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15 Nov 2010 10:25

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World: Aung San Suu Kyi pushing hard for democracy in Myanmar

  • I don’t want to see the military falling. I want to see the military rising to dignified heights of professionalism and true patriotism. I think it’s quite obvious what the people want; the people just want better lives based on security and on freedom.
  • Recently-freed dissident Aung San Suu Kyi • Revealing her hopes for bringing democracy to Myanmar (also known as Burma), which has been led by a military junta for the last two generations. She wants military leadership to end, though. “I think we also have to try to make this thing happen,” she said “Velvet revolution sounds a little strange in the context of the military, but a non-violent revolution. Let’s put it that way.” As you might guess by what she’s saying, she had no conditions set on her freedom. source
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13 Nov 2010 14:14

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World: Finally set free, the first thing Aung San Suu Kyi has to say

“People must work in unison. Only then can we achieve our goal. … When the time comes to talk, do not be quiet.” source
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13 Nov 2010 11:23

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World: Aung San Suu Kyi freed, but she’s really the tip of the iceberg

  • one Nobel Peace Prize-winning activist (Aung San Suu Kyi) freed after 15 straight years under house arrest
  • 2,000 other political activists imprisoned in Myanmar without quite the same pedigree source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

12 Nov 2010 12:02

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World: Post-elections, Myanmar might set Aung San Suu Kyi (sorta) free

Now that the election’s over and the power is firmly in the military junta’s hands, long-house-arrested Nobel Peace Prize Aung San Suu Kyi may finally get (some) freedom. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

06 Nov 2010 20:15

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World: Myanmar (a.k.a. Burma) having (possibly democratic) elections

  • 29
    million     number of people who will be able to vote in tomorrow’s elections in Burma (also known as Myanmar)
  • 1.5
    million     number of those people who won’t be able to because it’s too dangerous for voting to take place
  • 50 number of years that Burma has been under depressing military rule
  • 20 number of years since the country had any sort of election (sham or not)
  • 3,000 candidates are vying for a seat in Sunday’s election source
  • » Critics say it’s a sham: Well, let’s see. Foreign journalists won’t be allowed in the country during tomorrow’s elections. Nor will independent observers. And the leader of the opposition party, Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi, is currently under house arrest and largely has been since the last election. Wonder what makes them think that this election is a sham.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

11 Oct 2010 10:51

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World: Human rights violation: Nobel Peace laureate’s wife under house arrest

  • The precondition for sentence reduction or parole is an acknowledgement of your crime. If Xiaobo would do that, he wouldn’t have won the peace prize.
  • Nobel Peace laureate Liu Xiaobo’s lawyer, Shang Baojun • Regarding his client’s current status in prison. As crazy as the Chinese democracy fighter’s incarceration is, his wife’s status is nearly as bad. Liu Xia is currently under house arrest for simply being married to the winner of the Nobel Peace Prize. While she was allowed to meet her husband briefly, she’s been blocked off from the outside world since Friday night. Chinese authorities also broke her mobile phone. Her only contact with other life forms right now? Twitter. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

08 Oct 2010 12:06

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World: Three negative side effects of Liu Xiaobo’s Nobel Peace Prize win

Liu Xiaobo, posted by laihiu on Flickr

  • This of course doesn’t take away from Liu’s win at all. After a year when the Nobel Peace Prize committee faced heavy criticism for selecting the relatively fresh Obama as their pick, they’ve redeemed themselves by picking someone on the front lines of peace activism – only the third currently-incarcerated winner in the award’s history. (He’s serving 11 years in prison, a harsh sentence, on fairly minor charges.) Of course, China doesn’t see it that way, and it could – at least in the short term – do more harm than good for the world at large. Some (mostly unfortunate) side effects from the win:
  • (photo by Flickr user laihiu)
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20 Aug 2010 11:14

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World: Odds that Israel and the Palestinians build peace in D.C.? 1000:1

  • They have to give it the old college try once a decade, right? The Israelis and Palestinians reportedly plan to hold some peace talks in the U.S. under the Obama administration’s watchful eye in a couple of weeks. It’d be the first time the sides met for peace talks in over two years. You know what would really help Obama’s poll numbers and validate his Nobel Peace Prize at the same time? If he could create peace in the Middle East. Just sayin’. source
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18 Jul 2010 09:27

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World: Twitter (loudly) celebrates Nelson Mandela’s 92nd birthday

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16 Jan 2010 16:36

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U.S., World: Nelson Mandela: An example of terror watch resource waste?

  • 15 years on the U.S. terror watch list after he won a Nobel source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
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