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  1. #101
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    Myanmar leader-in-exile calls for emergency UN talks

    Published : Tue, 25 Sep 2007 15:08
    By : Agencies

    PARIS (Thomson Financial) - The head of Myanmar's self-proclaimed government-in-exile has urged France, as chair of the UN Security Council, to call emergency UN talks on the uprising against the country's ruling junta.

    'What we expect from France, is for it to help us get out of this situation,' Sein Win, the prime minister of the National Coalition Government of the Union of Burma (NCGUB), told French news channel LCI.

    The first cousin of democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi, Sein Win said he hoped French President Nicolas Sarkozy would join him in calling for an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council.

    He said he was due to meet with Sarkozy in Paris on Wednesday following his return from the UN General Assembly.
    Sein Win was among those who won parliamentary seats in 1990 elections in Myanmar in which Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy (NLD) won by a landslide but which the military junta refused to recognise.

    The NCGUB government in exile has also been outlawed by the military junta.

    More than 100,000 people, led by Buddhist monks, have defied warnings from the ruling junta to march through the streets of Yangon for an eighth consecutive day of peaceful protest against the military authorities.


    tfn.newsdesk@thomson.com

    abcmoney.co.uk

  2. #102
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    Bush announces new sanctions against Myanmar
    DAILY NEWS STAFF
    Tuesday, September 25th 2007, 9:51 AM

    President Bush announced news sanctions today against the military regime in Myanmar and called on UN members to support struggles against dictatorships around the world.

    "The people of Lebanon and Afghanistan and Iraq have asked for our help, and every civilized nation has a responsibility to stand with them," Bush told the UN General Assembly.

    "Every civilized nation also has a responsibility to stand up for the people suffering under dictatorship," he said. "In Belarus, North Korea, Syria and Iran, brutal regimes deny their people the fundamental rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration" of the United Nations.

    Bush said the United States would tighten economic sanctions against the military dictators in Myanmar, where barefoot Buddhist monks have been leading thousands of people in anti-regime marches and pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi has been under house arrest for the better part of two decades.

    "Americans are outraged by the situation in Burma," Bush said, using the former name for the Southeast Asian nation.

    snip


    nydailynews.com

  3. #103
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    Thais ready to be evacuated from Burma



    Thailand is prepared to evacuate Thais in Burma if the mass street protests turn into violence, Thai Supreme Commander Gen. Boonsang Niempradit said Tuesday.

    Speaking about the mass street protests of Buddhist monks and their lay supporters in Burma, Gen. Boonsang said that Thailand's military has closely monitored the situation as many Thai nationals live and work in Burma.

    He said that while he believed the situation won't turn into a turmoil, he has nonetheless contacted the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Thai military attache to Burma to be prepared to evacuate Thai nationals in Myanmar if the situation changes and becomes violent.

    Meanwhile, Customs Department director-general Chavalit Sethametheekul said that the rallies haven't affected trade at the border of the two countries. Facilities and transportation links support border trade, which is one of Thailand's key trade strategies, he said.

    Maroot Mrigadat, PTT Exploration and Production (PTTEP) director and secretary to the Board of Directors said that the company is monitoring the situation in Burma.

    None of the parties wish to see violence take place, Mr. Maroot said. However, if it occurs, the company is ready to evacuate about ten workers from Burma.The mass rallies have no impact on PTTEP's operations at the moment.

    Two gas fields – the Yadana and Yetagun zones – are currently operating to deliver more than one billion cubic feet per day of natural gas to Thailand.

    PTTEP has invested several hundred million dollars in Burma.
    Meanwhile, a source at Shin Satellite Plc, Thailand's first satellite operator and a subsidiary of Shin Corporation which allocated IPStar broadband satellite services in Burma, disclosed that the marches of Buddhist monks in Yangon did not much affect the company's operations. However, Shin Satellite would continue to monitor the situation. (TNA)

    bangkokpost.com

  4. #104
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    Myanmar police try to quell protests
    Posted : Tue, 25 Sep 2007 14:59:27 GMT
    Author : World News Editor

    YANGON, Myanmar, Sept. 25 Riot police Tuesday moved to quell weeklong pro-democracy protests in the streets of Myanmar's capital but at least 10,000 people failed to heed warnings.

