watching burma

a monk watching the horizon, Bagan, August 2003

Just when we thought it was time to catch a breath, things change: over the last week, the mounting protests against the military junta in Burma--this time led by monks, not students or political activists--have drawn crowds in the hundreds of thousands into the streets, and a crackdown appears imminent has begun. There are reports of tanks and troops moving into place, waiting for protesters who've promised to march again when the curfew ends at dawn.

It's strange how the work I've been assigned in these recent months has draw together so many strands of the last several years, the links in my life to Southern Africa, the Middle East, and now Burma. I spent the afternoon drafting talking points, laying out the groundwork for advocacy, but my thoughts right now are with people in Yangon and Mandalay and Lashio, people who showed me every kindness four years ago. We're watching to see what will happen in the morning.

Update: the crackdown has started. We're getting a lot of reports of mass arrests, injuries (confirmed by photos), and several monks killed. Avaaz.org has an urgent action here.