Los Angeles Event for this Weekend

This is the schedule of one of the events in Los Angeles for this Christmas Eve Weekend.

Date: December 23, 2007 (Sunday)
Time: 4 PM – 7 PM
Place: Dhamma Joti Temple, 4436 Walnut St, Baldwin Park, CA 91706

"Driving for Burma" Schedule for San Fran

Ko Si Thu, the person who is doing the "Driving for Burma" Campaign will be arriving in San Francisco this week. Here is his schedule.

Monday (Dec 17, 2007): 7 - 9:30 pm (He will be attending the MaSoeYein Sayadaw's talk in Berkeley)
Tuesday (Dec 18, 2007): 12 - 1pm (He will be participating in an hour peaceful protest at Chinese Counsulate in San Fran
Wednesday (Dec 19, 2007): He will be leaving California for Seattle, Washington State

Speaker + Video + Q/A (Monday, Dec 17, 7 to 9:30pm, Berkeley, CA)

Reminder:

Date: Monday Dec 17, 7:00 – 9:30 pm
Place: Berkeley Fellowship of Unitarian-Universal ists
1924 Cedar Street (@Bonita), Berkeley, CA 94709
Program: Speaker + Video + Q/A
Speaker: MaSoeYein Sayadaw
Video: "Burma: State of Fear" (25 mins)

Contact: 510 220 1323; 707-360-8452
Organized by:
- Burmese American Democratic Alliance Sponsored (www.badasf.org)
- International Burmese Monk Organization,
- Buddhist Peace Fellowship (www.bpf.org), and
- Berkeley Fellowship of Unitarian-Universal Social Justice Committee

University of San Francisco Awarded Burmese Monks an Honorary Doctorate During Commencement (Dec 14 2007)

During the Dec. 14 commencement ceremony, University of San Francisco honored the Buddhist monks of Burma for their courageous, nonviolent demonstrations against their country's repressive military regime, by collectively awarding them with an honorary doctorate.

In September, thousands of Burmese Buddhist monks demonstrated peacefully and nonviolently against their country's repressive military regime, prompting a brutal response from the government. During and after the demonstrations, according to international media, thousands of monks were arrested, and many were beaten and killed.

Sayadaw U Kovida, a distinguished exiled Burmese monk currently living in a New York monastery, accepted the honorary degree on behalf of the Burmese monks of Burma. Sayadaw U Kovida was himself imprisoned by the Burmese military dictatorship for his participation in the 1988 pro-democracy demonstrations against the government.

"We honor the monks of Burma to help keep the Burmese struggle for democracy in the minds and hearts of those of us who enjoy the freedoms they are struggling to achieve," said USF President Stephen A. Privett, S.J. "These are extraordinary, modern-day heroes and persons of faith committed to building a better world, even at the risk of arrest, beatings, and death. We celebrate and support their courageous, nonviolent demonstrations, their continuing struggle for a fair and representative government, and the selfless leadership that is giving an entire nation a taste of freedom. These are the kind of people we hope our graduates will be."

The monks exemplify USF's moral commitment to educate minds and hearts to change the world, according to the honorary degree citation. The citation also draws a comparison to the six Jesuits killed in El Salvador (along with their housekeeper and her daughter) 18 years ago for their outspoken criticisms of an equally repressive government.

"As we have honored our Jesuit brothers, this Jesuit university now honors the Burmese monks of Burma for their courage, compassion, and commitment to seeking to protect the human and democratic rights of the Burmese people in the face of a harshly brutal military dictatorship," the citation states.

According to the citation, the monks serve as role models for USF students, embodying the ideals that guide the university's educational efforts.

Ref:
http://www.usfca.edu/usfnews/news_stories/monks1.html

Jason Carbine: Continuity, Rupture, and Political Change in Myanmar

Jason Carbine is an Assistant Professor of Religious Studies at Whittier College. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Chicago in 2004, with a dissertation titled, "An Ethic of Continuity: Shwegyin Monks and the Sasana in Contemporary Burma/Myanmar." He is currently working on a book manuscript, Negotiating Continuity and Rupture: Buddhist Thought and Practice in a Burmese Monastic Tradition.

Friday, February 08, 2008
3:00 PM - 4:30 PM
243 Royce Hall
Los Angeles, CA 90095

For more information please contact
Robert Buswell
buswell@humnet.ucla.edu
(Or) Visit UCLA, Center of Buddhist Studies website at:
http://www.international.ucla.edu/buddhist/events/showevent.asp?eventid=6011
Sponsor(s): Center for Buddhist Studies, Center for Southeast Asian Studies (UCLA)

Peace and Reconciliation in Burma: The Way Forward in 2008

Date: Dec 22 2007. Saturday
Time: 10:30am
Place : Martin Luther King Jr. Auditorium,
Santa Monica Public Library · 601 Santa Monica Blvd., Santa Monica,
CA 90401 ·
Ph:(310) 458-8600

Driving For Burma Arrival in Los Angeles (Dec 15, 2007)

Ko Si Thu, the person who is doing the "Driving for Burma" campaign, will be arriving Los Angeles on 12/15/07 (Saturday). LA Organizer team will welcome him at one of our Residence. All of you are invited to join with us to greet Ko Si Thu at following schedule.