    Britain's Daily Telegraph reported military trucks took to the streets, blaring warnings against joining the demonstrations but without making specific threats.

    Some 100,000 Buddhist monks, who have been leading the protests, and civilians marched Monday in Yangon.

    The effort to quell the disturbances, the biggest challenge in the 20 years of the military dictatorship in the country formerly known as Burma, came as U.S. President George Bush prepared to ask the United Nations to increase sanctions against the regime.

    Students joined the protest for the first time Tuesday in defiance of a televised order by the junta Monday warning the protests were illegal and would be "dispersed by military force," the BBC reported.

    The protests began last month after the government doubled fuel prices. In previous protests, students stood along the parade routes and clapped, the report said.

    Both China and the European Union issued diplomatic statements calling for calm.

    earthtimes.org

  5. #105
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    BURMA - UNREST
    Tuesday, September 25, 2007
    Myanmar monks chant "democracy", soldiers move in
    By Reuters

    YANGON, Sept 25 (Reuters) - Chanting "democracy,
    democracy", 10,000 monks marched through the heart of Myanmar's
    main city on Tuesday in defiance of a threat by the ruling
    generals to send in troops to end the biggest anti-junta
    protests in nearly 20 years.

    The streets were lined with people clapping and cheering
    and there were no overt signs of police or soldiers and no
    trouble as the campaign against 45 years of military rule
    swelled in size and scope.

    But after the demonstrators left the area around the Sule
    Pagoda in central Yangon, the focus of a week of marches by the
    revered maroon-robed monks, riot police and troops moved in.

    Eight trucks arrived with police carrying shields, batons
    and rifles, a Reuters witness said. Eleven army trucks packed
    with soldiers also drove in, suggesting the junta was filling
    up the city centre to counter any attempt at a repeat.

    In another possible sign of looming confrontation, a
    well-placed source said detained democracy icon Aung San Suu
    Kyi was moved to the notorious Insein prison on Sunday, a day
    after she appeared in front of her house to greet monks.

    If true, removing Suu Kyi from her lakeside villa would
    deprive the protesters of a focus after they were stunned by
    police allowing them through the barricades sealing off her
    street on Saturday.

    They have not been allowed through since despite several
    attempts and scores of riot police took up positions behind
    razor-wire barricades at the entrance to the street.

    REMINDER OF '88

    The area around the Sule pagoda was the scene of the worst
    bloodshed during a crackdown on nationwide pro-democracy
    protests in 1988 in which 3,000 people are thought to have been
    killed.

    In an ominous reminder of that, vehicles bearing
    loudspeakers toured the city in the morning blaring out threats
    of action under a law allowing troops to break up illegal
    protests.

    "People are not to follow, encourage or take part in these
    marches. Action will be taken against those who violate this
    order," the broadcasts said.

    People arrived in huge numbers anyway a day after up to
    100,000 people protested in Yangon and in Taunggok, a coastal
    city 250 miles (400) to the northwest, about 40,000 monks and
    civilians took to the streets, witnesses said.

    "The people are not afraid," one man said as the Yangon
    column of monks stretched several blocks on their march from
    the Shwedagon Pagoda, the Southeast Asian nation's holiest
    shrine and symbolic heart of the campaign.

    In a gesture of defiance, some waved the bright red
    "fighting peacock" flag, emblem of the student unions that
    spearheaded a the 1988 uprising, one the darkest episodes in
    the former Burma's modern history.

