Monk Protests Continue to Grow in Burma
Protests lead by Buddhist monks have continued all week and gradually grown. Remarkably, the military junta that rules Burma has not responded to the growing protest movement, at least in Rangoon. In a stunning move yesterday, 1,500 monks were able to pass through a baracade in front on Aung San Suu Kyi’s house. Aung San Suu Kyi is the leading force of Burma’s long repressed democracy movement. She has spent 11 of the last 18 years either in prison or under house arrest.
The first recent wave of protests began in August as sporadic displays of dissent by small groups of people in response to rapid price increases on fuel and other goods by the junta. During those protests, a number of monks were arrested, beaten, and publicly humiliated by soldiers. In response to this, the monks of Burma demanded a public apology by September 17th, which the junta refused to acknowledge. The monks began to refuse religious rites to soldiers and their families and initiated daily public marches.
International observers have been stunned as the regime has failed to crack down on this movement. It has gradually grown to more than 1,500 monks and a number of private citizens. We will watch in the coming days to see if the junta can resolve this growing challenge to their authority.
My guess is that inaction can be attributed to significant splits developing within the military junta. The head general is 74 years old and reportedly very ill. Last year he went to Singapore for medical treatment for an undisclosed disease and failed to make an appearance at this year’s independence day celebrations, an event at which he has always played a prominent role. As positioning for succession takes place, it could get bloody and perhaps allow for a negotiated transition between military soft-liners and opposition parties.
