Heard of the Women's League of Burma? It's is a multi-ethnic umbrella organization of twelve ethnic women's organizations from the multi-ethnic military dictatorship Myanmar, formerly (and still, by opponents of the dictatorship) called Burma. You probably know Aung San Suu Kyi, who was elected Prime Minister in 1990 in the only democratic election since the military took power in 1962; the results were nullified and she was put under house arrest, where she's been on and off (mostly on except for 1995-2000) ever since. She has chosen to stay in Burma rather than leave to join her husband (who died in 1999) or children, who live in the UK. She won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1991.



Right now, Suu Kyi is in Insein Prison, notorious for its harsh conditions, after she "met" with 1000 monks who had marched to the gate of her house as part of a series of peaceful demonstrations by Buddhist monks against the government, now beginning to be called the "Saffron Revolution." This is the second major set of protests this year--there was another in April--and the first time that the country's monks have led the dissent.

Also on August 22, monks withdrew spiritual services from all members of the Burmese military. Two days later a march of 100,000, led by 20,000 monks and 150 nuns who had joined the monks the day before, marched in Yangon. Yesterday there was a huge military crackdown in the city; here you can see some video, including the shooting of a Japanese journalist at about 3:44; at 3:36 you can see the soldiers pushing the man towards his execution. (Link via Left Wing Nutjob.)



The monks have been locked in their monasteries and internet services have been cut off (though the American Association for the Advancement of Science, working with Burmese groups, has made available satellite images of villages being burned and civilian relocations). A U.N. Special Envoy has been sent to Rangoon to "intervene" and has met with Suu Kyi. Food aid, which had been cut off, has been allowed again at one northern port.


There has been criticism of Burma's neighbors China, India and Thailand for not joining major world leaders (including the U.S.) in issuing statements criticizing the crackdown--China even vetoed a U.N. Security Council Resolution against Burma in January. But Burma's economic importance to the East as a source of oil and natural gas means that, as one Thai leader frankly admitted, such statements are unlikely to come.

So that's what the Women's League of Burma is up against. A group of women world leaders, convened (to her credit) by Condoleeza Rice, is writing to put pressure on the government, at the suggestion of Phillipines president Arroyo, who also spoke at the U.N. before the meeting. (Interestingly, Filipina women's organizations seem to have played a role in the formation of the Burma Women's League.) Here is the statement and list of signatories.

Now, if you've read all that and are having that "but what can I do" feeling, you can add your little bit by visiting the website for the U.S. Campaign for Burma, where you can donate and find a list of other things to do, including an upcoming protest in Houston and potentially Los Angeles. If you're on a campus somewhere, you could organize a march to raise awareness, like they did at Harvard.

Bitch_PhD was inspired by Jon Swift. If the name sounds familiar, you know that when someone using it holds your feet to the fire, you better get hopping.

Cross-posted from Bitch PhD.