Date: December 15, 2007 (Saturday)
Time: 6 – 9 PM
Place: 20442 E Walnut Canyon Road, Walnut, CA 91789

President Bush's Statement on UN Special Rapporteur's Findings on Burma

White House Press Release
Dec 11, 2007

This is the President Bush's Statement on UN Special Rapporteur's Findings on Burma.

"I am deeply disturbed by the report that UN Special Rapporteur Paulo Pinheiro released today in Geneva documenting his findings from his trip to Burma last month. It provides further alarming details about the Burmese authorities' crackdown on demonstrations by monks and democracy activists and the severe reprisals that continue today.

He describes how the regime harassed, detained, and killed many peaceful demonstrators. The Special Rapporteur received reports, for example, that a large number of bodies were burned September 27-30 at the Ye Way Crematorium.

I strongly condemn these actions and the junta's refusal to accept the need for real change in Burma. Even while Mr. Pinheiro was in Burma, the regime continued to arrest and harass monks and democracy activists. The regime has also closed down monasteries, including the Maggin Monastery in Rangoon that served as a hospice and treatment center for HIV/AIDS patients.

Mr. Pinheiro's report demonstrates why the world cannot go back to business as usual with General Than Shwe and his junta. I call on all members of the international community to condemn the atrocities detailed in Mr. Pinheiro's report in the strongest possible terms. Last month, I announced new sanctions on the leaders of the regime and their cronies. Should the regime continue to ignore calls for a true democratic transition and the release of Aung San Suu Kyi and other political prisoners, the United States is prepared to lead international efforts to place more sanctions on the regime.

Laura and I will continue to stand with the Burmese people as they seek the freedom they deserve."

An Evening with Burmese Monk leader and former monk political prisoner + Video

Monday Dec 17, 7:00 – 9:30 pm
Berkeley Fellowship of Unitarian-Universalists Hall
1924 Cedar Street (@Bonita), Berkeley, CA 94709

Masoeyein Sayadaw is the head of the International Burmese Monks Organization ((Sassana Moli) ) founded after recent protests in Burma to help the monks and nuns of Burma as well as to save the Buddhism from the destructive Burma’s Junta. He is a well-known Buddhist teacher and author of 50 years in Burma. He was derobed and imprisoned in Burma for three years in 1990 for his monastery participating in the Monk’s boycott of the military. He has been actively advocating against the atrocities and destructions of monks, nuns and Buddhist institutions in Burma.

Come join Masoyein Sayadaw and an excellent Burma Video "Burma: State of Fear" by Frontline/WORLD, 25 MINS, COLOR with introduction and Q&A by the Frontline/WORLD Series Editor Stephen Talbot.

(Ref: www.badasf.org )

Join BAWA

BAWA (Burmese American Women Alliance) is an organization that is made up of people who are dedicated to do something for Burma; eg. raising community awareness, grabbing media attention, and raising funds.

BAWA is also a sister-organization of BADA (Burmese American Democratic Alliance).
Together with BADA, BAWA has been organizing peace rallies in San Francisco.

Although the name says "Burmese American Women", we welcome ALL men and women, Burmese and non-Burmese of any age.

If you are interested, please check out www.badasf.org.

Yesterday Dec 9th Peace Rally in San Francisco was a Great Success

First of all, we would like to thank you all for coming and showing your support yesterday at our Peace Rally in San Francisco.

It was a Great Success and we had a good time together.

We will update you with all the other activities coming up during this month.

Driving For Burma - Update

This is an update of how far the "Driving for Burma" trip has gone as of this week.

DECEMBER 9TH, PEACE RALLY IN SAN FRANCISCO

Reminder:
Come and Mark International Human Right Day with Rally for Peace and Freedom in Burma!!!

Date: Sunday Dec. 9th,
Time: 2:00 – 3:30 pm
Place: Civic Center Plaza,
Address: Polk St & McAllister St, San Francisco, CA 94102
What to Wear: Please Wear Red or Maroon Red

Anti-American Signboards being posted by Burmese Junta

Burmese Government (State Peace and Development Council - SPDC) has started posting the signboards with "Anti-American" slogans around Yangon. In the above picture, you can see the slogan above other commercials, which says:

"Oppose those who have negative views over Burmese Government and those who rely on the United States for Burmese affairs."

