Soldiers announced they were hunting pro-democracy protesters in Burma’s largest city Wednesday and the top U.S. diplomat in the country said she heard that military police were pulling people out of their homes during the night.
Military vehicles patrolled the streets before dawn with loudspeakers blaring, “We have photographs. We are going to make arrests!”
Shari Villarosa, the acting U.S. ambassador in Burma, said in a telephone interview that people in Rangoon were terrified.
“From what we understand, military police … are traveling around the city in the middle of the night, going into homes and picking up people,” she said.
The U.N.’s special envoy, Ibrahim Gambari, declined to comment on his four-day mission to Burma, where the military junta last month crushed mass pro-democracy demonstrations led by the nation’s revered Buddhist monks.
Hundreds of monks and civilians were carted off to detention camps during protests last week. The government says 10 people were killed in the violence, but dissident groups put the death toll at up to 200. They say 6,000 people were detained.
Villarosa said embassy staff had gone to some monasteries in recent days and found them completely empty. Others were barricaded by the military and declared off-limits to outsiders.
“There is a significantly reduced number of monks on the streets. Where are the monks? What has happened to them?” she said. The Democratic Voice of Burma, a dissident radio station based in Norway, said authorities have released 90 of 400 monks detained in Myitkyina, the capital of Kachin state, during a midnight raid on monasteries on Sept. 25.
A semblance of normality returned to Rangoon after daybreak, with some shops opening and light traffic on roads.
However, “people are terrified, and the underlying forces of discontent have not been addressed,” Villarosa said. “People have been unhappy for a long time … Since the events of last week, there’s now the unhappiness combined with anger, and fear.”
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Clinton jumps on veto in new ad
Hillary Clinton is joining the chorus of Democrats bashing President Bush's veto of a bill to expand a health insurance program for children, citing it in new ads to plug her healthcare plan.
The Clinton campaign said the 30-second television spot will start airing today in Iowa and New Hampshire, which will hold the first caucus and first primary, respectively.
The ad mentions her failed attempt to push universal healthcare coverage in 1993 and 1994 while first lady, plus her advocacy of the State Children's Health Insurance Program. Despite public support and support from some Republicans, Bush vetoed the bill, which would add about 3 million kids to the program at an additional cost of $35 billion over five years.
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bill+clinton hillary+clinton us+election
The Clinton campaign said the 30-second television spot will start airing today in Iowa and New Hampshire, which will hold the first caucus and first primary, respectively.
The ad mentions her failed attempt to push universal healthcare coverage in 1993 and 1994 while first lady, plus her advocacy of the State Children's Health Insurance Program. Despite public support and support from some Republicans, Bush vetoed the bill, which would add about 3 million kids to the program at an additional cost of $35 billion over five years.
Full story
bill+clinton hillary+clinton us+election
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