Martyrs’ Day: a wake-up call for reconciliation in Myanmar
For many reasons, this year’s Martyrs’ Day on July 19 was a significant break from the past. For the first time, it was held under a National League for Democracy-backed government. After several decades of absence, it was also the first time the commander-in-chief attended. And, for the first time since 1988, this Martyrs’ Day people heard the sound of sirens and stood still at 10:37am, when the martyrs were assassinated in 1947. For two minutes, people of all faiths, races and ideologies united under one siren call.
But most importantly, this year’s Martyrs’ Day was a wake-up call for national reconciliation in Myanmar.
Martyrs’ Day is not just about remembering Bogyoke Aung San and the eight other fallen independence heroes. It has always been an important act of political symbolism. Paying respect and laying wreaths for those killed that day is a core tradition in Myanmar. So layered in symbolism is it, that it was the target of a terrorist attack in 1983 that killed, among others, four South Korean senior cabinet ministers.
During military rule, Martyrs’ Day events were part of a complex deciphering exercise for foreign diplomats and experts watching the roller-coaster relationship between Daw Aung San Suu Kyi – the daughter of Bogyoke Aung San – and the junta. It was the only time when people could see Daw Aung San Suu Kyi in public during her house arrest. People paid close attention to her every single move and used the event to speculate on her relationship with the generals. Her absence usually signalled problems. More reading …