Through out the years of its power, Burmese Junta had posted multiple giant signboards with its own slogans all over the country especially at large cities. However, it was not long ago that the Junta specifically mention "the United States" in their news or on their signbords. Before that, the Junta used to use the words "foreign countries", or "external help", with no specific name of a particular country.

They have also started attacking the United States by name in their government newspapers or on national TV.

(www.burmese.dvb.no)

Junta Charges Monks' Leader With Treason

The leader of the All-Burma Monks Alliance (ABMA) has been arrested and charged with treason for his role in the September pro-democracy demonstrations. Treason is a capital crime in Burma. If convicted and executed, 27 year-old U Gambira would be the first monk to be put to death in Burma since the British colonial rulers hanged a monk who lead a rebellion 70 years ago.

U Gambira was instrumental in getting tens of thousands of monks onto the streets in peaceful protests during September. The anti-regime demonstrations, which began over the peoples' agitation against the fuel price hike in mid-August, came to an abrupt end after a brutal crackdown by the junta.

By the end of September the monks' leader went in hiding, and in an attempt to force U Gambira out into the open the generals resorted to hostage taking by arresting several members of his family. This tactic worked and during November the peaceful protest leader was captured.

Since U Gambira's arrest his exact whereabouts remain unconfirmed officially. However reliable reports indicate that he is being kept in Cell Block 1 at Insein Prison in Rangoon. Cell Block 1 is notorious as the junta's main interrogation centre for political prisoners. Just prior to his arrest U Gambira asked for following statement to be released:

"To Buddhists all over the world and activists and supporters of Burmese movement, please help to liberate the Burmese people from this disastrous and wicked system. To the many people of the world who are sympathetic to the suffering of the Burmese people, please help us to be free from this evil system. Good people in Burma are being killed or imprisoned, tortured, and then sent to forced labour camps. I sincerely ask the international community to do something to stop these atrocities. My chances of survival are very slim now. But I have not given up hope, and will try my best."

U Gambira is the pseudonym of a leader of the All-Burma Monks Alliance.

Burmese Muslim Association's Announcement

Burmese Muslim Association has released its opinion over Burmese Government shtting down the Monestries and removing/arresting monks from the Monestries in Burma.

In the statement dated November 30th, 2007, the association calls the act "Shameful" and "Lawless".

It also states that Burmese Muslims have vowed to cooperate with other Burmese Democracy activitits of different religions and will continue to fight against this brutal military regime.

Driving For Burma has Started

"Driving For Burma" has started.
Here is the Road Trip Plan:

Dec 1 - Toronto to Washington DC
Dec 4 - Washington DC to North Carolina
Dec 5 - North Carolina to Georgia
Dec 6 - Georgia to Washington DC
Dec 8 - Washington DC to New York
Dec 9 - New York to Indiana
Dec 11 - Indiana to Chicago to Kansas City
Dec 12 - Kansas City to Denver
Dec 13 - Denver to Grand Canyon
Dec 14 - Grand Canyon to Las Vegas
Dec 15 - Las Vegas to Los Angeles
Dec 17 - Los Angeles to San Francisco
Dec 19 - San Francisco to Grants Pass
Dec 20 - Grants Pass to Seattle
Dec 22 - Seattle to Vancouver
Dec 27 - Vancouver to Calgary
Dec 28 - Calgary to Regina
Dec 29 - Regina to Winnipeg
Dec 30 - Winnipeg to Thunder Bay
Dec 31 - Thunder Bay to Sault Ste. Marie
Jan 1 - Sault Ste. Marie to Toronto

The plant for the road trip could be changed depending on the weather and driving conditions.

Protest for Beijing Rose Float (November 29th, Thursday, 7 to 8 PM, Los Angeles)

We only have a few days left before the Beijing Rose float will float down Colorado Blvd. This means we have only a few days for the media to pay attention to this issue.

Join Us on this Protest for Beijing Rose Float:

Thursday, November 29 - 7 p.m. to 8 p.m.
To Do: Distribute flyers to ask people to TURN THEIR BACK ON THE BEIJING FLOAT.
Vice Mayor Steve Haderlein is having a raffle for free Grandstand Rose Parade Tickets at the Pasadena High School Cafeteria located at 2925 East Sierra Madre Boulevard.

Saturday, December 1, 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. - first weekend for dry decoration
To Do: Protest - ask people not to volunteer for the Beijing float

We need to identify that it is the Beijing float we are protesting because there is also the Taiwan China Airlines float.

As in the past, all our actions are about getting the information about human rights to the general public.

Please join us!

