1984 VIDEO

I think the less said about this video, the better. Especially note our brother and sister from about 3:10 to 4:20.

FORGET?! WHO ARE THEY KIDDING?




And then they cannot understand our desire for self-determination.

FREE BURMA - BLOGS FOR FREEDOM

Help the People of Burma -- Post this Meme on Your Blog!
Sep. 30th, 2007 at 12:41 PM

Note: This is a new kind of online protest that uses blogs to spread a petition globally. To participate, just add your blog by following the instructions in this blog post.

These are Burmese Buddhist nuns, called 'The Keepers Of Virtue,' marching for freedom. They have disappeared. No one seems to know what has happened to them.

This not an issue of partisan politics, this is an issue of basic human rights and democracy. Please help to prevent a human tragedy in Burma by adding your blog and asking others to do the same.

By passing this meme on through the blogosphere hopefully we can generate more awareness and avert a serious tragedy. As concerned world-citizens this something we bloggers can do to help.

How to participate:

1. Copy this entire post to your blog, including this special number: 1081081081234

2. After a few days, you can search Google for the number 1081081081234 to find all blogs that are participating in this protest and petition. Note: Google indexes blogs at different rates, so it could take longer for your blog to show up in the results.

3. If you know how to add tags to your blog posts, add the Technorati tag 1081081081234 to your post as well. This will make your post findable sooner in Technorati.


THE SITUATION IN BURMA AND WHY IT MATTERS TO ALL OF US

There is no press freedom in Burma and the government has started turning off the Internet and other means of communication, so it is difficult to get news out. Individuals on the ground have been sending their day-by-day reports to the BBC, and they are heartbreaking. I encourage you to read these accounts to see for yourself what is really going on in Burma. Please include this link in your own blog post.

The situation in Burma is increasingly dangerous. Hundreds of thousands of unarmed peaceful protesters, including monks and nuns, are risking their lives to march for democracy against an unpopular but well-armed military dictatorship that will stop at nothing to continue its repressive rule. While the generals in power and their families are literally dripping in gold and diamonds, the people of Burma are impoverished, deprived of basic human rights, cut off from the rest of the world, and increasingly under threat of violence.

This week the people of Burma have risen up collectively in the largest public demonstrations against the ruling Junta in decades. It's an amazing show of bravery, decency, and democracy in action. But although these protests are peaceful, the military rulers are starting to crack down with violence. Already there have been at least several reported deaths, and hundreds of critical injuries from soldiers beating unarmed civilians to the point of death.

The actual fatalities and injuries are probably far worse, but the only news we have is coming from individuals who are sneaking reports past the authorities. Unfortunately it looks like a large-scale blood-bath may ensue -- and the victims will be mostly women, children, the elderly and unarmed monks and nuns.

Contrary to what the Burmese, Chinese and Russian governments have stated, this is not merely a local internal political issue, it is an issue of global importance and it affects the global community. As concerned citizens, we cannot allow any government anywhere in the world to use its military to attack and kill peacefully demonstrating, unarmed citizens.

In this modern day and age violence against unarmed civilians is unacceptable and if it is allowed to happen, without serious consequences for the perpetrators, it creates a precedent for it to happen again somewhere else. If we want a more peaceful world, it is up to each of us to make a personal stand on these fundamental issues whenever they arise.

Please join me in calling on the Burmese government to negotiate peacefully with its citizens, and on China to intervene to prevent further violence. And please help to raise awareness of the developing situation in Burma so that hopefully we can avert a large-scale human disaster there.

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WHY TRY TO FIT IN WHEN YOU WERE BORN TO STAND OUT?

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WHY TRY TO FIT IN WHEN YOU WERE BORN TO STAND OUT?

Ensaaf and HRW Release Joint Report: Protecting the Killers

This came in my inbox. I think it is important enough to share it with you in its entirety. You can also check out the ENSAAF Website. and also the Human Rights Watch Website.

