Activists are staging a “Vote for a Free Burma” concert — as part of a global day of action — to celebrate Myanmar democracy activist Aung San Suu Kyi’s 65th birthday and to voice their support for the Myanmar opposition democracy movement in Kaohsiung tomorrow.
“The Myanmar military junta revised the election law in March to ban ‘people who have been convicted’ from taking part in October’s election. The revision was followed by yet another revision of the law on political parties having to re-register,” Taiwan Free Burma Network (TFBN) spokesman Yang Tsung-li (楊宗澧) said. “The moves were meant to exclude Aung San Suu Kyi from the election and to force her National League for Democracy [NLD] to disband.”
Seeing the difficulties that Taiwan’s Southeast Asian neighbor is facing in its struggle for democracy, TFBN, as well as the Taiwan Labour Front and the Color Pages Women’s Vision Organization decided to join the global day of action and stage a concert in Kaohsiung on Aung San Suu Kyi’s birthday to voice their support for the democracy movement in Myanmar.
Besides performances by award-winning Amis Aboriginal singer Panai and band The Tonic, a postcard campaign will urge Aung San Suu Kyi’s release, Yang said.
Supporters of the Myanmar democracy movement previously succeeded in pressuring the military junta to release a dissident by sending postcards and letters, he said.
In a press statement, TFBN said that the government and business leaders were talking about signing a free-trade agreement with ASEAN — of which Myanmar is a member — “because they’re eyeing cheap labor they can exploit, but for us, we care more about human rights and democracy.”
Myanmar has been haunted by poverty — with a per capita GDP of just US$180 — and authoritarian rule since a military coup in 1962.
There are as many as 70,000 child soldiers, 3.5 million displaced people and more than 2,000 dissidents in prison, TFBN said.
The military junta has brutally cracked down on peaceful demonstrations for democracy and refused to recognize the results of a parliamentary election in 1990 in which the NLD won most of the seats.
The concert and related activities will take place from 4pm to 6pm at the Kaohsiung City Central Park tomorrow.
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