    INTERNATIONAL PLEAS

    The international community has pleaded with the generals
    to avoid another bloodbath, but the chilling message behind the
    legal language of Tuesday's warnings was lost on nobody in the
    city of 5 million people.

    Far away in their new jungle capital, the generals hunkered
    down for an emergency "War Office" meeting, a diplomat said,
    and ethnic Karen rebels on the Thai border told Reuters troops
    of the 22nd Division had been redeployed to Yangon.

    The 22nd Division played a major role in the 1988 carnage
    and the report lent weight to threats against senior monks
    issued by Religious Affairs Minister Brigadier-General Thura
    Myint Maung.

    State radio quoted him as saying action would be taken
    against senior monks if they did not control their charges in
    protests he said were fomented by political extremists.

    That triggered anxiety around the world.

    "The regime has a long history of violent reactions to
    peaceful demonstrations," Gareth Evans, head of the
    International Crisis Group think-tank, said in a statement.

    "If serious loss of life is to be averted, those U.N.
    members with influence over the government are going to have to
    come together fast," he said in reference to China, Russia and
    India.

    China, the closest the junta has to a friend, had been
    making an effort recently to let the generals know how worried
    the international community was, a Beijing-based diplomat said.

    On Tuesday, Beijing said it "certainly hopes Myanmar can
    maintain stability and resolve the issue in its own way", but
    left it unclear clear what kind of diplomatic pressure it was
    exerting on the generals behind the scenes.

    One of the world's most isolated regimes, the junta has
    seldom listened to the opinions of others.

    BUSH TO ANNOUNCE SANCTIONS

    Others urged the generals to address the grievances of
    Myanmar's 56 million people who, in the past 50 years, have
    watched their country go from being one of Asia's brightest
    prospects to one of its most desperate.

    U.S. President George W. Bush was to announce new sanctions
    and call for support for political change in a speech at the
    United Nations on Tuesday. British Prime Minister Gordon Brown
    urged the European Union to impose tighter sanctions.

    U.N. special envoy Ibrahim Gambari said he was praying the
    generals opted for compromise and dialogue with the monks and
    opposition party of Suu Kyi rather than sending in the troops.

    "For the sake of the people of Myanmar, for the sake of
    neighbouring countries and for the sake of Myanmar's place in
    the world, we certainly hope that the same reaction that took
    place in 1988 will not be the case now," he told CNN.

    france24.com

  6. #106
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    My family is protesting in Burma
    Last Updated: Tuesday September 25 2007 16:31 GMT




    Press Packer Mikaeel has cousins living in Burma, where tens of thousands of people are protesting about the military government there.

    Mikaeel has been to demonstrations in the UK with his dad in support of his family and other protestors in the south east Asian country.


    Here's his report.

    "I feel happy about the demonstrations in Burma and hope the government there will be ashamed and change and that the situation in Burma will be better.
    I speak to my family there every day and they say they are demonstrating every day.
    My cousins are about my age - 10 - and told me that they feel nervous.

    Pay attention

    They have to work and they're upset that they don't get to study because of the government there.
    They're hoping the government will change so kids will be able to study and be happy.
    It's a big thing that the monks are involved in the protests because it means other countries are paying attention to what's going on over there.
    I think other countries can make a difference by demonstrating, wherever they are.

    Freedom

    In August, I took part in protests outside the Burmese embassy in the UK.
    We went every day to show our support and ask for the freedom of the Burmese people.
    People were taking photos of us from inside the embassy to send to the people in Burma. Hopefully the government will realise their mistake and change."

    Mikaeel, 10, London

    news.bbc.co.uk

  7. #107
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    Protesting Burmese monks today urged the United Nations to intervene immediately into the situation in Burma as there are signs of the junta gearing up for a brutal crack down.

    The All Burma Buddhist Monks Union, in a letter addressed to the UN chief Ban Ki-moon, appealed to the world body to immediately intervene in Burma in order to avoid large scale bloodshed in what would be a repetition of the 1988 uprising, where thousands of students, monks and civilians were brutally killed by the ruling junta.

