Yangon, Aug 8 (IANS) Thousands massed here Thursday to mark the 25th anniversary of a bloody crackdown on pro-democratic movement in Myanmar, a Thailand-based daily said.
Some 5,000 people gathered at a convention centre to witness a landmark ceremony recalling the huge 1988 student protests that were brutally crushed by the then-junta, Bangkok Post reported.
The event, attended by members of the opposition and ruling parties, diplomats and Buddhist monks, comes amid sweeping changes in Myanmar since the end of outright military dictatorship two years ago.
Activists expressed jubilation at the scale of the event, but urged even more people to join in.
“8888 (as the anniversary is known) is the biggest milestone in our history. It’s unforgettable,” Aye Myint, who joined the protests in 1988, was quoted as saying by the news paper.
“Many more people should join the event. It’s just a few if you compare with the people who participated in the democracy uprising 25 years ago.”
Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, who is now the opposition leader, was taking part in Thursday’s commemorations. She rose to prominence during the 1988 protests.
A vicious military assault on student-led demonstrations against Myanmar’s military rulers Aug 8, 1988 sparked a huge popular uprising against the junta.
Hundreds of thousands took to the streets across the country calling for democracy, in protests that came to a brutal end the following month with an army crackdown that killed thousands.
Myanmar has undergone sweeping political changes since a quasi-civilian regime replaced junta rule in 2011.
Reforms have included the freeing of hundreds of political prisoners — many of whom were jailed for their roles in the 1988 rallies — and the welcoming of democracy champion Aung San Suu Kyi and her party into parliament.