Here are some useful links:

Download:
Report (PDF, 834 kb)
Report with cover (PDF, 1.1 Mb)
Summary and Key Recommendations (English) (PDF, 325 kb)
Summary and Key Recommendations (Punjabi) (PDF, 225 kb)
Press Release (Punjabi) (PDF, 36 kb)

View:
Broadcast-quality video interviews of people featured in report
Photo Essay

Be sure to check out the photo essay.


From: Ensaaf <info@ensaaf.org>
Date: 18 Oct 2007 00:04
Subject: Ensaaf and HRW Release Joint Report: Protecting the Killers
To: simayanan@gmail.com

India: Time to Deliver Justice for Atrocities in Punjab

Investigate and Prosecute Perpetrators of 'Disappearances' and Killings

(Delhi, October 18, 2007) - The Indian government must take concrete steps to hold accountable members of its security forces who killed, "disappeared," and tortured thousands of Sikhs during its counterinsurgency campaign in Punjab, Human Rights Watch and Ensaaf said in a new report released today.

In order to end the institutional defects that foster impunity in Punjab and elsewhere in the country, the government should take new legal and practical steps, including the establishment of a commission of inquiry, a special prosecutor's office, and an extensive reparations program.

The 123-page report, "Protecting the Killers: A Policy of Impunity in Punjab, India," examines the challenges faced by victims and their relatives in pursuing legal avenues for accountability for the human rights abuses perpetrated during the government's counterinsurgency campaign. The report describes the impunity enjoyed by officials responsible for violations and the near total failure of India's judicial and state institutions, from the National Human Rights Commission to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), to provide justice for victims' families.

Beginning in the 1980s, Sikh separatists in Punjab committed serious human rights abuses, including the massacre of civilians, attacks upon Hindu minorities in the state, and indiscriminate bomb attacks in crowded places. In its counterinsurgency operations in Punjab from 1984 to 1995, Indian security forces committed serious human rights abuses against tens of thousands of Sikhs. None of the key architects of this counterinsurgency strategy who bear substantial responsibility for these atrocities have been brought to justice.

"Impunity in India has been rampant in Punjab, where security forces committed large-scale human rights violations without any accountability," said Brad Adams, Asia director at Human Rights Watch. "No one disputes that the militants were guilty of numerous human rights abuses, but the government should have acted within the law instead of sanctioning the killing, 'disappearance,' and torture of individuals accused of supporting the militants."

A key case discussed in detail in the report is the Punjab "mass cremations case," in which the security services are implicated in thousands of killings and secret cremations throughout Punjab to hide the evidence of wrongdoing. The case is currently before the National Human Rights Commission, a body specially empowered by the Supreme Court to address this case. However, the commission has narrowed its efforts to merely establishing the identity of the individuals who were secretly cremated in three crematoria in just one district of Punjab. It has rejected cases from other districts and has ignored the intentional violations of human rights perpetrated by India's security forces. For more a decade, the commission has failed to independently investigate a single case and explicitly refuses to identify any responsible officials.

"The National Human Rights Commission has inexplicably failed in its duties to investigate and establish exactly what happened in Punjab," said Adams. "We still hold out hope that it will change course and bring justice to victims and their families."

The report discusses the case of Jaswant Singh Khalra, a leading human rights defender in Punjab who was abducted and then murdered in October 1995 by government officials after being held in illegal detention for almost two months. Despite credible eyewitness testimony that police chief KPS Gill was directly involved in interrogating Khalra in illegal detention just days prior to Khalra's murder, the Central Bureau of Investigation has thus far refused to investigate or prosecute Gill. In September 2006, Khalra's widow, Paramjit Kaur, filed a petition in the Punjab & Haryana High Court calling on the CBI to take action against Gill. More than a year later, she is still waiting for a hearing on the merits.

"Delivering justice in Punjab could set precedents throughout India for the redress of mass state crimes and superior responsibility," said Jaskaran Kaur, co-director of Ensaaf. "Indians and the rest of the world are watching to see if the current Indian government can muster the political will to do the right thing. It if fails, then the only conclusion that can be reached is that the state's institutions cannot or will not take on the security establishment. This has grave implications for Indian democracy."

