Transdniestria youth in solidarity with Burma's freedom and democracy marchers

Thousands of Buddhist monks are leading a wave of street protests demanding freedom and democracy in Burma (officially Myanmar)

TIRASPOL (Tiraspol Times) - A leading civil society youth group in Transdniestria (officially: Pridnestrovie) supports the pro-democracy demonstrators in Burma (officially: Myanmar).

The press service of Breakthrough ("Proriv", in Russian) issued an official statement urging Burma's leaders to stop the violent crackdown on the country's Buddhist monks and their protest marches.

In the statement, Breakthrough also demanded a return to democratic rule in the country and the immediate release of an estimated 1,200 political prisoners which human rights groups say are imprisoned in the country as a result of their political views opposing Burma's military dictatorship. The most prominent of these prisoners is Aung San Suu Kyi, a pro-democracy activist and leader of the National League for Democracy. A noted prisoner of conscience, she is also a Buddhist and an advocate of nonviolent resistance. Suu Kyi won the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought in 1990 and in 1991 was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for her peaceful and non-violent struggle under a military dictatorship.

Alena Arshinova, head of the "Breakthrough" civil society movement in Transdniestria, campaigns for solidarity with the protesters who want freedom and democracy in Burma (officially Myanmar).

Like Aung San Suu Kyi, the leader of Breakthrough in Transdniestria is also female: Alena Arshinova is a pro-democracy and pro-independence activists who has led the civil society group since it was founded in 2005. She wants freedom, independence and democracy for Transdniestria and opposes a forced unification with neighboring Moldova if it is against the will of the inhabitants.

Quest for freedom and democracy

Breakthrough's statement of solidarity with Burma stresses that "the quest for freedom and democracy is a natural need of people from every country in the world," and goes on to denounce the use of force against pro-democracy activists:

"The leadership and activists of Breakthrough express their solidarity with the Buddhist monks and citizens of Myanmar who rose up against the military dictatorship. The quest for freedom and democracy is a natural need of people from every country in the world. The arbitrary use of force by authorities against peaceful demonstrators is a crude violation of the norms of international law. Breakthrough urges the rulers of Myanmar to halt the use of violence, liberate the political prisoners immediately and return the country to democratic rule."

The solidarity announcement has more in common with the official position of countries such as the United States and Britain than with Russia.

Aung San Suu Kyi, currently under house arrest in Burma, demands the same things that the youth group in Transdniestria wants from Moldova: Democracy, independence and freedom to decide their own future in peace.

Washington has called for political change in Burma and expressed support for the recent protests. In 1997 the US banned new investment in Burma, and in 2003 it banned most Burmese imports and dollar transactions. It has announced it will impose further sanctions against 14 senior officials in Burma's government, including the country's acting prime minister and defense minister.

" - The world is watching the people of Burma take to the streets to demand their freedom and the American people stand in solidarity with these brave individuals," said U.S. President George W. Bush in a statement that, word for word, expresses the sentiment of Alena Arshinova and the Breakthrough organization.

His ally, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, says that "I want to see all the pressures of the world put on this regime now - sanctions, the pressure of the UN, pressure from China and all the countries in the region, India, pressure from the whole of the world."

Not aligned with Russia

This contrasts with much more moderate statements from Russia. So far, Moscow has stood beside China in opposing any attempts to bring foreign pressure to bear on the Burmese government, and earlier this year Burma and Russia signed a deal that could lead to the construction of a Russian nuclear research reactor in Burma. Last year, Moscow offered fighter jets and air defense systems to Rangoon in exchange for access to Burmese oil, the BBC reported.

In an official statement, the Russian foreign ministry warned that possible destabilization could be brought about by outsiders trying to exploit the protests by Burmese monks taking to the streets in their purple-colored robes: "We consider any attempts to use the latest developments to exercise outside pressure or interference in the domestic affairs of this sovereign state to be counterproductive," said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation.

Transdniestria has fought its own struggle for freedom and independence against Moldova which has a territorial claim on the region, and after 17 years of 'de facto' independence still considers Transdniestria to be part of Moldova. Russia is reportedly sympathetic to the plight of the Transdniestrian people, but is not at the current time providing any financial aid to the government of Transdniestria.

See also:
» More new parties in Pridnestrovie as youth group joins the fray