2008 Woodie Awards
Some forgotten history of Burma
Okkar W. Pe
Issue date: 11/16/07 Section: Forum
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Monks marching, people joining in, soldiers setting up blockades, and protesters getting shot. Recent events in Burma have stirred the international news. Most of the media coverage, if not all, has been about the human right violations by the government, the detainment of Aung San Su Kyi, and the lack of democracy in the nation. While all of these are true, no one ever mentions how the military came to power, in which lies the solution to all the problems.
When we had a presentation on campus about the situation in Burma, it attracted a lot of attention. We should be proud that we have a lot of people who care about something happening half the world away. However, the audience seemed to have the preconception of guilty, greedy generals and innocent, selfless monks colliding in the country. But in reality the monks are neither selfless nor innocent.
The essence of Buddhism is quite respectable; however the Buddhism in Burma is just another religion with its own agenda. As long as the needs of the monasteries are satisfied, monks care little about the advancement of the people, which explains why the military rule has lasted so long when both the government and the monasteries preside as the supreme authorities over the country.
The Buddhism in the country is not an institution of thought; it is an institution that demands more goods and services whenever anything bad happens. Donating to the monks betters karma and deters unfortunate events. Why is it that people still fear the government and yet are unable to do much, when Buddhist monasteries are the largest institution next to the military and they educate most of the people? (There exist some monasteries that promote true Buddhism, but by definition they are little heard of.)
While we all should be receptive to reports by popular media, we must assimilate what is reported with care and analysis, especially when it comes to sensitive and always one-sided reports regarding Burma. It seems that anyone who is anti-government about Burma is automatically credible. If one were to look beyond what newspapers have to say and dig a little into the history, the facts will reveal that Buddhism destabilized Burma right after the country gained its independence from Britain in 1948.
When we had a presentation on campus about the situation in Burma, it attracted a lot of attention. We should be proud that we have a lot of people who care about something happening half the world away. However, the audience seemed to have the preconception of guilty, greedy generals and innocent, selfless monks colliding in the country. But in reality the monks are neither selfless nor innocent.
The essence of Buddhism is quite respectable; however the Buddhism in Burma is just another religion with its own agenda. As long as the needs of the monasteries are satisfied, monks care little about the advancement of the people, which explains why the military rule has lasted so long when both the government and the monasteries preside as the supreme authorities over the country.
The Buddhism in the country is not an institution of thought; it is an institution that demands more goods and services whenever anything bad happens. Donating to the monks betters karma and deters unfortunate events. Why is it that people still fear the government and yet are unable to do much, when Buddhist monasteries are the largest institution next to the military and they educate most of the people? (There exist some monasteries that promote true Buddhism, but by definition they are little heard of.)
While we all should be receptive to reports by popular media, we must assimilate what is reported with care and analysis, especially when it comes to sensitive and always one-sided reports regarding Burma. It seems that anyone who is anti-government about Burma is automatically credible. If one were to look beyond what newspapers have to say and dig a little into the history, the facts will reveal that Buddhism destabilized Burma right after the country gained its independence from Britain in 1948.
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