Victims and their families seeking justice face severe challenges, including prolonged trials, biased prosecutors, an unresponsive judiciary, police intimidation and harassment of witnesses, and the failure to charge senior government officials despite evidence of their role in the abuses.

Tarlochan Singh described the hurdles he has faced in his now 18-year struggle before Indian courts for justice for the killing of his son, Kulwinder Singh:

"I used to receive threatening phone calls. The caller would say that they had killed thousands of boys and thrown them into canals, and they would also do that to Kulwinder Singh's wife, kid, or me and my wife...

"The trial has been proceeding ... with very little evidence being recorded at each hearing, and with two to three months between hearings. During this time, key witnesses have died."

After Mohinder Singh's son Jugraj Singh was killed in an alleged faked armed encounter between security forces and separatists in January 1995, he pursued numerous avenues of justice. He brought his case before the Punjab & Haryana High Court and the CBI Special Court, but no police officer was charged. A CBI investigation found that Jugraj Singh had been killed and cremated by the police. However, 11 years and a few inquiry reports later, the CBI court ended Mohinder Singh's pursuit for accountability by dismissing his case in 2006. Mohinder Singh described his interactions with the CBI:

"On one occasion when [the officer] from the CBI came to my house, he told me that I wasn't going to get anything out of this. Not justice and not even compensation. He further said that: 'I see you running around pursuing your case. But you shouldn't get into a confrontation with the police. You have to live here and they can pick you up at any time.' He was indirectly threatening me."

Human Rights Watch and Ensaaf expressed concern that the Indian government continues to cite the counterinsurgency operations in Punjab as a model for preserving national integrity.

"The government's illegal and inhuman policies in the name of security have allowed a culture of impunity to prevail that has brutalized its police and security forces," said Kaur.

The report suggests a comprehensive framework to address the institutionalized impunity that has prevented accountability in Punjab. The detailed recommendations include establishing a commission of inquiry, a special prosecutor's office, and an extensive reparations program.

"The Indian government needs to send a clear message to its security services, courts, prosecutors, and civil servants that it neither tolerates nor condones gross human rights violations under any circumstances," said Adams. "This requires a comprehensive and credible process of accountability that delivers truth, justice, and reparations to its victims, who demand nothing more than their rights guaranteed by India's constitution and international law."

View broadcast-quality video interviews of those featured in the report.
View a photo essay on the report.

The report page also includes links to an English summary, a Punjabi translation of the summary, and the Punjabi translation of the press release.

For more information, please contact:
In California, Jaskaran Kaur, Ensaaf (English, Punjabi): +1-857-205-3849 (mobile)
In Delhi, Meenakshi Ganguly, Human Rights Watch (Bengali, English, Hindi): +91-98-200-36032 (mobile)
In Delhi, Charu Hogg, Human Rights Watch (English, Hindi): +91-98-105-64169 (mobile)
In Washington, DC, Sophie Richardson, Human Rights Watch (English, Mandarin): +1-917-721-7473 (mobile)
In Brussels, Reed Brody, Human Rights Watch (English, French, Portuguese, Spanish): +32-2-737-1489; or +32-498-625786 (mobile)

Ensaaf, a U.S.-based 501(c)(3) organization, works to end impunity and achieve justice for mass state crimes in Punjab, India by documenting and exposing human rights violations, bringing perpetrators to justice, and organizing survivors to advocate for their rights.

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Our postal address is
PO Box 594
Fremont, California 94537
United States

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WHY TRY TO FIT IN WHEN YOU WERE BORN TO STAND OUT?

Aung San Suu Kyi Named Honorary Canadian

CBC News

Amid all the gloom and horror of the Ludhiana bombing, I at least need some postitive news. Although I read recently that we Sikhs are Canada's most disliked minority - the Jews are the most popular - I nontheless remain a Canadian and am glad to see something good come out of my native land. This is as close as I can come to good news out of Burma.

