Causecast

by PHILIP ROSS, Causecast Editor

A triumph for the people of Burma, the military government has set free 126 political prisoners in the past few weeks. Among them, high-profile cases included Khaing Kaung San, Ko Aung Tun and Myo Yan Naung. Silenced for their dissident views, these peaceful protesters spent years in prison simply for advocating their political opinions – their positions, of course, being contrary to the agenda of the ruling militaristic regime.

Khaing Kaung San, chairman of the Arakanese Patriotic Literature Club, labeled a political dissident, was imprisoned in 2000. Ko Aung Tun, accused of “collaborating with terrorist groups,” faced a 17 year sentence starting in 1998 for his prominent role in the All Burma Federation of Student Unions. A member of the 88 Generation Students Group, Myo Yan Naung was detained in 2007 for his involvement with the activists who filmed the September 2007 protests.

In an effort to silence all dissident political voices, the military junta of Burma has jailed thousands of people over the years, people like Khaing Kaung San, Ko Aung Tun, and Myo Yan Naung. With the recent release of these and others, it is proof that with sustained pressure from both internal and external organizations, wrongs can once again be made right. Perhaps the international cry for justice in Burma is finally reaching the ears of the oppressors.

With the release of these prisoners comes a hope that more will follow. The democratically elected leader, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, has been imprisoned or under house arrest for almost two decades. The international community has rallied around her as a symbol for the political oppression in Burma; Causecast has been an active supporter of Suu Kyi with our Freedom To Lead Campaign. Although Suu Kyi is a vital leader for her people, it is important to remember the countless others imprisoned – visit the Amnesty International website to see a more complete list of high profile prisoners of conscience. Each has played a critical role in the democratic uprising, and the only crime these freedom fighters have committed has been to demand free and fair elections, and to promote the dismantlement of an oppressive militaristic regime.

Photo by Taekwonweirdo, flickr.