fast for 10 Days Demanding ... Enforce Existing Tobacco Control Legislations ... Scaling Up of MPOWER Tobacco Control ... Kanpur Land-Sharks Intimidate RTI Activist by ... 'You Can Control Your Asthma': Dr. Nils Billo Will Indian Government Arrest Those Who ... Asthma Control Is Appalling in Most Countries After 1.5 Years, Right-to-Information Act ... Democracy Weeps in Nandigram: NHRC and NCW ... Enforcement of Tobacco Ban in Prisons Uphill ... Displaced People in India Announce a Massive ... Climate Change Has Implications on Public ... Who Will Pay US$ 80 Billion to Halve the No. ... Can South Korea Stop Drug-resistant TB Too? Rising Tobacco Use among Women Japan's Obstructionist Position on Illicit ... Smoking in Indian Movies Gets Challenged 'The Padyatra' Linking the Land-rights, ... Journalist Reporting on Under-represented ... Diabetes Wake-up Call after Years of Neglect ... Stop Dow Recruitment in IIT Chennai Round-the-clock Burma Vigil in Parliament ... Burma Unifies People's Voices in North-East ... Mounting Public Pessure against Dams in ... Will Independent Commission Increase Judicial ... India Ranks 72 in 180 Nations on Corruption ... Strengthen Health Systems to Control Dengue: ... Young Professionals in US Bring Agri-issues ... Mayawati Government to Expedite Justice in ... Court Reprimands MP Government for Arresting ... News of Three Deaths at IIT Kanpur Confirmed Fate of 25,000 Families Hinge on Sept. 20 NCA ... IHP Launched to Strengthen Health Systems India's Under-nutrition Levels among Highest After 20 Years, RTI Is Another Blow to ... Public Pressure Mounts against Arrest of ... Dhaka Univ. Faculty, Students Beaten Up, ... Tobacco Industry Succeeds in Diluting Indian ... Activists Oppose the Indo-US Nuclear Deal Women Farmers Fast against Reliance ... Pepsi to Print 'Public Water Source' on Labels Youth Appeal to UN to Prioritise Health UN Mid-Point Progress Report on Development ... 148 Nations Meet as Parties to Global Tobacco ... Alert to Protect Global Tobacco Treaty before ... Patil in for President's Race Not Only because ... Hashimpura Survivors Find Hope in RTI Act Hyderabad Blast: Wake Up Call for Secular India Health Ministry Alert on Iron-Deficiency ... Medical Students Need to Quit Tobacco First Integrate Tobacco Cessation in Healthcare ... 1st Time Indians Get 2007 Human Rights Prize Responding to Diverse HIV Healthcare Needs Why Should S. Korea Enforce Tobacco Treaty? 34 Cases of Avian Influenza Found in Egypt With Inadequate Cessation Services, What Will ... Another Death of Pregnant Woman with HIV Is ... Don't Forget The Rise in Violence Against ... A Ray of Hope for Medical University Teaching Alarm Bells Sound in Nandigram for Indian ... Activists Challenge Corporate Control of Water ... Vietnam's TB Programs Face New Challenges Neglect of Hepatitis C Leaves People with HIV ... Tobacco Industries Disregard Nepal's ... Link between Tobacco Use and Films Integration of TB and HIV Services Urgently ... More of the Same Will Brew Drug Resistance Is a Priority, Says Indian President Kalam Head Injuries Soar Unabatedly: Prof. Rama Kant Groundwater Belongs to People, Not to Firms Tobacco Shown in Movies Influences Children Water Is a Fundamental Human Right Global Tobacco Treaty Should Be Implemented Founder of Surgical Oncology in India Dies HIV Prevention Must Address Women' Needs Staying Alive with HIV
Other Articles by Bobby Ramakant
WHO Award Shines Spotlight on Thailand's ... When People with HIV Can Live Normal Lives ... UK's Decision to Consider Vaccinated Indians ... Step Up Pace Globally If Universal ... Will Inclusion and Accountability Take ...
Bobby Ramakant, who serves as The Seoul Times' Asia correspondent, is a member of NATT, Network for Accountability of Tobacco Transnationals, and edits Weekly MONiTOR series, reporting violations of tobacco control policies as a senior public health and development journalist. He writes for newspapers in 11 countries and can be reached at bobbyramakant@yahoo.com)
back
|
|
|
|
|