    "While we are carrying out activities with an understanding that it is the duty of the citizens to bring about changes in our country, the military junta instead of complying with our demands peacefully, are gearing up for a brutal crackdown," The Monks Union said.

    "Therefore, we urge you to immediately intervene in helping the Burmese people to elect a new leader that will be acceptable by all, instead of waiting until there is bloodshed and chaos before acting," the Monks Union added.

    The monks union's call came as monks and civilians today continued the second day of the nation-wide protests in Burma, despite the junta's warning that it would 'take action'.

    Eyewitnesses said, more than 1, 50,000 people – monks, students, and civilians - today protested in former capital of Burma. Students were also seen hoisting the fighting peacock flag, a symbol student revolution.

    The protest, which extended to more than 10 cities, towns and villages across Burma, demanded the release of political prisoners including detained pro-democracy leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, better living condition and a dialogue that would kick-start national reconciliation process.

    In the first response to the ongoing protests led by the monks, the junta in its state-run television last night broadcast a warning saying it will take 'take action' against protesters.

    As a step towards security, several military trucks loaded with soldiers were seen moving towards downtown Rangoon, eyewitnesses said.
    Interestingly, sources close to the military establishment said there was diverse opinion among the top brass of the military clique, on using violent methods to crackdown on protesters.

    While Senior General Than Shwe, Burma's military supremo, wanted to open fire on peaceful protesters in a similar to what the army did 19 years ago, several military divisional commanders including Rangoon military divisional commander, Northwestern Military divisional commander and Northeastern military divisional commander disagreed with him, the source said.

    However, the information could not be independently verified.

    Just as the junta is reported to be gearing up for a massive crackdown, another rumor is doing the rounds in Rangoon that the junta in order to blackout communication will shut-down one of the country's only two Internet Service provider, Myanmar teleport, earlier known as Bagan Cybertech.

    "It might be possible that the junta will shut-down internet connections tonight. Even now we are experiencing weak connection. Phone lines are bad too, even local phones are sometimes inaccessible." a resident in Rangoon told Mizzima.

    He added that he saw about seven military trucks with at least 30 soldiers in uniforms in each of them in front of the City Hall in downtown Rangoon.

    Meanwhile, the International Crisis Group, an independent NGO, said the UN chief should start talking to foreign ministers of China, India and Singapore, the current Asean chair, on the sidelines of the ongoing 62nd UN General Assembly, and initiate a joint attempt that would encourage peaceful dialogue in Burma.

    The group also urged China, India and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations to back Ban Ki-moon and put their full weight behind UN efforts to find a solution to Burma's political crisis.

    "Only China, India, and, to a lesser degree, ASEAN have any influence on the military regime," said the group in a statement release today.

    The only way to stop the Burmese junta from responding to the ongoing protest with a brutal crackdown, the UN should send in peacekeeping forces to Burma in order to stop bloodshed and chaos, an exiled Burmese activist said.

    Cheery Zahau, coordinator of the Women's League of Chinland based in India- Burma border said, "Unless the UN sends in its peace keeping force, Burma's situation will get worse and result in lost of numerous lives."
    "So, peacekeeping force should be sent in as has been done in African nations to neutralize the situation where the junta will not be allowed to act rampantly."

    mizzima.com

  8. #108
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    Burma Protests: the Situation on September 25

    Rangoon, 9:00 p.m.—Detained democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi was moved to the notorious Insein prison from her Rangoon lakeside home at University Avenue, the Reuters news agency reported. Meanwhile Britain's ambassador Mark Canning said in an interview with Reuters that Burma's defense ministry appeared to be leading the government's response to the protests, spearheaded by young Buddhist monks. "They both assured me that it would be dealt with in a "correct" fashion, whatever that means," he said.

    irrawaddy.org

  9. #109
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    curfew announced in Rangoon and Mandalay

  10. #110
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    Quote Originally Posted by Mid View Post
    curfew announced in Rangoon and Mandalay

    And so it begins...

