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Commemorating 252nd Mon Kingdom, Hongsawatoi Fallen Day (HFD)  

MRC held a demonstration in front of  Burmese embassy in Washington D.C to commemorate the 252nd Mon Kingdom Hongsawatoi Fallen Day/ Holocaust Memorial Day of Mon People on May 15, 2009.  About 40 MRC members from Fort Wayne, IN participated in the demonstration. The demonstration began with saluting Mon national flag and Mon comrades who gave their lives for Mon national cause.  And the demonstrators remained silence for 252 seconds to remember those who were killed by Aung Zeya 252 years ago. Slogans of the demonstration include “Burmese Army out of Monland, stop human rights abuses in Monland, stop raping Mon women, boycott SPDC’s sponsored 2010 election, and Free Monland Now”. The demonstration started at 9:00AM and ended at 11:00PM.

In the afternoon, MRC and MUL representatives had two separate meetings with Mr. Keith Luze, Senior professional staff at the U.S Senate Foreign Relations Committee and Ms. Laura Scheibe, Burma Desk officer, at U.S. State Department. The  representatives updated situation in Monland and Burma and urged the U.S policy markers not  to  lift sanctions against the SPDC unless human rights situations are improved in Burma. The representatives also  urged U.S. policy makers to give more  emphasis on ethnic   issues on U.S. foreign policy toward Burma.  Although democracy’s issue is important solving Burma’s political problem, the root of Burma’s political problem is ethnic problem. Unless ethnic problem is solved,  Burma will not have a sustainable democracy, urged the representatives.

Hongsawatoi Fallen Day/Holocaust Memorial Day of Mon People is marked as the fallen day of Mon kingdom, Hongsawatoi (Pegu). In 1757, Burman ruler, Aung Zeya invaded Mon kingdom and killed thousands of innocents Mon including 3000 Buddhist Mons and thousands of women and children. Mon organizations around world also issued a statement on this day. Click here to read the statement.