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STATEMENT ISSUED BY THE

CHIN FORUM
CHIN FORUM
on the 21st. Anniversary of the
MANAGING BOARD FOUR EIGHTS DEMOCRACY REVOLUTION
Salai Kipp Kho Lian
Coordinator
Two long decades have past since the historic FOUR EIGHTS
Hasencleverstr. 27 A DEMOCRACY REVOLUTION in our country – the Union of
22111 Hamburg Burma. The long awaited victory has not been witnessed by the
Germany
Tel: +49-40-6556944
oppressed peoples despite tremendous sacrifices of blood, sweat
salai.kipp@googlemail.com and lives made by leaders and heroes of the democracy
revolution inside the country.
Legal Advisors
Prof. David C. Willaims
(USA) On this 21st. anniversary of the great revolution let us seriously
Prof. Susan H. Williams remind ourselves that we are now entering the third decade of the
(USA)
Institutional Advisor: paradoxical episode, which brought us victory against the BSPP
Center for Constitutional military clique but paved the way for yet other new dictators, who
Democracy in Plural are even more reactionary.
Societies (USA)

Apart from that let us ask ourselves a serious question as to

Members whether the struggle would need another twenty years to be able
Pu Lian Uk to achieve an ultimate victory. Let us deeply analyse all our good
(USA) experiences and weaknesses during the past twenty years of our
struggle for freedom, federalism and democracy.
Dr. Za Hlei Thang
(USA)
It is absolutely deplorable that Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, a
Pu Nang Lian Thang
(Japan) democracy leader born out of the peoples’s cry for freedom during
the historic revolution of 1988, is now facing an unfair trial for
Dr. Lian H. Sakhong crimes not commited by her. Uncountable crimes against
(Sweden)
Humanity committed by the Burmese dictators for almost half a
century have been ignored by the world for too long. It is high time
Pu Victor Biak Lian
(Canada) to bring again into international spotlight the Depeyin massacre of
2003, aftermath of which the victims – rather than those who
Dr. Sui Khar
(India) committed the crime – were unjustly taken into custody. The
massacre in Depeyin, among other similar uncountable cases
Dr. Ro Ding across the country committed by the dictators, is a crime against
(USA)
Humanity. This crime is the dicatators’ outright challenge to the
Pi Bianca Son conscience of the international community as it was committed at
(Germany) that time, just a week before the UN envoy’s visit to Burma to
Dr. Salai Ngun Cung
foster national reconciliation in the country.
Lian
(USA)

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CHIN FORUM
All reconciliatory initiatives for peaceful resolution for the country’s political problems offered by
Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and the leaders of the ethnic nationalities have been totally ignored by
the military dictators time and time again. Demands made by the ethnic nationalities, including
the cease-fire groups, for their national rights also landed on deaf ear and instead the dictators
are giving them pressures to reduce them into border guards. While some weaker groups are
yielding to the dictators’ pressures, stronger cease-fire groups are now prepared for military
confrontation should they be forced to do so.

Instead of positively responding to the reconciliatory gestures of the democratic forces, the
dictators recently ratified a new constitution under coercion, designed to entrench its rule
forever. Moreover, hundreds of prominent democracy activists, Buddhist monks, journalists,
labor activists, leaders of the ethnic nationalities and bloggers have been sentenced to decades
long prison terms. These are the clear manifestation of the extreme cruelty and
uncompromising stance of the dictators.

We are at the threshold where the whole country, including the oppressed soldiers and the
junta’s servants and people of all walks of life, need to be well prepared for any kind of new
options that may be advantageous for the democracy revolution. Especially the political exiles,
who are enjoying more freedom in the outside world should seriously review their two decades
old strategy and adopt new ones through wider discussion with their friends and colleagues.

By following the same old path pursued in the past twenty years we will only be witnessing the
same old results in the next twenty years and the oppressed mulit-ethnic peoples of the Union
of Burma will still not be able to emancipate themselves from the yoke of the military dictators.

A thoughtful review of the history of our struggle reveals the following milestones where the
peoples power, which include the forces of the students, the ethnic nationalities and people of
all walks of life – the unity of all peoples cutting across all ethnicity - inside the country, has
played vital roles in bringing about one victory after another:-

a) the U Thant Musoleum, a historic milestone of the peoples power uprisings led by the
students in 1974;
b) the total collapse of the BSPP regime following the 1988 peoples power revolution;
c) the NLD’s landslide victory during 1990 general election, which is the result of the
overwhelming show of peoples power etc.

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 CHIN FORUM
The international community has consistently witnessed the uncompromising stance of the
Burmese military dictators and their repeated crimes committed against Humanity using
extreme brutalities for the past twenty years. For these reasons, contrary to the situations in
1988, the international community is now (2009) very much alert and prepared to support
whatever initiatives the peoples of the Union of Burma may take to advance their cause and to
bring about ultimate victory.

Let us all be well prepared and empower ourselves for the realizaiton of long awaited ultimate
victory breathing the breeze before the storm.

CHIN FORUM
Ottawa, Canada
8th. August 2009

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