  11. #111
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    Quote Originally Posted by chinthee View Post
    Quote Originally Posted by Mid View Post
    curfew announced in Rangoon and Mandalay

    And so it begins...
    info still flowing , though there's reports of a ISP shut ,

    bbc tv is carrying reported rumours of fire trucks being filled with insecticide ..................

  12. #112
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    Myanmar troops pour into Yangon after protests
    Tue Sep 25, 2007 1:23 PM EDT

    By Aung Hla Tun

    YANGON (Reuters) - Myanmar's junta poured troops and police armed with rifles into central Yangon on Tuesday in an attempt to end the biggest demonstrations against military rule in nearly 20 years.

    Security forces surrounded the Sule Pagoda, focus of two days of mass protests led by thousands of maroon-robed monks, and appeared to be ready to seal off the area, witnesses said.

    In another possible sign of a looming clash, a well-placed source said detained democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi had been moved to the notorious Insein prison on Sunday, a day after she appeared in front of her house to greet marching monks.

    Some analysts said the junta was caught off guard by the speed with which sporadic marches against a sharp hike in fuel prices in mid-August had mushroomed into mass demonstrations against 45 years of military rule in the Southeast Asian country formerly known as Burma.

    As the international community urged the generals to avoid a repeat of a bloody crackdown on protests in 1988 and the United States announced fresh sanctions against the junta, the U.N. human rights investigator for Myanmar said he feared "very severe repression."

    "It is an emergency," said Paulo Sergio Pinheiro, singling out China as a regional power that would play a "positive role" to defuse the crisis and calling for "quiet diplomacy" by countries including the United States.

    On Tuesday evening, soldiers moved in on the Sule Pagoda after hours of peaceful protest by tens of thousands of people who turned up despite the junta's threat to use force.

    The area around the pagoda, which includes City Hall, was the scene of the worst bloodshed during a crackdown on nationwide pro-democracy protests in 1988 in which 3,000 people are thought to have been killed.

    snip

    ca.today.reuters.com

  13. #113
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    Myanmar government imposes bans, curfews after protests continue

    Soldiers deployed in country's largest city after Buddhist monks march for 8th day



    Protest march
    Buddhist monks march in protest in Yangon, Myanmar, on Sept. 24, in the strongest show of dissent against the ruling generals in nearly two decades. More than 100,000 people flooded the streets in two major marches that snaked their way through the nation's commercial capital led by robed monks chanting prayers of peace and compassion. (AFP/Getty Images)



    The Associated Press 1:44 PM EDT, September 25, 2007 YANGON, Myanmar - The military government banned assemblies of more than five people and imposed curfews in Myanmar's two largest cities today, after thousands of Buddhist monks and sympathizers defied orders to stay out of politics and protested once again.

    Truckloads of soldiers converged on Yangon after the monks, cheered on by supporters, marched out for an eighth day of peaceful protest from Yangon's soaring Shwedagon Pagoda, while some 700 others staged a similar show of defiance in the country's second largest city of Mandalay.

    "The protest is not merely for the well being of people but also for monks struggling for democracy and for people to have an opportunity to determine their own future," one monk told The Associated Press, speaking on condition of anonymity fearing reprisals from officials. "People do not tolerate the military government any longer."

    baltimoresun.com

  14. #114
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    Myanmar Bans Gatherings, Imposes Curfew


    Myanmar Bans Gatherings, Imposes Curfew After Monks Defy Junta's Order and Resume Protests



    Buddhist monks march on a street in protest against the military government in Yangon, Myanmar, Monday, Sept. 24, 2007. As many as 100,000 anti-government protesters led by a phalanx of Buddhist monks marched Monday through Yangon, the largest crowd to demonstrate in Myanmar's biggest city since a 1988 pro-democracy uprising that was brutally crushed by the military. (AP Photo/Mizzima news)


    The Associated Press
    YANGON, Myanmar Sep 25, 2007 (AP)


    The military government banned assemblies of more than five people and imposed curfews in Myanmar's two largest cities on Tuesday, after thousands of Buddhist monks and sympathizers defied orders to stay out of politics and protested once again.

