Despite the noble intentions of the Nobel Prize committee and the efforts of human rights activists around the world, the repressive regime in Burma continues its stranglehold on that country.
The awarding of this year's Nobel Peace Prize to prominent Burmese dissident Daw Aung San Suu Kyi - who has been under house arrest for more than two years - cast a much-needed spotlight on the continuing human rights abuses in that country.
Suu Kyi was a leader of Burma's 1988 democratic (and nonviolent) uprising--in which thousands of dissidents were killed--and of the National League for Democracy, which won a landslide victory in the May 1990 parliamentary elections. But the parliament was never convened, as the military rulers refused to relinquish the power they had assumed in a September 1988 coup. Instead, the ruling State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC) detained almost all democratic leaders--including Suu Kyi--and hundreds of Buddhist monks.
Human rights observers and Burmese dissidents now say there is little likelihood that the ruling junta will soon soften its brutal campaign to crush all opposition and hopes for democracy in the Southeast Asian country. "Only when the junta is convinced it is the biggest obstacle to Burmese progress will it rethink its policies," said one exiled leader of the democratic movement recently.
To bolster Burma's deteriorating economy and build up its armed forces, after crushing the pro-democracy movement in 1988 the ruling SLORC began opening the country's borders to foreign investment and trade. For instance, logging companies based in Thailand are now clear-cutting much of Burma's natural teak forest, displacing peasants and monks and causing irreparable harm to wildlife and the environment.
But it is oil companies that are pumping the most funds into the Burmese regime, according to the Chicago-based organization Synapses. Shell and Amoco are reportedly the largest investors among oil giants, and Pepsico is among the other multinationals that are playing a role in Burma.
"Foreign exchange reserves were down to almost nothing, and hard currency was needed to resupply and build up the armed forces," stated a Synapses spokesperson. "So the Burmese military has counted on the greed of outsiders to help keep them in power, and they have not been disappointed."
In neighboring Thailand, Buddhist scholar and activist Sulak Sivaraksa is in trouble again. The current rulers there (the National Peace Keeping Authority, or NPKC) issued a warrant for Sulak's arrest after he criticized them, according to Peace Media Service.
"While they [the NPKC] violate the law, intrude into the forests, and manhandle the villagers, how can we be silent and submissive?" Sivaraksa asked students at a Bangkok university lecture, denouncing the government's cooperation with Burmese rulers on corrupt logging operations along the Burmese-Thai border.
Instead of staying and risking detention or worse, Sivaraksa went into exile and reportedly plans to travel to Europe and the United States on a speaking tour. In Stockholm recently, Sulak spoke of the hardships in his country, but his wonderful spirit and sense of humor have not been diminished.
"When my friend Gunner lost his luggage last winter in Thailand, I gave him my coat to wear home to Sweden," Sulak told friends in Stockholm. "And when I had to run away, here was my coat, waiting for me in Stockholm. You see the importance of international networks!"
Chris Herman assisted with research.
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