the crooked line

Burma is at a crossroads right now.
I sit here contemplating the biggest mass movement Burma has seen in contemporary times. A mass movement of people standing before the military’s guns…at this time they do so peacefully. It is inevitable that comparisons are drawn with 1988. Only the world is a different place, media coverage for one, and we can only hope that this time the outcome will be different.

The Irrawaddy is providing pretty consistent updating of the situation. You can track it here.

The BBC and Sydney Morning Herald are also following the situation, the BBC in particular gives comprehensive coverage of Burma.

Unlike 1988 pictures and video coverage are keeping the outside world up to date with what is happening on the ground. To view some of this footage look here. The BBC also has eyewitness coverage of what is happening inside Burma. It is a situation the Burmese military will be unfamiliar with. This time they can’t rely on delayed knowledge of what is happening. Their actions are documented, the world is watching. Will it have an affect? Perhaps not on their immediate responses - and this is devastating in itself - but surely for any future retribution.

I read a comment on a blog today that essentially said that the Burmese people were responsible for resolving their own problems. It’s an insular response which hold no weight in today’s world. Where everything we do is intrically linked to global movements we cannot absolve ourselves of responsibility for what is happening in the rest of the world. The Burmese people are amassing peacefully for their right to live in a world that many of us take for granted. The Burmese people have shown where their responsibilities lie, the question is will the rest of the world live up to theirs.