It is my privilege to participate with Kyaw Sithu, a Burmese refugee who has been driving his car across North America as part of the North America Campaign for Free Burma. We are here to continue to raise awareness of the humanitarian crisis and brutality going on in the military-ruled Burma.
As we all know, there has been a growing protest about the Beijing Float that will be part of the 2008 Rose Parade here in Pasadena to kickoff the celebration for the 2008 Olympics that will be held in Beijing. Part of the tragic irony about the Summer Olympics that is set to open on Aug. 8, 2008, which falls exactly 20 years after the infamous day Burmese military forces massacred more than 1,000 civilians who were demonstrating for democratic rule. Also, on Aug. 8, 1988, after the slaughter, Burma's Nobel winner Aung San Suu Kyi made her first political speech and assumed the role of opposition leader.
China, Burma's neighbor and major trading partner, is best positioned to influence the current junta, and urge them to negotiate with Aung San Suu Kyi, who has been under house arrest for most of the past 18 years.
We have all watched media coverage in September of this year of the Buddhist Monks who protested the brutal suppression facing the people of Burma. We also witnessed the Mayor of Pasadena ignore the pleas of Burmese freedom fighters who begged for his help to recognize this crisis.
A Buddhist monk recently testified before Pasadena’s City Council and before the Human Relations Commission. Mayor Bogaard’s letter to Beijing’s Xicheng district had instead called such testimonies as merely “allegations”.
As a citizen of Pasadena and as a former Mayor of this great City, I must say that I never imagined a time would come when a Mayor of Pasadena could ever say no to those in need.
When citizens in the United States gather to protest, as we are clearly today, that protest is not to be intercepted by the police as it is in China. I’ve been informed that the Pasadena Police Department “offered” to accept Kyaw Sithu’s letter to the Mr. Boggard here in front of City Hall in a not-so-subtle ploy to suppress media coverage of the caravan to Mr. Bogaard’s home to deliver the letter. There have been other efforts to suppress this protest of Mr. Bogaard’s embrace of China’s government, and I can only wonder if the Mayor has embraced China to a level where he feels comfortable following their example by trying to deny the right to assemble as guaranteed under our First Amendment.
Kyaw Sithu, please know that your message is welcome in Pasadena and we will continue to press our elected officials to not only uphold our own Bill of Rights, but to continue to ensure that our country defends freedom and justice for all. Aung San Suu Kyi has made a great request to us all: "Please use your liberties to promote ours."
