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GUEST:Edith Mirante, Director of Project MAJE, and author of “Down the Rathole”

The Burmese ruling military junta cracked down violently on anti-government protests today as deaths, injuries and hundreds of arrests have been reported. Troops fired shots in the air, clubbed protesters, and made arrests to disperse crowds gathering in the former capital city of Rangoon. Massive demonstrations have taken place on the streets of Burma for the past nine days in defiance of their dictatorial military government despite threats of persecution from the ruling junta and the deployment of military trucks. The protests have been lead by Buddhist monks and reached a crescendo Sunday as an estimated 100,000 people took to the streets. President Bush weighed in on the political situation of Burma by announcing his government’s plan to tighten sanctions on the regime. What began last month as smaller scale demonstrations against the government’s decision to raise fuel prices is burgeoning into a full fledged movement. The recent protests have been the most visible challenge to long standing military rule since 1988 and follow the recent closing of Burma’s national convention. Analysts decried the convention as a sham that sought to constitutionally consolidate military rule.

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