    Truckloads of soldiers converged on Yangon after the monks, cheered on by supporters, marched out for an eighth day of peaceful protest from Yangon's soaring Shwedagon Pagoda, while some 700 others staged a similar show of defiance in the country's second largest city of Mandalay.

    "The protest is not merely for the well being of people but also for monks struggling for democracy and for people to have an opportunity to determine their own future," one monk told The Associated Press, speaking on condition of anonymity fearing reprisals from officials. "People do not tolerate the military government any longer."

    President Bush on Tuesday announced new U.S. sanctions against Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, accusing the military dictatorship of imposing "a 19-year reign of fear" that denies basic freedoms of speech, assembly and worship.

    snip

    abcnews.go.com

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    here we go!

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    Why the hell don't the CIA spooks take out Than Shwe; if they were any good they'd be keeping track of him and his cronnies and do this. Sanctions; what bull shit is this, hasn't worked before. If the soliders see that their leaders have been taken out they're not going to mess with the monks and the public.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Mid
    "The people of Lebanon and Afghanistan and Iraq have asked for our help, and every civilized nation has a responsibility to stand with them," Bush told the UN General Assembly
    Fucking Christ, with statements like that, you know it's best to keep the consensus and leave the Junta alone.


    Quote Originally Posted by sledge
    If the soliders see that their leaders have been taken out they're not going to mess with the monks and the public.
    There is no revolution without the ranks of the police and military joining the protesters. Until this is happening, there is no story.

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    Myanmar curfew lifted, prominent actor detained
    Wed Sep 26, 2007 7:08am IST
    By Aung Hla Tun


    YANGON (Reuters) - Myanmar's junta on Wednesday lifted a night curfew that was imposed on the country's two main cities to stifle the biggest protests against military rule in 20 years.

    People ventured into Yangon's streets, a witness said, a day after authorities poured in security forces to halt demonstrations led by maroon-robed Buddhist monks.

    A prominent actor, Za Ga Na, who had joined the monks on Monday in urging the public to support the anti-government protests, was arrested at his home in Yangon overnight, his relatives said, in a sign of a crackdown.

    A bus owner told Reuters that authorities, seeking to avert a repeat of the past week's mass marches, had ordered drivers not to give transportation to monks.

    The dusk-to-dawn curfew was imposed on Yangon and second city, Mandalay, witnesses said. Loudspeaker announcements also said both cities would be under direct control of the local military commanders for 60 days.

    Troops and police had surrounded the Sule Pagoda in Yangon, the focus of two days of mass demonstrations by the monks.

    The area around the pagoda was the scene of the worst bloodshed during a crackdown on pro-democracy protests in 1988 in which 3,000 people are thought to have been killed.
    in.reuters.com

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    SAFFRON REVOLUTION
    Citizens’ photographs of the monk-led protests against military dictatorship in Burma, September 2007
    “May all beings without exception be happy”


    Mizzima/Myo Khin

    literally hundreds more here SAFFRON REVOLUTION « Rule of Lords

    like this one ............



    ratchasima.files.wordpress.com

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    Armed police move on monks
    26.9.2007.



    Burma's military rulers have deployed soldiers and armed police to monasteries in the capital, Rangoon, to prevent monks staging anti-junta protests.

    Witnesses said security forces had surrounded the Shwedagon Pagoda, where monks have begun many of their pro-democracy marches over the last eight days.

    Army personnel were also reported to have gathered at the Sule Pagoda, a key rallying point in the city centre.

