Today, September 11, 2007, is the 64th Birthday of our Shan State (SNLD) leader Hkun Htun Oo. He is regarded as not only the Shan State leader but the leader admired and respected by democracy activists of all nationalities in the so-called Union of Burma. It is very crucial for the implementation of democracy in the country as he is as important as Daw Aung San Suu Kyi as a democratic leader in the movement to bring about democracy to the country.

The struggle to bring democracy to the country has been in existence even from the time when the Panlong Agreement or Contract with its constitution began to see its danger just after 1958. That is 10 years after the agreement.

In 1961 the effort had been made by the Shan State Leaders, Sao Phas, to review and revive the country constitution so that true equal rights and self-determination would exist among the member States. But that effort had been to no avail and in 1962 all Shan State leaders being at the conference to discuss and propose the new constitution were arrested and put into jail.

All these leaders had been lost and killed by the then dictator, Ne Win, and his government without any traces!(Listen to the voices on KTO’s Birthday, September 11, 2006)

From time to time, the movement for the just and right constitution has been made by the leaders of all ethnic nationalities in the so-called Union of Burma. Our time is no different.

Our Shan State leaders including Hkun Htun Oo and all the leaders of other ethnic nationalities have been struggling together to bring justice and democracy to the country. Therefore after the uprising of 8888, the SNLD led by Hkun Htun Oo had won the second place to Aung San Suu Kyi in the landslide election victory in the Shan State in 1990.

However, this has been ignored by the current dictator and military leaders. Many democracy activists, leaders and members of the parties have been threatened to leave the parties or face the punishment or jail if they continue their activities since then.

Our Shan State leader Hkun Htun Oo with his associates and comrades stands by justice and speaks the truth of what should and should not be for a true and just democratic country even in the face of military government.

In the end, they have been accused of being traitors to the country with no concrete reasonable grounds or evidence. Each of them has been sentenced to several years imprisonment.

Hkun Htun Oo is the nephew of Sao Kya Seng, Sao Pha of Hsi Paw of Northern Shan State, who disappeared with no traces together with the other Shan State Leaders after their proposal to amend the constitution in 1962. Sao Kya Seng’s foreign wife has been Sao Thusandi or Inge Surgent, the author of “Twilight over Burma” that relates her stories while being a princess of Sao Pha of Hsi Paw until she left the country for good after her husband was no more.

The current event is no different than the case in 1961/2 when the Shan State Leaders were trying to propose the amendment of the constitution to bring it to life with true equal rights and self-determination.

To the same fate, they have been arrested and sent to various jails. The 1961/2 leaders’ fates have been that some of them were tortured and some were poisoned to death without the chance to see the beautiful world they wanted to see.

One of the current leaders, U Myint Than, has passed away due to the torture and without the proper medical treatment. The fate of other remaining Shan leaders in jail remains unknown with this kind of brutal minded dictator and his generals.

Human rights has been considerably deteriorating from time to time in the so-called Union of Burma. Up until now, this can be seen with vivid scenes.

The celebration of a Shan State leader, Hkun Htun Oo’s birthday has been barred in Yangon. This is not to be surprised. The most surprising attitude from the dictator is that the family members of Hkun Htun Oo himself are not allowed to celebrate his birthday and offering alms for him in the Buddhist way.

The above have shed the light that if the current leaders of the country, the military regime, are true to themselves, there is not the slightest doubt that the peace and prosperity of the country can be restored within a very short time.

Everything, either positive or negative, behind the mindset of the SPDC will mean a lot to the country. If they still harbor the evil thoughts of always taking the fate of every nationality into their hands, the turmoil that has been created by them will never stop.

If they can see the positive aspect for all the nationalities as brothers and sisters to bring peace and prosperity to the country, we can assure them that we the Shan State People together with other brethrens are ready to cooperate. But with equal rights of Panglong spirit!

With this mentioned, we hereby would like to request all the nationalities in the so-called Union of Burma and the world bodies to participate in our democratic movement as in the following.

  1. Here, first and foremost, we would like to encourage all nationalities to get organized and plan in the right way together to reach our common goal either it being called democracy or federal Union by being aware of the divide and rule policy, most have been done by way of incentives, of the military junta.
  2. We would also like to request again the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) to put more pressure on the Burmese Military Junta for quick democratic change. It would be a shame for ASEAN to be associated with the member, government like Burmese Military Junta that has committed gross human rights violation and genocide in the country without any mercy for the people for decades.
  3. Next is the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) which is the life force of the United Nations. We would like you to put more pressure on the Junta for quick democratic change as well. The world relies on your power for true peace and prosperity.
  4. At the same time, we would also like to request Russia and China to stand firmly with the UNSC to put pressure on the Burmese Military Junta, to withdraw the military support and not to encourage them to hold on to power that brings disaster to the people.
  5. The current demonstrations on the doubling of fuel prices in Burma and elsewhere indicate that political change has to be made sooner or later to bring democracy to the country. If the Military Junta really wants true peace, democracy and prosperity for themselves and the people of all walks of life in the country, there must be no pretext made by them for opposing the political change.


Sai Nyunt Maung
Chairman
Shan National for Democracy
Japan