8-8-88 commemoration in Edmonton (r)

[khin_s_w@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx]

May I have the permission to supplement your article with some of my true
experiences...

enmasse_1@xxxxxxxxxxx wrote:

>                      Memory of 8.8.88 will live on
>                      =============================
>
> It all started at the strike of eight in the morning of August 8, 1988.
> Soon, thousands of unarmed protestors from North Okklapa, South Okklapa,
> Thaketa, Thingangyun, Yankhin and Bahan were all out marching peacefully
> towards the City Hall in columns holding banners of their own townships.
> They were joined by hundreds of thousands of people waiting at Bandoola
> Park infront of the City Hall in Rangoon.
>
>
>
> Finally, the making of the darkest moment came at 11:30 pm when truck
> load of soldiers went out from the City Hall follwed by bren-carriers
> and more trucks.
>
> Soldiers pointed their automatic rifles in the crowds. Then, suddenly,
> the two warning pistol shots came and within seconds the mautomatic
> rifle shots took the center stage and scores of people, young and old
> fell to their death instantly. The streeets near the City Hall turned
> chaostic with people screeming, running and taking cover in random
> directions. More trucks load of soldiers were sent to Shwegondine Road
> where the whole columns of demonstrators were gunned down. The casuality
> was estimated over 2000. The shooting continued until 3:00 am ,the next
> day. No one knew how many demonstrators were killed in total.
>
> Also, there were shootings in Sagaing. About 300 demonstrators and some
> monks were reported killed.
>
> But, in Rangoon, the shootings did not end on the August 8, 1988. More
> shootings were reported in Rangoon on 9-11 August 1988. The worst was
> the shootings outside the Rangoon General Hospital.
>
>
> 10 years ago ,  around middle of Aug , more
> than 6000 unarmed civilians , students including children of under 16
> years, and Buddhist monks were killed by the gunfire of troops from brutal
> military
> regime while they were demonstrating peacefully on the streets of Burma.
>
> The killing started from mid-night of Aug 8 , infront of the city hall in
> Rangoon, Burma.When I went to the Rangoon General Hospital where I worked
> ,
> on the next day, ie 9th of Aug , we recieved hudreds of injured people and
>
> dead bodies for the whole day until night. I witnessed the incidence and
> was actively involved in taking care of these injured people.
>
> We faced many problems in the hospital. One of the major problems was
> shortage of blood and basic medical supplies. Here , we were having the
> whole bunch of patients with gun shot wounds bleeding profusely. Before we
>
> give them the specific treatment, first thing we must do is to replace the
>
> blood that was lost ,  to bring up the blood pressure so that the patient
> is fit to go for
> surgery. We have no more blood in the blood bank and no bandage and
> plaster
> for wound dressing. We could not save them.
>
> It was really a very sad and horrifying incidence. We felt so helpless.
>
> We , as physicians and nurses , decided that we had a responsibility to
> stop and prevent this , the merciless killing. So we wrote a letter

> (signed by all doctors and nurses ) and tried to send it to the Ministry
> of

> Health and also Ministry of Defence. That was in 10th of Aug. In the
> afternoon on the same day, we took a walk for about 1 block, just outside
> the hospital compound, carrying a big banner , requesting the soldiers to
> stop killing their own people because of shortage of blood and basic
> medical supplies.
>
> What we got in return for this was bullets flying over our heads. 3 army
> trucks loaded with Burmese soldiers appeared from nowhere and shot the
> hospital killing about 3 or 4 civilians ,2 Buddhist monks and injuring 6
> nurses.
>
> It has been 10 years. Within this period, the momentum in the
> perserverance
> for democracy and human rights has increased, BUT we have not achieved our
>
> goal yet.
>
> In its Human Rights Index, the London Observers ranked the junta one of
> the world's 3
> worst abuser's of Human Rights for its record of torture , tyranny ,
> killings and
> persecution.
>

We would like to urge and encourage our people not to abandon their
perseverance and to remain in unity and co-operation.
 Alice Khin Saw Win

>
>



> To this day, the people of Burma remembers the August 8, 1988 as the the
> day of the "FOUR EIGHTS" of the century.
>
> But, we have to remember this also. "If we do not want the repeat of
> this dreadful day, we need to be brave at the same time. We have just
> been shown how we can be brave and stand up against the tyranny in Burma
> peacefully, non-violently and with discipline by Daw Aung San Suu Kyi."
>
> We shall succeed.
>
> May we have peace and democracy in Burma.
>
> In soliderity with the NLD's movement,
>
> Minn Kyaw Minn
> ==============
>