Tuesday, March 25, 2008

WALK FOR FREEDOM IN BURMA

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Walking For Freedom (Fox12 News)
March 21, 2008 05:39 PM
Nampa — They’ve taken a vow to walk from Portland, Oregon to New York City to hand deliver a signed petition to the United Nations Security Council.
It’s day number 21, more than 400 miles for 27 year old Zaw Htwe… and he’s tired.
“Just whole body pain, but we gotta keep walking and you know,” said Htwe.They are two Burmese refugees escaped from a country they describe as an in-humane military monopoly. Burma is located in Southeast Asia, nestled between India, Thailand, and China and has been run for the last 19 years by the State Peace and Development Council…although the country has been anything but peaceful.“Our country is genocide and torture the human violation you know, child soldier, and labor forced, the woman raised and killed,” said walking partner Athein.In 1988 at only 7 years old Htwe remembers one of Southeast Asia’s darkest moments. Millions of students, professionals, and civilians were gunned down and imprisoned in response to a peaceful march to bring an end to the social dictatorship. So now, twenty years later, he is marching peacefully in remembrance of his fallen brothers and sisters.“Right now the military government trying to arrest people who like to make peace, freedom, and democracy and human rights, and they arrest and torture people,” said Htwe.
Upon arriving in New York the men will implore the United Nations to make a change in Burma…they say this is the year for a revolution.“So I believe that for 2008, bring freedom to our country, and our people, ” said Athein.
They have also created a website explaining their mission, with the letter they hope to present to the UN Security Council.

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