Published
Wednesday, April 9, 2008 - 14:07
DPDC mobilizes people to cast yes vote in Maungdaw
Maungdaw, Arakan State: The District Peace and Development Council Chairman (DPDC) U Hla Win has been summoning village elders, religious leaders, social and women leaders and other respected persons from villages to its office since April 7. The idea is to mobilize them to cast the "Yes" vote in the ensuing constitutional referendum which is to be held in May, said a schoolteacher of Maungdaw town on condition of anonymity.
Maungdaw, Arakan State: The District Peace and Development Council Chairman (DPDC) U Hla Win has been summoning village elders, religious leaders, social and women leaders and other respected persons from villages to its office since April 7. The idea is to mobilize them to cast the "Yes" vote in the ensuing constitutional referendum which is to be held in May, said a schoolteacher of Maungdaw town on condition of anonymity.
"The staff of the DPDC is asking the people to cast the "yes" vote in the referendum or else face trouble in the future. If we cast the "yes" vote, we will get benefits in the future," a participant said.
"By hook or by crook the SPDC will definitely try to have the constitution approved in the referendum. We should mobilize our people to vote "No" without fear to express our true feelings on the State Peace and Development Council's (SPDC's) draft constitution. We will all gear up. We all should have a concrete common strategy and we should be united to do sustainable ground work for an active role against the SPDC in Burmese politics," said an influential leader in Maungdaw Town .
The Burmese military junta knows how to escape from under the international microscope as they join hands with China , Russia and India . The weak regional countries in ASEAN will not pressure the junta, said a Rohingya politician from Bangladesh on condition of anonymity.
It is clear that the ruling junta will not accept any role of the UN, in the determining the course of the country's political transition to what the ruling generals call the "seven-point road map to democracy." The junta's rejection of Gambari's suggestion caused a death blow to the mission of the UN envoy. It sent a clear message that the ruling generals will do everything in their own way and they are not at all interested in listening to what the international community says.
Now, it is time for all the people of Burma to take practical action to reject the constitutional referendum. This is only a pro-military draft constitution and people have to turn it into a flash point for unprecedented anti-government protests, said a trader from inside Arakan.
"The staff of the DPDC is asking the people to cast the "yes" vote in the referendum or else face trouble in the future. If we cast the "yes" vote, we will get benefits in the future," a participant said.
"By hook or by crook the SPDC will definitely try to have the constitution approved in the referendum. We should mobilize our people to vote "No" without fear to express our true feelings on the State Peace and Development Council's (SPDC's) draft constitution. We will all gear up. We all should have a concrete common strategy and we should be united to do sustainable ground work for an active role against the SPDC in Burmese politics," said an influential leader in Maungdaw Town .
The Burmese military junta knows how to escape from under the international microscope as they join hands with China , Russia and India . The weak regional countries in ASEAN will not pressure the junta, said a Rohingya politician from Bangladesh on condition of anonymity.
It is clear that the ruling junta will not accept any role of the UN, in the determining the course of the country's political transition to what the ruling generals call the "seven-point road map to democracy." The junta's rejection of Gambari's suggestion caused a death blow to the mission of the UN envoy. It sent a clear message that the ruling generals will do everything in their own way and they are not at all interested in listening to what the international community says.
Now, it is time for all the people of Burma to take practical action to reject the constitutional referendum. This is only a pro-military draft constitution and people have to turn it into a flash point for unprecedented anti-government protests, said a trader from inside Arakan.
