| Washington, D.C., September 14, 2000 -- According to a report broadcast
late last month by the Norway-based exile station, the Democratic Voice
of Burma (DVB), the Burmese deputy army commander has blamed radio broadcasts
from the Voice of America and other foreign stations for what he called
“the restiveness within Burma's defense services.”
The Aug. 21 DVB report also said that the same official issued an order
forbidding “all dependents and rank and file in the battalions and units
from listening to foreign radio stations such as the BBC, VOA, DVB, and
RFA” (Radio Free Asia). DVB also reported that the official had issued
an order “saying that those who listen to these radio stations will be
severely punished.”
In a comment today about the report from Burma, VOA Director Sanford
Ungar said, "When it is a crime to listen to the truth on the radio, you
know that things must really be bad."
In a March 2000 message to the United Nations Commission on Human Rights
in Geneva, Burma's democracy leader and 1991 Nobel Peace Prize laureate
Aung San Suu Kyi defended the right of the Burmese people to listen to
the Voice of America. Aung San Suu Kyi said:
"We want a system whereby people are allowed to judge whether or not
the government in power is actually working for the good of the nation
or simply for the good of that government itself. For this right,
many people in Burma have made many sacrifices. In spite of the scrutiny
of international community, violations of human rights in Burma, continue
at a disgraceful rate."
The Voice of America broadcasts one and a half hours of Burmese language
programming daily on shortwave. It is one of many international broadcasters,
such as the BBC, DVB, and RFA, that broadcast news and information to listeners
in Burma.
The Voice of America broadcasts news and information
in 53 languages to an estimated audience of 91 million people each week. |
