COVER STORY/ANALYSIS
O
nce again, Myanmar has been rocked by student demonstrations and, once again, the authorities have reacted with force, to the extent of using hired thugs in Yangon to beat and drag protesters away. The brutality on the part of the police, who injured dozens during a violent crackdown on student protestors in Letpadan, Bago Region, in March, was condemned by local civil society organizations. But international reaction to the crackdown was limited to expressions of “concern” and, to the dismay of many, pro-democracy icon Daw Aung San Suu Kyi has expressed little or no sympathy for the young demonstrators.
Dr. Thein Lwin, a leading figure in the current educational reform movement, was even stripped of his post as a National League for Democracy central committee member in February over a perceived conflict of interest. Regardless of whether or not one sympathizes with the students’ demands for educational reform and more transparency in such matters, it would be wise to take them seriously and listen to their grievances. Anyone familiar with Myanmar’s recent history knows that student-led movements have been harbingers of upheaval and political change. That is to be expected in a country with a long and proud tradition of literacy and intellectual life.
TIMELINE:
COUNTDOWN TO A CRACKDOWN Sept. 30, 2014: The National Education Law is enacted. The bill was backed by MPs from both the ruling Union Solidarity and Development Party and the opposition National League for Democracy. Nov. 12-13: An emergency student conference convenes in Yangon where the Action Committee for Democratic Education (ACDE) is formed to lead student protests against the new law. Nov. 14-17: Hundreds of students stage a four-day protest in Yangon and call for amendment of the law within 60 days. Jan. 20, 2015: Hundreds of student demonstrators begin a march from Mandalay to Yangon. Jan. 28: President’s Office Minister U Aung Min holds preliminary talks with student protest leaders and agrees to hold four-party talks involving the government, Parliament, the National Network for Education Reform (NNER) and the students’ ACDE. Feb. 1: Four-party discussions are held in Yangon. Students table an 11-point framework for discussion and both sides reach agreement over eight points, including that talks should continue in Naypyitaw on Feb. 3. Feb. 3: The government postpones four-party talks to Feb. 12 as agreement cannot be reached over students’ attendance. Students from Pathein in Ayeyarwady Region begin a protest march. Feb. 7: Home Affairs Minister Lt.-Gen. Ko Ko says that student protesters are threatening the country’s stability and warns that “ex-political hardliners” and some foreign organizations are encouraging them. Feb. 12: Daw Aung San Suu Kyi meets protesters in Naypyitaw to discuss their demands.
PHOTO: STEVE TICKNER / THE IRRAWADDY
e nt of the All-Burma Students’ Union in 1938; nationalist leader Thakin Kodaw Hmaing; and student Bo
April 2015
Feb. 14: After a series of talks between the government, lawmakers, students’ organizations and education advocates, an apparent breakthrough agreement is reached over a new bill, incorporating students’ 11 demands. Demonstrators marching from Dawei, Pathein and Monywa decide to cease their protests and return home. Feb. 16: The bill that was agreed upon by the four parties is sent to Parliament for discussion. Feb. 19: The main column of student protesters marching from Mandalay announce that they will stay in Letpadan, Bago Region, until Mar. 1, pausing their protests to observe the parliamentary process.
TheIrrawaddy
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