    Reports said the pagodas had not been closed, but that people were being searched before being allowed in.

    Tight security

    Security was also tight around key monasteries in the city, apparently in an attempt to stop the monks from assembling, witnesses said.

    On Tuesday, Burma's leaders imposed a dusk-till-dawn curfew, and a ban on gatherings of more than five people in an attempt to curtail the growing protests.

    More than 100,000 people took part in demonstrations on Tuesday, the eighth successive day of action against the government.

    Meanwhile, the country's most famous comedian, Zaganar, was arrested at his home overnight, after throwing his support behind the monks.

    "Zaganar was arrested around 1:30 am at his home," because he brought food and water to the monks to support the protests, a friend told AFP.

    Comedian arrested

    Zaganar, along with other prominent movie stars and artists, had vocally urged the public to support the monks leading the most potent protests against the military regime in nearly two decades.

    Over the weekend, he had given interviews on radio broadcasts into Myanmar from outside the country.

    "The monks are the ones out praying for us, while we're at home watching TV. I'm ashamed of us," Zaganar said.

    "We, the members of the entertainment industry, are feeding ourselves with money spent on us by the people.

    "Their troubles are our troubles. When they are poor, we are poor," he said in a broadcast by the Oslo-based Democratic Voice of Burma (DVB).

    worldnewsaustralia.com.au

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    Air Force ready to evacuate Thais in Burma
    BREAKING NEWS

    (BangkokPost.com) – The situation in Burma has not deteriorate to the point where Thai nationals living there will have to be evacuated soon, Army chief Sonthi Boonyaratkalin said Wednesday.


    "However, we have contacted the air force in case an evacuation is necessary...but it all depends on situation in Burma," Gen Sonthi told reporters.

    He said the deputy military attache is now in Rangoon and is constantly reporting developments to the Thai army, adding the army knows where Thai nationals are inside Burma.

    snip

    bangkokpost.com

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    Troops, riot police converge on Burma rally
    From correspondents in Rangoon
    September 26, 2007 02:16pm

    BURMA'S military junta ordered troops and riot police to pagodas and Buddhist monasteries today to stop the mass protests that have marked the biggest challenge to the regime in 20 years.

    Authorities also imposed a night-time curfew and a ban on public gatherings - and were reportedly arresting activists - to prevent a repeat of demonstrations that have drawn up to 100,000 people onto the streets.
    Witnesses said security forces were deployed around the Shwedagon and Sule pagodas in Burma's biggest city Rangoon, which have been focal points for the marches led by the country's revered Buddhist monks.

    The pagodas were not closed but everyone was searched before being allowed to enter.

    Troops and riot police also took up positions outside at least six big activist monasteries in Rangoon today, witnesses said.

    An estimated 200 security personnel were also deployed late yesterday around Rangoon's city hall, close to Sule pagoda.

    There was no immediate word from the monks on whether they would risk their first major confrontation with the junta by trying to march again, despite fears of a repetition of the bloody end to a 1988 uprising, primarily in the Sule pagoda area.

    If they do, they will face hundreds of security personnel who poured into the area after a huge demonstration ended yesterday.

    Their arrival is the first significant action by the junta against the massive protests, which were sparked by huge fuel price rises last month and have grown into a mass movement against military rule.

    The curfew, imposed late yesterday, includes the designation of Rangoon as a "restricted area".

    There is also a ban on public gatherings of more than five people. Both measures will remain in force for 60 days.

    A new round of arrests began today. The country's most famous comedian Zaganar, who had thrown his support behind the monks, was arrested at his home overnight, a friend told AFP.

    The BBC also reported the arrest of U Win Naing, a prominent pro-democracy activist.

    Zaganar, along with other prominent movie stars and artists, had urged the public to support the monks and earlier this week delivered food and water to them.

    Over the weekend, he had spoken on short-wave radio broadcasts into Burma from outside the country.

