Burma uprising spurs Midd activism Students rally to demonstrate solidarity for Burmese citizens

Author: Roz Vara

It's been more than two weeks since the protests began in Burma, and Yan Oak '09 has only spoken to his parents once. It was a brief, censored conversation, which is understandable as it is more than likely the phone lines were tapped by the military-ruled government that currently reigns over the country. Oak's family resides in Yangon - the country's largest city -and currently the most concentrated area of protestors.

"I contacted them [my parents] two days ago," Oak said. "They're alright, but we couldn't talk a lot on the phone because the government could tap the communication lines. I want to talk to them but currently am unable to do so."

As a citizen detached from his own country, Oak decided that there was one thing he could do, and that was bring awareness to his fellow students.

"My main goal is to inform people," said Oak. "When these protests started happening, and the issue got really big a few weeks ago, I knew that I wanted to make people aware of situation."

And what exactly is the "situation" in Burma? A politically-repressed country that often flies below the radar, Burma has a history of violence. The last uprising in 1988 resulted in the deaths of over 3,000 peaceful protestors - many of whom were university students.

Today's unrest stems from an increase in the price of petrol and diesel. The government more than doubled the price of these fuels, which in turn has critically affected many other sectors of the economy. These price increases jacked up the price of public transportation, in turn affecting citizens' ability to acquire basic staples like rice and cooking oil.

"Many people live in shanty towns where they can only afford one meal per day," Oak said. "And in August, when the crisis arose, they couldn't afford to get a bus ticket to get into the city to go to work or buy food."

These spikes in gas prices were met with peaceful protests led by the country's Buddhist monks. Yet, such protests soon sparked a reactionary government intervention in which protesting monks were beaten by members of the military.

"The monks demanded an apology from the government," Oaks said. "But the government refused to apologize so monks all over the country protested and basically marched through the cities chanting prayers and slogans."

While the monks may be peacefully protesting, the government has absolute power and may choose to enforce it by any means they desire, as exhibited during the 1988 marches.

There are many rules and regulations one must follow closely, Oak noted. "Even if you want to have a sleepover at a friend's house, officially you actually have to register at the local government office," said Oak.

Though these protestors may be lining the streets in a country seemingly a world away, there are measures that can be taken from afar, and Oak's goal at Middlebury is to make those possibilities known.

"Although the military regime has absolute power in the country, it does have to respond to international pressure in some way or another," said Oak. "If there is awareness of the situation in the United States and elsewhere it was cause foreign governments and international organizations to pay attention to Burma."

In addition to making t-shirts, a candlelight vigil and 48-hour fast organized by Oak and a group of fellow students will help make Burma's presence felt on campus this week.

"We want to raise awareness and promote international response," Oak explained. "Burma's state religion is Buddhism, but all we see is violence."