ganbatte, Burma
the journal of Michael Werneburg
twenty-seven years and one million words
Recently, there's been a lot of non-Japanese political activity in my neighbourhood. The embassy of Burma is in the area, and with recent events in that country the local populace has been turning out at the embassy to protest.
Protests there are nothing new, but the recent protests have been larger and louder. In fact, today's included a lot of face-to-face shouting between the protesters and the Tokyo metropolitan police.
That the police get dragged into it is an unfortunate factor of the nature of embassies. They are a small piece of a foreign country that occasionally have to be protected from parties outside the embassy grounds per se. So it's either the national police or the army of the host country, the national police or army of the guest country (which have no business on the host country's territory) or .. private contractors.
Given the godawful state of the "government" of Burma, I think that the fewer private contractors that get involved, the better. So it's up to the metro police.
And that police force was in no way screwing around with these protests. They had at least ten buses full of armoured cops on the scene and sprinkled throughout the larger district where they could monitor traffic coming into the area.
I can see why the Burmese are upset, and I have been glad to see not only protests but other social/political activities in our neighbourhood recently. At the little park at the end of the street the Tokyo Burmese populace held a very well-attended gathering that seemed to be equal parts festival and political rally. Police presence on that occasion was nominal, and it looked like a relatively happy affair.
Whenever I see the Burmese in the area I always smile and tell them "ganbatte". Their government needs to go, and that's all there is to it.
I'm usually someone with something to say on just about any topic you could name, but on the duties of government I've got a very clear view, and that is this. In this bizarre time of instant global communication and near-instant global travel, the gross global economic disparity that exists cannot be maintained forever. There is simply no place for outdated regimes such as that of Burma, who view their populace as slave labour available for the use by the highest bidding.
Unsurprisingly, we see that all of the larger and more wealthy regimes in the greater region support the goons currently running "Myanmar". The Indians, Chinese, and even the Russians have been supporting them in one form or another. And the Japanese of course are a major economic client. The Europeans and Americans aren't above buying the fruits of Burmese slavery either, of course, but are less directly involved (for once!).
A longish post this time, but I wish the Burmese well.
P.S. I'd have photos of the confrontation to post, but it seems I've been wandering around the city for the past three days with no film in my camera. Only the second time I've done that in my life, but dang that smarts.