Myanmar’s Desire for Freedom

Aung San Suu Kyi

Nelson Mandela once said: “There is no easy walk to freedom anywhere, and many of us will have to pass through the valley of the shadow of death again and again before we reach the mountaintop of our desires.” Even with our daily news reminding us of the emerging “Arab Spring,” we can often take our freedom for granted and think that our country was always free. Yet, as we have learned through our own struggles, past and present, freedom needs to be desired and often fought for.

Living as I do with La Salettes from around the world, I am often struck by the struggles that other present-day nations have in approaching freedom. One struggling country is Myanmar, an ancient nation but certainly having its struggles to approach some basic freedoms. From our entry as La Salettes into then known as Burma in 1937, we have been encouraged by the goodness of the Burmese people but eventually suffered with them from Communist governments that eventually threw us out of their country. But more recently, the smallest of signs of emerging freedom may be blossoming.

1937: Bp. McAuliffe presides over the farewell for our first Missionaries to Burma: (left to right) Frs. Sullivan, La Bonte, Wesclak, Gardiner and Newman

Fr. Nicholas Aye, M.S., has recently moved from his homeland of Myanmar (Burma) to minister at our National Shrine in Attleboro, MA. He comes with a long national history, a different culture, and many talents to “pitch his tent among us” as the evangelist described Jesus’ birth among us. He remembers well, from the recent past, the story of two heroic figures who still play an important part in his country’s desire and steps toward freedom. He describes with much feeling these two special people who are for him concrete signs of hope for his yet-repressed homeland.

Statue of Aung San on the northern shore of Kandawgyi Lake in Yangon, Myanmar

One is Aung San Suu Kyi, a Burmese opposition politician and the General Secretary of the National League for Democracy, a title difficult to bear in this military-controlled country. She was born in 1945 (June, 19), just after World War II. She was schooled in Indian and England and received her doctorate from the University of London in 1965. She is a Theravada Buddist and has been awarded several peace prizes including the Nobel Peace Prize in 1991. Suu Kyi is the third child and only daughter of Aung San, considered to be the father of modern-day Burma.

“He was a Burmese revolutionary, nationalist, and founder of the modern Burmese army, the Tatmadaw. He was a founder of the Communist Party of Burma and was instrumental in bringing about Burma's independence from British colonial rule in Burma, but was assassinated six months before its final achievement. He is recognized as the leading architect of independence, and the founder of the Union of Burma. Affectionately known as "Bogyoke" (General), Aung San is still widely admired by the Burmese people, and his name is still invoked in Burmese politics to this day.” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aung_San)

Fr. Nicodemus and his ordination classmates at Shrine in Silang, Cavite

Fr. Nicodemus has learned much about these larger-than-life figures who mean so much to him and his country. He shared some of his thoughts and feelings about his homeland:

“It’s amazing how our government has made efforts to change history. In particular, this present military government has tried to reform history by reassessing and downgrading the importance of a national hero such as General Aung San. They actually changed the textbooks that mention him and took from circulation any money with his image. Also they completely redesigned the Myanmar flag, originally formed by General Aung San. Despite their efforts, his presence and importance have remained central in the hearts and minds of my people.

“His daughter is for me a symbol of courage in her fighting for the truth and showing her love for our people. She showed all this because she risked coming back from England and, soon after, during the student revolution of 1988, she campaigned for election around the country. She won the election by an absolute majority but was not recognized by the government. Instead she was put under house arrest for more than 20 years. After her release, she is publically encouraging the people to work for freedom and not lose hope. She is the only public figure who has the courage to stand up for democracy.

Last year Fr. Nicodemus was practicing with his Sunday choir at our Shrine in Chanthagone

“My hopes for my country include improved freedom within the next ten years. Beginning with the recent small efforts in formulating a constitution, called the ‘Seven Roadmaps to Democracy’, I would hope that more good things will follow, including good education systems, good communication, dependable electricity and free access to improved public transportation.

“We have massive poverty across our country and therefore desperately need more jobs available. I would hope that our ordinary working people would receive more equitable salaries for their efforts. Also I sincerely wish that there would be more radical freedom in the practice of our Catholic faith. And lastly, I would hope that the many past dissidents who felt they needed to flee their homeland would once again be able to return home and live in freedom.”

For many of us, the United States is our homeland. We love it enough to criticize it from time to time but we should never take our freedoms for granted. From his personal history, Fr. Nicodemus would wholeheartedly agree with Nelson Mandela’s words: “There is no easy walk to freedom anywhere…”