Word: rangoon
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Thousands of Burmese are doing just that. The short-lived rally in Rangoon was one of 20 or so demonstrations that have erupted across Burma (also known as Myanmar) in recent weeks--a rare display of civil disobedience by a people who have been ruled for 45 years by one of the world's most reclusive military regimes. The last time there were mass countrywide demonstrations, in 1988, the military cracked down hard, killing thousands of protesters and dashing hopes of democratic reform. Now daily life in this nation of 53 million has become so desperate that an impoverished populace...
...tripling of bus fares on some routes, leaving many commuters unable to afford their ride to work. "At this rate, even a meal every day might become a luxury," says housekeeper May Oo, who now spends 60% of her salary on her daily bus ride to and from Rangoon...
...hardships are made more unbearable by a widening wealth gap. The country's military leaders are enjoying ever more ostentatious lives, their wallets fattened by gas-pipeline deals with neighbors China, India and Thailand. A samizdat video circulating in Rangoon shows junta chief Than Shwe's daughter getting married in a lavish ceremony. The couple reportedly received millions of dollars in wedding gifts--in a nation where the average annual per capita income is just $225. More appalling, the junta spent hundreds of millions of dollars in 2005 to build a brand-new capital city. Yet today Naypyidaw...
...over in a matter of minutes, but the significance of the occasion vastly exceeded its brevity. On Aug. 28, 20 demonstrators gathered at a market in Burma's commercial capital, Rangoon, to protest against the junta's decision to dramatically raise prices of essential goods. Led by labor activist Su Su Nway, the crowd had just begun to chant slogans when thugs employed by the ruling generals swooped in and started dragging the protesters into waiting vehicles. The frail Su Su Nway, who had only emerged from prison last year after serving seven months for reporting cases of forced labor...
...Many Burmese are doing just that. The short-lived rally in Rangoon was one of 20 or so protests that in recent weeks have erupted across Burma - a rare display of civil disobedience by a people who have been ruled for 45 years by one of the world's most reclusive, and repressive, military regimes. The last time there were mass countrywide demonstrations, in 1988, the military cracked down hard, killing thousands of protesters and dashing hopes of democratic reform. Now daily life in this nation of 53 million has become so desperate that an impoverished populace may feel...