Part 2: Section 11 Summary

This section first appeared under the headline "Belief in Burma's Future" in The Independent on September 12, 1988—between the outbreak of the nationwide demonstrations beginning on August 8th and the imposition of a new military rule on September 18th. Aung San Suu Kyi confessed her "horror, anger, and sheer disbelief," as well as her "conviction that a movement which has risen so spontaneously from the people's irresistible desire for the full enjoyment of human rights must surely prevail." She continued that the will of the Burmese people has been suppressed for 26 years but that now, since the police can no longer guarantee security, local "vigilante groups"—composed of Buddhist monks and students—have sprung up throughout the country. Such vigilante groups have resolved problems which included the distribution of medical supplies in relief efforts. In contrast, the media has...