Monks vs. military in Burma
IT IS BEING called the Saffron Revolution. In recent days, Buddhist monks throughout Burma have been leading peaceful protests against a brutal military dictatorship. And now a decisive moment is approaching.
There is a mounting danger that the swelling throngs of protesters may soon be assaulted by a regime that rarely hesitates to use violence. Heads of state attending the opening of the United Nations' General Assembly this week in New York ought to exercise all their influence to demand that the junta refrain from violence and heed the protesters' appeal for reconciliation and dialogue.
On Sept. 5, before the protest movement had reached its current critical mass, security forces fired over the heads of demonstrators in a town called Pakkoku and beat up some of the monks. In Burmese society, such an act suggests that the perpetrators are without the Buddhist values of loving-kindness and compassion. The monks in Pakkoku, fulfilling their duty to protect the people against unjust rulers, had been objecting to sudden steep increases in the price of fuel and basic commodities.
The generals' hesitation to attack the monks' prayerful processions since then - as they did in horrific massacres of members of a democracy movement in 1988 - is explained by the special status of Buddhist monks in Burmese society. Nearly all males in Burma spend some time in their youth as monks or novices. The families of soldiers are likely to have members in a monastic order. When protesting monks hold their alms bowls face down, they are making a symbolic gesture fraught with meaning. By refusing to accept contributions from members of the military and their families, the monks are issuing a form of Buddhist excommunication.
This gesture of spiritual rejection may be translated into a denial of the junta's political legitimacy - of its authority to rule. Consequently, the generals are faced with crucial decisions. They may allow the protests to continue and risk being compelled to preside over a genuine democratic transition. They might go so far as to insert soldiers with shaved heads among the monks to stage a violent incident that the junta may use as an excuse to fire on the demonstrators. They have done so before.
With such a prospect looming, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon must use the forum of the General Assembly gathering to show solidarity with the people of Burma. President Bush is expected to announce fresh sanctions on the junta today. But the European Union and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations must also speak out for the release of political prisoners in Burma and a true transition to democracy. Above all, China must be pressed to warn its military and commercial partners in the junta not to slaughter innocents. If the UN is to be a true Parliament of the Nations, it must heed the call for compassion coming from Burma. 