|
Myanmar
Still Split on 52nd Independence Day
05:34 a.m. Jan 04, 2000 Eastern By Aung Hla Tun YANGON (Reuters) - Myanmar marked the 52nd anniversary of independence from Britain on Tuesday with its people divided. In their independence day ceremony, the ruling generals called for a united stand against terrorists and neo-colonialists while dissidents overseas urged a new struggle for independence, this time from ``fascism'' and ``military serfdom.'' Officials estimated 15,700 people attended a flag-raising organized by the generals of the governing State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) at People's Square in Yangon. In an address, SPDC head Senior General Than Shwe urged the population to take greater responsibility in safeguarding independence and sovereignty. ``It is imperative to oppose and remove with the people's might the destructive danger of the terrorist and destructive group...and neo-colonialists from abroad,'' he said. The military uses the terms terrorists and destructionists to refer to ethnic groups fighting for greater autonomy and the pro-democracy opposition led by Nobel peace prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi of the National League for Democracy (NLD). In her independence day speech, Suu Kyi called on the generals to do the dignified thing and step back from politics. SUU KYI URGES MILITARY TO POLITICS ``It always brings dignity to one who falls back when it's time to fall back, whether it's in warfare or in politics,'' she told a group of about 500 people at her party's headquarters. Earlier, one of Myanmar's surviving independence leaders appealed in a statement for talks between the generals and NLD. Bohmu Aung, 90, said Myanmar was in political turmoil due to a failure to convene a People's Parliament elected in the last general election in 1990, which Suu Kyi's NLD won by a landslide. ``Even though armed fighting has lessened, political, economic and social difficulties are happening as national solidarity has not been built through national reconciliation by political means,'' his statement said. Bohmu Aung was one of Myanmar's ``Thirty Comrades,'' the group which led the struggle for independence won in 1948. The government, which blames the NLD for a lack of dialogue, said in a statement it hoped the party would adopt a ``more realistic and flexible policy.'' ``It is the desire of the government together with that of the people of Myanmar to be able to enjoy the beginning of the New Year as a period of conciliation, cooperation and mutual help in building a better future for the people of Myanmar,'' it said. Dissident groups based on the Thai-Myanmar border issued statements slamming the military, which took direct power in 1988 by killing thousands to crush a pro-democracy uprising. The National Council of the Union of Burma said Myanmar enjoyed less freedom now than during colonial rule. ``The people, under the domestically bred military dictatorship, have been turned into military serfs,'' it said. ``The system of fascism in Burma must be totally ended, if we are to reach the goal of democracy.'' |