"No sympathy from the international community!"
In the following quote from a previous podcast episode, Lucine, a liaison officer with long-standing connections to both France and Myanmar, speaks about the current situation in Myanmar. The quote highlights the desperation and frustration felt by the people of Myanmar as they face violence and oppression from their own government, and the lack of support and understanding from the international community. This quote is significant because it provides insight into the experiences and perspectives of those on the ground in Myanmar, and the challenges they are facing as they strive for freedom and justice.
This quote is also important in understanding the difficult circumstances that the people of Myanmar have been facing, and the reasons behind their desire to defend themselves. It is a fundamental human right to be able to defend oneself and one's community when facing violence and oppression. When a government refuses to engage in dialogue or address the legitimate grievances of its citizens, and instead responds with violence and aggression, it is only natural that people would feel the need to protect themselves and their loved ones. While violence should always be a last resort, it is important to recognize that it can sometimes be a necessary measure for self-defense and survival in the face of brutal oppression. In this context, it is crucial for the international community to pay attention to the situation in Myanmar and to provide support and assistance to those who are struggling for freedom and justice. This can include diplomatic efforts to address the root causes of the conflict, as well as providing humanitarian aid and other forms of support to those who are suffering.
“Even though it is a norm that negotiations on the table should take place, nobody would accept that now, because the time to negotiate has passed, and because of this breach of trust from the military!”
Lucine: In the first days and months of Spring revolution, the demonstrators were protesting peacefully on the streets. You can even see the images of demonstrators kneeling before the armed soldiers, giving flowers or pleading them in a nice way. And they went out on the streets in different groups of communities, just showing their strong opposition of the military rule. But gradually, when the days went by, the military started shooting with sniper rifles to girls and other young people, and randomly into the crowd. And more killings followed. A peaceful discussion is out of the question when the other party starts using aggressive arms. So even though it is a norm that negotiations on the table should take place, nobody would accept that now, because the time to negotiate has passed, and because of this breach of trust from the military! The active actions from the military showed that we can never trust them. And the time for dialogue is over. So, even though there are conventional practices like discussing through ASEAN and UN, Min Aung Hlaing does not respect all the five points proposed by ASEAN. So, dialogue is out of question, and the only option for the people is to retaliate through the guns. So, we cannot stop PDF to fight against the military regime. And I think it is the only language that the military would understand. It is, of course, not complying or not in conformity to any diplomatic relations or to diplomatic norms.
Host: And these democratic forces have been forced in the corner where this is the only way to respond. And yet there's been virtually no outside support and very little sympathy or understanding for why they're doing what they're doing.
Lucine: No sympathy from the international community! And they don't care how many people are caught or how many people are killed a day, even though we've been sharing news and we've been crying out in many ways around the world. For example, in places like New York or in Tokyo or Singapore, they would let us do whatever demonstrations, and expression of our feelings, but that's it.