Monks exhorted to relaunch stir on Independence Day

Merinews, India

The monks in Burma are restive and plans are afoot to restart protest movements similar to September, which has been dubbed the ‘Saffron Revolution’.

Posters have begun to appear exhorting the Buddhist clergy to once again hit the streets of Burma on the country's Independence Day. Posters have been seen pasted in Pakhokku town in central Burma, the Burmese media in exile reports.

The posters have exhorted monks to stage a mass rally of monks on the 60th anniversary of Burma's Independence Day on January 4, 2008. The posters were found pasted on the northern gate of the Mahawihzayarrama monastery, also known as the East monastery, in Pakhokku, a town in Magwe Division where the uprising first took place in September and snowballed across Burma. The police hurriedly removed the posters.

In September this year the monks took over the protests from the 1988-generation students and were joined by the people, first demanding a roll back in the hike in fuel prices and essential commodities and then demanding change from military rule to democracy in a country plagued by economic and political deterioration.

The Burmese military junta came down heavily on the protesting monks' students and the people killing, beating and arresting large numbers. Though it officially claimed that 10 people died and 3,000 were arrested, human rights activists have gone on record as saying that the numbers were far higher. There has been international condemnation of the high handed and ruthless suppression of the peaceful movement by the Burmese military junta.

What followed was worse for monks. Many were disrobed forcibly. The younger monks and novices were rounded up and sent back to their hometowns. Those detained were tortured and monasteries taken over. Monks all over Burma except those on the side of the ruling regime were publicly humiliated making a mockery of the Buddhist clergy who are held in highest esteem in Buddhist dominated Burma. The generals gave the lie to being Buddhists and scorning the clergy.

Now only one-third of the monks are visible in Pakhokku town after the regime drove away many monks and novices to their hometowns.

Monks in Pakhokku have boycotted the monks' examination being conducted by the junta administration to protest against the treatment of the monks by the junta during the protests and after.