The Good Fortune to have Election Fever

I was going to blog about the grip of election fever down here in Cornwall - yes I too accept it is really very likely to be called next Monday - but I felt compelled to post a stark reminder of how lucky we are to have a democratic process in this country .... I have just found this post on a Burmese Blog and in the light of little coming out of the country through the media felt I had to copy it onto here.

"We just got phone call with our sister living in Yangon about a few hours ago.We saw on BBC world, saying that 200 monks were arrested. The true picture is far worse!!!!!!!!!For one instance, the monastery at an obscure neighborhood of Yangon, called Ngwe Kyar Yan (on Wei-za-yan-tar Road, Yangon) had been raided early this morning.A troop of lone-tein (riot police comprised of paid thugs) protected by the military trucks, raided the monastery with 200 studying monks. They systematically ordered all the monks to line up and banged and crushed each one's head against the brick wall of the monastery. One by one, the peaceful, non resisting monks, fell to the ground, screaming in pain. Then, they tore off the red robes and threw them all in the military trucks (like rice bags) and took the bodies away.The head monk of the monastery, was tied up in the middle of the monastery, tortured , bludgeoned, and later died the same day, today. Tens of thousands of people gathered outside the monastery, warded off by troops with bayoneted rifles, unable to help their helpless monks being slaughtered inside the monastery. Their every try to forge ahead was met with the bayonets.When all is done, only 10 out of 200 remained alive, hiding in the monastery. Blood stained everywhere on the walls and floors of the monastery.Please tell your audience of the full extent of the fate of the monks please please !!!!!!!!!!!!'Arrested' is not enough expression. They have been bludgeoned to death !!!!!!"

I sit here in my red jumper ... yet it feels so trite. I have joined the fastest growing Facebook group ever http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=24957770200 and I search the internet for more information feeling absolutely helpless. The peaceful protests in Burma have unsettled the military regime beyond belief and their fear manifests in extreme violence aganist those who are unarmed.

So, forgive me as I say this, but as we prepare to deliver at all hours of the day and go knocking on countless numbers of doors and generally wait for the outcome of our toil, please let none of us forget how fortunate we are to have the freedom to do so.