Skip to main content.
Religion News Blog is a non-profit service providing academics, religion professionals and other researchers with religion & cult news
ReligionNewsBlog

Religion news articles about religious cults, sects, world religions, and related issues

Navigation:
A Random Image


Related

More news articles & news archive on Buddhism


Translate



Advertisements *

What is a cult: Cult Definition
Simple steps to financial health and a good credit score


Elsewhere

Why does doctrine matter?


Buddhism:

Burma/Myanmar – the background story

RTE, Ireland
Sep. 30, 2007
Anthony Murnane
www.rte.ie

ReligionNewsBlog.com • Item 19522 • Posted: Monday October 1, 2007  

  • Google Bookmarks
  • Google Reader
  • Gmail
  • Yahoo Mail
  • Twitter
  • StumbleUpon
  • Reddit
  • Digg
  • Delicious
  • Blogger Post
  • Evernote
  • Facebook
  • Share/Bookmark
Click here... More articles on this topic: Buddhism

Demonstrators have been on the streets of Burma since the middle of August. The intensity of the pro-democracy protests in recent days has led to a huge deployment of troops on the streets and many deaths.

RTE’’s Deputy Foreign Editor Anthony Murnane assesses the situation in Burma.

It was a decision by Burma’s military leaders to increase fuel prices in August that sparked dissent among the population. A largely rural country with important offshore oil and gas deposits, Burma’s 50m strong population sees little of the wealth. Petrol and diesel prices doubled overnight. Public transport costs shot up as the gas used by buses increased five-fold. Food prices were affected.

Burma’s major religion is Buddhism and thousands of pagodas dotted around the country are a major tourist attraction. It’s the involvement of the country’s revered Buddhist monks that gave added weight to the demonstrations. They joined in large numbers after three of them were hurt when troops used force to break up a peaceful rally on 5 September.

In Burma nothing is simple – even its name causes problems. It is recognised by the UN as Myanmar; but the EU and other countries refer to Burma/Myanmar.

This is because its name was changed by the military leaders after they violently quashed an uprising in 1988, killing over 3,000 people. The junta has been accused of gross human rights abuses.

The Burmese people were allowed to vote in multi-party elections in 1991, for the first time in 30 years. It led to a landslide victory for the National League for Democracy.


Instead of handing over power, the military – to international condemnation – scrapped the election results. The party’s leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, was placed under house arrest. She has since won many awards, including the Nobel Peace Prize, and in 1999 she was given the Freedom of Dublin.

She is the nemesis of Burma’s head of state Than Shwe, a much decorated army general who is said to be introverted and superstitious. A man who often makes decisions based on the advice of astrologers.

As more and more pro-democracy demonstrators joined the Buddhist monks on the streets, the army moved in to get them off the streets.

They were confined to their monasteries as this week’s violent crackdown was launched in earnest. It all brings to mind the large scale protests that marked the uprising in 1988, and that is why the army was called in this week.

It’s hard to know where this will all go. The protests have a momentum now. But the army is moving in swiftly to stifle the dissent.

The international community has become more vocal in urging restraint by the army. Indeed, the killing of a Japanese photographer may do more than any of the street protests to help the pro-democracy demonstrators.

Burma’s military leaders are a tight knit group, and it’s impossible to know whether the popular anger we’ve witnessed on the streets of Burma will be powerful enough to split the armed forces and lead them to break ranks.

  • Google Bookmarks
  • Google Reader
  • Gmail
  • Yahoo Mail
  • Twitter
  • StumbleUpon
  • Reddit
  • Digg
  • Delicious
  • Blogger Post
  • Evernote
  • Facebook
  • Share/Bookmark


What You Can Do From Here

Read More Articles On These Topics
more cult news articlemore religion news Categories: Buddhism
more religion news aboutmore Religion News Blog articles about
Share, Blog About, Bookmark, or Email This Article
Subscribe
Follow Religion News Blog on Twitter


Read Another Article
Find Related Information
cult research search enginecountercult information Use our custom search engines to find additional research resources on religions and cults
Find Related Books


Most Popular Today


Share This Article

To share this page simply copy and paste one of these URL's:





Counter Cult Search

Search for information about (religious) cults, cult-like organizations, -- as well as paranormal-, New Age, and pseudoscientific claims -- across 260+ websites, blogs and forums dedicated to cult research, spiritual abuse, ex-cult counseling & support.


Note: results are listed on another domain -- CounterCultSearch.com -- from which you can easily return here.


Apologetics Search

Search for apologetics articles, books, videos, and other research resources across 135 Christian apologetics websites and blogs.


Note: results are listed on another domain -- ApologeticsSearch.com -- from which you can easily return here.

About Religion News Blog
Religion News Blog (RNB), published by Apologetics Index, highlights news items and other resources on world religions, cults, religious sects, alternative religions and related issues. RNB's non-profit news clipping service is used by - among others - Christian apologists, countercult professionals, anticult organizations, cult experts, teachers, religion professionals, reporters and other researchers.

Home
Latest Headlines
RSS news feed [?]
Headlines by Email
News Trackers
Free content for your site
About RNB
Privacy Policy
Contact RNB
Link to RNB
Advertise on RNB
Apologetics Index
Cult FAQ
Apologetics Search Engine
CounterCult Search Engine