Narinjara news
The Arakanese communities
in neighbouring countries mark the 218th anniversary of the loss of
their national sovereignty.
Dhaka, 1
January 03: A ceremony
commemorating the fall of Arakan to the Burmese rule was held in Dhaka, in the morning of the 31st of December. About 60
Arakanese, who involve in the anti-Burmese-junta movement, gathered at a hotel
to mark the 218 year long loss of their self-determination as a people.
The committee responsible for organising the ceremony, which had
represented all the political activists from Dhaka, urged the Arakanese to work
for the national unity, and the close cooperation with other Burmese
nationalities and the democratic forces, so that the military rule in Burma
would end soon. An Arakanese leader, U Kyaw Mra Tha,
said to Narinjara News that Arakan had been an
independent country for more than five thousand years, but the independence was
ended due to the invasion of the Burmese King Maung Wynee,
on the 31st of December 1784. He stressed that the Arakanese community in Dhaka was mourning for this loss of their national integrity. The ceremony
involved statements read out by the Arakanese organisations, and national and
democratic songs sang by the All Arakan Student and Youth Congress (AASYC), the
Dhaka branch.
A similar ceremony was also held in Bangkok, organised by the Rakhaing Patriotic
Literature Club (RPLC) and the Arakan League for Democracy in Exile (ALD-Exile)
(Youth). The Arakanese in India also held a ceremony for the anniversary of the loss of their national
sovereignty.
[small
grammatical correction made – DA]