    "The monks are the ones out praying for us while we're at home watching TV. I'm ashamed of us," he said in one interview.

    The junta yesterday warned Burma's monks to stay out of politics and also warned of the possible use of force to put down what it called illegal street protests.

    In another move against the monks today, a bus owner said drivers had been ordered not to pick up monks.

    Fresh sanctions


    The escalating tension in Burma gripped the annual UN General Assembly in New York, where world leaders - mindful of the 1988 violence - called on the junta to exercise restraint.

    US President George W Bush, in a speech to the assembly, called on all countries to "help the Burmese people reclaim their freedom" and announced fresh sanctions against the generals, their supporters and families.

    The 27-nation European Union said it would "reinforce and strengthen" sanctions against Burma's rulers if the demonstrations were put down by force.

    The UN human rights investigator for Burma, Paulo Sergio Pinheiro, said he feared "very severe repression".

    "It is an emergency," he said, singling out China as a regional power that could play a "positive role" in defusing it.

    Australia said there was little point in Canberra tightening its economic sanctions because it would only hurt Burma's ordinary citizens.

    It too pointed to China, saying it was one of the few countries that had any chance of influencing the junta.

    "... if anybody has any potential to influence the situation there, it's going to be the Chinese. I don't think what Western countries do is likely to lead to sudden changes of direction," Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said on the sidelines of the UN meeting.

    China has publicly stated that it intends to continue its policy of non-interference with Burma, but some diplomats and academics have speculated that Beijing may be pressuring the regime to show restraint.

    With AFP and Reuters

    news.com.au

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    Burma Protests: the Situation on September 26
    Rangoon; Early morning—Burmese authorities have arrested several key players who have been supporting the peaceful demonstrations and offering alms to monks, according to sources in Rangoon. At 2 a.m. the authorities arrested Amyotheryei Win Naing, one of the leaders of the Rangoon-based National Politicians Group (Myanmar); and a popular Burmese comedian, Zarganar. Also, the well-known Burmese actor Kyaw Thu has gone into hiding as the authorities were seeking to arrest him. The military government ordered a curfew beginning Tuesday night and several soldiers have taken up positions in Rangoon, including the area around Sule Pagoda.
    Burma Protests: the Situation on September 26

    Mandalay; Early morning—Burmese authorities arrested at least four people on Tuesday night at 2 a.m., according a Mandalay resident close to the National League for Democracy. Three were members of the NLD and the other was the well-known comedian Pa Pa Lay. Those arrested NLD members were: Tin Aung, elected representative (1990) for Northwest Township and Mandalay Division officer; Khin Maung Thaung, elected representative (1990) for Southwest Township; and Myo Naing, member of Mandalay Division. The four were arrested after leading a group of 17 NLD members in offering alms to monks. The authorities also searched the room of Kyaw Zwa Oo, a youth member of Mandalay NLD, and confiscated some documents. Soldiers have taken up positions at several locations around Mandalay and authorities enforced a curfew on Tuesday night.
    The Irrawaddy News Magazine Online Edition
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    Troops move into Rangoon as protesters remain defiant
    AP and BANGKOK POST
    Wednesday September 26, 2007

    snip

    In Bangkok, the air force placed a C-130 transport plane on standby to evacuate Thai nationals from Rangoon if necessary

    snip


    bangkokpost.com

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    Pro-democracy politician arrested in Burma
    From correspondents in Rangoon
    September 26, 2007 02:56pm

    NOTED pro-democracy politician Win Naing was arrested overnight at his home in Rangoon, a friend and a western diplomat said Wednesday, as Burma's junta tightened security around the country.

    "He was arrested around 2:30am," a friend of Win Naing said.
    A western diplomat said Win Naing was arrested after he was seen providing food and water to Buddhist monks who have spearheaded the largest anti-junta protests seen in the country in nearly 20 years.

    snip

    news.com.au

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