Burmese Monks Step Up Pressure On Military Junta

Burmese Monks Step Up Pressure on Military Junta

Demonstrations by hundreds of Burmese Buddhist monks were staged yesterday in central and upper Burma. The protests are a warning to the Burmese generals that the monks will refuse daily donations from the families of military personnel commencing on Tuesday, September 18.

September 17 was the deadline the Alliance of All Burmese Buddhist Monks gave the Burmese military government to issue an apology, after the junta violently cracked down on monks peacefully protesting in Pakokku on September 5.

In its first statement, the Alliance urged monks to refuse donations from military families and military supporters if the apology was not forthcoming. A second statement, released on Saturday, called for monks to begin demonstrations in advance of Tuesday's deadline.

The impending boycott will be taken very seriously in Burma, as the nation's monks are held in high esteem. A similar protest by monks in 1988 was the start of a massive "people power" revolt against the brutal Burmese military junta.

ENDS

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