Clipmarks | NonStatQuo's 'monks' clips

NONE OF US ARE FREE ...until we all are free

Fri, 14 Mar 2008 16:41:50 GMT

clipped by: NonStatQuo
clipper's remarks: I am glad that the media keeps reminding us that Tibet and China are still an issue.

I think we should vote with our wallets and not support China or the Olympics in China.

Clip Source: news.bbc.co.uk

Shops on fire amid Tibet protests

Fires have broken out in the Tibetan city of Lhasa amid reports of rioting, as rare street protests led by Buddhist monks appeared to gather pace.

One eyewitness told the BBC how large groups of people were setting fire to cars and shops and destroying anything of Chinese influence.

Tibet's spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, released a statement expressing deep concern, saying the protests were a "manifestation of the deep-rooted resentment of the Tibetan people".

The Dalai Lama, who heads Tibet's government-in-exile in India, called on the Chinese leadership to stop using force and begin dialogue with the Tibetan people.

He said about 300 monks had tried to leave the Sera monastery to protest but security forces brandishing clubs stopped them and at least one monk was beaten to the ground.

Tibet enjoyed long periods of autonomy before the twentieth century,

many Tibetans remain loyal to the Dalai Lama, who fled in 1959 and currently lives in exile in India.

What's in a name? Burma or Myanmar?

Wed, 03 Oct 2007 13:45:50 GMT

clipped by: NonStatQuo

Clip Source: news.bbc.co.uk

Should it be Burma or Myanmar?

Protest marches in Burma have entered a ninth day. But why is the country not known in the UK by its official name, Myanmar?

The ruling military junta changed its name from Burma to Myanmar in 1989, a year after thousands were killed in the suppression of a popular uprising. Rangoon also became Yangon.

The change was recognised by the United Nations, and by countries such as France and Japan, but not by the United States and the UK.

But look in a Lonely Planet guidebook to Asia and the country can be found listed after Mongolia, not Brunei. The Rough Guide does not cover Burma at all, because the pro-democracy movement has called for a tourism boycott.

The two words mean the same thing and one is derived from the other. Burmah, as it was spelt in the 19th Century, is a local corruption of the word Myanmar.

If Burmese people are writing for publication, they use 'Myanmar', but speaking they use 'Burma', he says.

Tags: burma, buddhism, monks, pro-democracy, un

Peaceful Monks killed and detained in Burma.... Gitmo style

Tue, 02 Oct 2007 00:17:21 GMT

clipped by: NonStatQuo
clipper's remarks: Where is the justice? When people march peacefully for democracy, how is it that the free world sits and watches and does nothing to help? The military (a few) have dominated the many with the help of whom? Why won't China do something (insert rhetorical question here).

Clip Source: news.bbc.co.uk

Monks were reportedly killed (Image: Democratic Voice of Burma)

Thousands of monks detained in Burma's main city of Rangoon will be sent to prisons in the far north of the country, sources have told the BBC.

About 4,000 monks have been rounded up in the past week as the military government has tried to stamp out pro-democracy protests.

The monks have been disrobed and shackled, the sources told BBC radio's Burmese service. There are reports that the monks are refusing to eat.

The crackdown, in which unarmed protesters were beaten, tear-gassed, and shot at, has attracted condemnation from abroad, and even from Burma's neighbours in the Association of South East Asian Nations (Asean)

Tags: monks, burma, peace, human rights

US Campaign for BURMA

Sat, 29 Sep 2007 02:19:21 GMT

clipped by: NonStatQuo
clipper's remarks: I was surfing around the pirate bay and came across this link. It outlines some of the boiling issues that have been going on for a long time in Burma before the monks brought it widespread attention this week. I think this photo shows a dead journalist who only had a camera. We must listen and act......help support people who are truly courageous.

Clip Source: www.uscampaignforburma.org

(Also -- journalists on deadline call (202) 246-7924)
Donations Urgently Needed -- Donate Generously NOW

The military is now utilizing violence against monks and other non-violent protestors.

Red Cross Condemns Burma’s Abuses

Harshest Criticism Since Rwandan Genocide

Military Opens Fire: Hundreds Arrested, Up to 200 Peaceful Demonstrators Dead Yet China Still Paralyzing UN Security Council

Take Action: Click to Find What You Can Do To Stop The "Massacre Olympics"

Tags: peace, human rights, diginity, monks, activism

it is still about the oil...

Fri, 28 Sep 2007 19:22:08 GMT

clipped by: NonStatQuo
clipper's remarks: No matter where, our dependence on oil still permeates everything.

The monks won't be able to protest today because they are under house arrest.

Clip Source: www.cbsnews.com

China's Myanmar Connection

Myanmar's recent wave of violence has gained international attention and the imposition of U.S. sanctions. But, as Barry Petersen reports, China is being called on to exert pressure on its neighbor. | Share

Tags: monks, war, burma

MORE ABOUT MONKS.... MONKS 101

Thu, 27 Sep 2007 18:49:43 GMT

clipped by: NonStatQuo
clipper's remarks: Buddhism is non-violent, non-dogmatic and meditative
Not centred on a god
Aimed at gaining insight into life's true nature

Clip Source: news.bbc.co.uk

Who are Burma's monks?

Monks command such respect in Burma because some 80-90% of the country's population is Buddhist, and even those who do not choose to become a "career monk" usually enter the orders for short periods of their lives, giving the monasteries a prominent role in society.

As they are forbidden from handling cash, they are completely reliant on these handouts. Each full moon day, they are also given donations such as robes.

If they refuse these handouts, they are denying the donor the potential to earn spiritual "credit" - "the strongest possible penalty that can be expected from a Buddhist", said Myint Swe.

That is why the announcement by the monks currently protesting in Burma that they would refuse all donations from the ruling military - most of whom would be Buddhist themselves - was so powerful, he said.

Burmese monks not only play a spiritual role, but also have a history of political activism

Tags: monks, buddhism, spirituality, protest, activism