Fund-Raising For Peace in Burma was a Big SUCCESS Today!!!

First of all, we would like to thank you all for coming to our "Fund-Raising For Peace" Event today at Monterey Park (Los Angeles). It was a big success today. We definitely could raise a good fund for our heroes in Burma.

Thanks for buying our food at different food-stalls, and buying our Free-Burma CDs, DVDS, T-Shirts, Sweaters, etc at our counters.

Without all your supports, this event had not been such a great success.

Thank you everybody who gave your time and cooked food, who came and bought stuff, who came and enjoyed all the songs on stage.

We hope to be doing the same thing soon too.
We will keep you posted in a timely manner.

Thank you all.

Britian Prime Minister and France President Had a Serious Talk about Burma

Time for serious dialogue
By Gordon Brown and Nicolas Sarkozy
Friday, November 30, 2007

Just two months ago, the world was shocked and outraged by the violent repression of peaceful demonstrations that took place in Burma. The images may have vanished from our screens, but we cannot and will not forget the plight of the Burmese people.

A country that has the natural resources to be an economic powerhouse is instead the sick man of Southeast Asia. As the rest of the region advances into the digital age, Burma is in danger of retreating to the dark ages.

Cut off from the
outside world and denied access not only to democracy and respect for human rights, but also to proper education and basic economic rights, its society is in a state of disarray.

The huge demonstrations and protests over recent months have shown that the Burmese people have been pushed beyond breaking point by the regime.

Last week a new generation of leaders gathered in Singapore to mark an important milestone: 40 years of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or Asean. We welcomed that celebration: Asean today represents a proud and prosperous region standing at the heart of the global economy, its voice heard and respected across the world.

Asean's leaders faced the twin challenges of enshrining a charter that commits them to respect democratic and human rights and dealing with the ongoing crisis in Burma. The Burmese government was sent a clear message: There is no going back. We agree.

It is obvious now that the country is in a
downward spiral of poverty and unrest. Like the European Union, Asean has always understood that economic growth and open markets cannot be pursued in isolation: Good economics are founded on good politics. But the politics of Burma are poisoned and now need urgently to be transformed for the wider health of the region.

We welcome the positive and conciliatory statement issued on Nov. 9 by Aung San Suu Kyi, holder of the Nobel Peace Prize and figurehead of the Burmese opposition. She signaled her desire to begin soon a meaningful and time-bound dialogue with the Burmese regime. She also emphasized the need for a growing role of the UN in Burma and underlined the need to engage with other political forces including Burma's ethnic nationalities. Those are welcome steps.

It's time the regime engages in a genuine dialogue. In this respect, the regime must remove restraints on Aung San Suu Kyi, give unfettered access to Ibrahim Gambari, the UN secretary general's
special envoy, and heed the recommendations of the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights, Paul Sergio Pinheiro. And they must enter wholeheartedly into dialogue with Aung San Suu Kyi as well as with other opposition groups and ethnic leaders.

The goal must be genuine reconciliation and political transition. Nobody imagines that this process will be quick or simple. Burma is a complex mixture of ethnicity, religion and culture. The process will need to be broadly-based and inclusive, taking careful account of the need to build a lasting stability that includes Burma's key political and ethnic groups.

The neighboring countries are well placed to support and encourage such a process. And, although the military dictatorship must end, the military itself must continue to play an important role in any future government, as Aung San Suu Kyi herself has acknowledged.

Faced by the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Burma, the international community, and
in particular the EU, has already extended its aid to address the needs of the most vulnerable people. The EU has also decided to reinforce existing sanctions against Burma in order to send a strong political message and has consequently established a new series of targeted sanctions against the military regime.

The EU also made clear that it stands fully ready to review, amend or reinforce existing restrictive measures in the light of developments on the ground and the results of the good-offices mission of Ibrahim Gambari.

We believe that positive change will be best encouraged by following a carrot and stick approach: a combination of restrictive, targeted measures on the one hand and the alleviation of these measures as well as the prospect of a comprehensive economic initiative on the other.

However, this move will become possible if, and only if, there is a clear signal that a genuine transformation leading to a new, democratic government of
Burma is under way.

The prize for Burma's long-suffering people, and for neighbors who have suffered too long from the problems of refugees, narcotics and instability that spill across Burma's borders, is great indeed: a prosperous, stable Burma living up to its economic potential and adding to the region's economic dynamism.

But achieving that prize will require sustained engagement and real mobilization by the international community. We will continue to stand by the Burmese people as they prepare to mark 60 years of independence.

We hope that 2008 will finally bring peace and reconciliation to Burma.

Gordon Brown is prime minister of Britain, and Nicolas Sarkozy is president of France.
(http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/11/30/opinion/edbrown.php)