Burma's democratic heroine named honorary Canadian

Parliament on Wednesday unanimously passed a motion to designate Burma's democracy advocate, Aung San Suu Kyi, an honorary Canadian citizen.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper presented the motion in the House of Commons, calling her a "symbol of the desire of the Burmese people for political freedom."

Burma's pro-democracy icon, Aung San Suu Kyi, was named an honorary Canadian citizen Wednesday in the House of Commons. Suu Kyi, a Nobel laureate, has been held under house arrest since 1989 for her political views.
(Canadian Press)

Suu Kyi, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate, has been held under house arrest in Burma — also known as Myanmar — for the past 18 years by the military junta governing the impoverished southeast Asian country.

"All Canadians know that what is happening in Burma is an attack on the values we hold dear … and an attack on the values of civilization itself," Harper said, following a standing ovation.

Peaceful anti-government demonstrations in Burma, which were led by the country's revered monks over the last few weeks, were met with violent force from soldiers and riot police.

Pictures and video footage from the country showed monks and protesters being beaten in the streets as part of an effort to crush dissent.

According to the military junta, several demonstrators were also gunned down, and state-controlled media said the country was holding 500 demonstrators in prison.

In the midst of the humanitarian crisis and in spite of being confined to house arrest since 1989, Harper said Suu Kyi has shone as "the embodiment of [democratic] ideals and an inspiration for all of us."

"More than anyone else, she has focused international attention on the plight of her people. This is why we are bestowing honourary citizenship on Aung San Suu Kyi," Harper said.

Larry Bagnell, the Liberal MP for the Yukon Territory, recognized Suu Kyi for her "courage to sacrifice her life in order to give life to an entire nation."

Other foreigners who have been granted honorary Canadian citizenship include the Dalai Lama, Nelson Mandela, and Swedish diplomat Raoul Wallenberg.

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WHY TRY TO FIT IN WHEN YOU WERE BORN TO STAND OUT?

India Must Keep Good Relations With Myanmar

What can one expect of a country that slaughters its own citizens, the same group of citizens that fought and died for that country's independence in the first place?


This article appeared today. in The Hindustan Times

New Delhi, October 02, 2007

First Published: 02:56 IST(2/10/2007)

Last Updated: 11:26 IST(2/10/2007)

INDIA MUST KEEP GOOD RELATIONS WITH MYANMAR

MUST KEEP MYANMAR TIES: ARMY CHIEF

The Indian Army's new chief Gen Deepak Kapoor said on
Monday that India should maintain its good relations with Myanmar. The
happenings in Myanmar are an internal matter of that country, Gen Kapoor said in
response to a question on the political situation there.

"We have good relations with Myanmar and we should
maintain these," he said. The new chief was speaking to reporters shortly after
inspecting the guard of honour to mark his taking over the reins of the Indian
Army. The cooperation and support of Myanmar's military is considered vital to
India's counter-insurgency operations in the Northeast.

Despite pressure from the West to condemn the crackdown
on pro-democracy protestors, India has been guarded in its approach. The
external affairs ministry earlier gave a statement, after protests broke out
against the ruling junta, which merely expressed "concern". It came at a time
when most other countries were condemning the attacks on protesting monks as
brutal.

"As a close and friendly neighbour, India hopes to see a
peaceful, stable and prosperous Myanmar, where all sections of the people will
be included in a broad-based process of national reconciliation and political
reform," said an Indian foreign office statement released earlier.

Till the mid-1990s, India was openly supporting
opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi. In October 2004, New Delhi welcomed military
leader Gen Than Shwe during his visit to the capital, signaling the change in
course to balance China's growing influence in the region.

© Copyright 2007 Hindustan
Times

Please. Take a look at these pictures. This is a human being. A dead human being with the marks of torture on his body. This reminds me of some of the Operation Woodrose pictures I have seen.

Now. Please go to yesterday's post and sign the petition in the link there. Thank you.