MYANMAR
History Of Burma
Early Burma
The Nation we
know as Burma was first formed during the goldenage of Pagan in the 11th
century. King Anawratha ascended the throne in 1044, uniting Burma under his
monarchy. His belief in Buddhism lead him to begin building the temples and
pagodas for which the city of Pagan (above) is renowned. Pagan became the first capital of a Burmese kingdom
that included virtually all of modern Burma. The golden age of pagan reached
its peak in during the reign of Anawratha's successor,Kyanzitta (1084-1113), another devout
Buddhist, under whom it aquired the name
" City of four million pagodas ".
Under Colonial Rule
Although Burma
was at times divided into independent states, a series of monarchs attempted to
establish their absolute rule, with varying degrees of success. Eventually, an
expansionist British Government took advantage of Burma's political
instability. After three Anglo-Burmese wars over a period of 60 years, the
British completed their colonization of the country in 1886, Burma was
immediately annexed as a province of British India, and the British began to
permeate the ancient Burmese culture with foreign elements. Burmese customs
were often weakened by the imposition of British traditions.
The British
also further divided the numerous ethnic minorities by favouring some groups,
such as the Karen, for positions in the military and in local rural
administrations. During the 1920s, the first protests by Burma's intelligentsia
and Buddhist monks were launched against British rule. By 1935, the Students
Union at Rangoon University was at the forefront of what would evolve into an
active and powerful movement for national independence. A young law student
Aung San, executive-committee member and magazine editor for the Students
Union, emerged as the potential new leader of the national movement. In the
years that followed, he successfully organized a series of student strikes at
the university, gaining the support of the nation.
Independence and Democracy
At the
outbreak of the Second World War, Aung San seized the opportunity to bring
about Burmese independence. He and 29 others, known as the Thirty Comrades,
left Burma to undergo military training in Japan. In 1941, they fought alongside
the Japanese who invaded Burma. The Japanese promised Aung San that if the
British were defeated, they would grant Burma her freedom. When it became clear
that the Japanese would not follow through with their promise, Aung San quickly
negotiated an agreement with the British to help them defeat the Japanese.
Hailed as the
architect of Burma's new-found independence by the majority of Burmese, Aung
San was able to negotiate an agreement in January 1947 with the British, under
which Burma would be granted total independence from Britain. Although a
controversial figure to some ethnic minorities, he also had regular meetings
with ethnic leaders throughout Burma in an effort to create reconciliation and
unity for all Burmese.
As the new
leader drafted a constitution with his party's ministers in July 1947, the
course of Burmese history was dramatically and tragically altered. Aung San and
members of his newly-formed cabinet were assasinated when an opposition group
with machine guns burst into the room. A member of Aung San's cabinet, U Nu,
was delegated to fill the position suddenly left vacant by Aung San's death. A
Burma was finally granted independence on January 4, 1948, at 4:20am - a moment
selected most auspicious by an astrologer.
For the next
ten years, Burma's fledging democratic government was continuously challenged
by communist and ethnic groups who felt under-represented in the 1948
constitution. Periods of intense civil war destabilized the nation. Although
the constitution declared that minority states could be granted some level of
independence in ten years, their long-awaited day of autonomy never arrived. As
the economy floundered, U Nu was removed from office in 1958 by a caretaker
government led by General Ne Win, one of Aung San's fellow thakins. In order to
"restore law and order" to Burma, Ne Win took control of the whole
country including the minority states, forcing them to remain under the
jurisdiction of the central government. Although he allowed U Nu to be re-elected
Prime Minister in 1960, two years later he staged a coup and solidified his
position as Burma's military dictator.
Burma Under a Dictatorship
Ne
Win's new Revolutionary Coucil suspended the constitution and instituted
authoritarian military rule. Full attention turned to the military defeat of
communist
and ethnic-minority rebel groups. The country was closed off from
the outside world as the new despot promoted an isolation ideology based on
what he called the Burmese Way to Socialism. Superstitious, xenophobic and
ruthless, for the next three decades Ne Win set a thriving nation on a
disatrious path of cultural, environmental and economic ruin. Outside visitors
were few and restricted to Rangoon, Mandalay and a handful of other tightly
controlled towns close to the central plains. Insurgency remained endemic and
in many areas of Burma armed struggle became a way of life.
The People's
Demands Are Met With Bullets
In July 1988 Ne Win suddenly announced that he was preparing to
leave the stage. Seeing at last a possible escape from military rule, economic
decline and routine human rights abuses, thousands of people took to the
streets of Rangoon. Demonstrations
broke out across the country during the so-called "Democracy Summer"
that followed. But on August 8, 1988 troops began a four day massacre, firing
into crowds of men, women and children gathered in Rangoon. At least 10,000
demonstrators were killed across the country.
Thousands of
students and democracy advocates fled to the border regions under ethnic
control and forged alliances with ethnic resistance movements. Some of these
groups include the National Coalition Government of the Union of Burma (NCGUB),
the All Burma Student Democratic Front, the Democratic Alliance of Burma, and
the longstanding National Democratic Front situated in Manerplaw (the former
headquarters of the Karen National Union which fell to SLORC in January 1995). Together
these groups formed the National Council of the Union of Burma, an umbrella
organization representing all the groups.
A Leader
Emerges
It just so happened that during this time of unrest in 1988, Aung
San Suu Kyi, daughter of independence hero Aung San, who had been living
abroad, returned to Burma to care for her ailing mother. Her devotion kept her
there and brought her into the political foray. Attempting to quell
international condemnation for its violence, the military announced it would
hold multi-party elections. Under the persuasion of students and others opposed
to the regime, Aung San Suu Kyi and like-minded colleagues founded the National
League for Democracy (NLD). Her party quickly gathered country-wide support.
Just when democratic changes seemed imminent Ne Win commandeered the army from
behind the scenes to take over the country in a staged "coup".
On September 18, 1988, control of the country was handed to a
19-member State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC) and a vicious crackdown
followed. Although committed to non-violence, Aung San Suu Kyi was placed under
house arrest in July 1989 for "endangering the state" and kept there
for the next six years. Desperate to improve their image and generate foreign
investment, the SLORC went ahead on May 27, 1990 and held the multi-party
elections they had promised. Despite the SLORC's severe repression against
members of opposition parties (Aung San Suu Kyi was kept under house arrest)
and the complete lack of freedom of expression throughout the country, Suu
Kyi's NLD party swept to victory with 82% of the vote. Surprised and outraged,
the SLORC refused to acknowledge the election results and has retained its
repressive grip on power ever since.
Current Situation
Eventhough Daw Aung San Suu Kyi was released from house arrest in
May of 2002 the military has refused to relinquish power. The generals have not
engaged in any sort of dialogue. The humanitarian situation in Burma is
disasterous and civil war still ravages the border areas. The effect of
military rule has been a severly impoverished and underdevelopmed nation, Burma
has rated as the second least developed nation on the United Nations
Development Index. Peace, democracy and the most basic human rights do not
exist. Millions have been forced to flee due to military rule and are scattered
all over the world longing for the day when they can return to their homeland
and be re-united with the families and live in peace.
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