Joint-Statement on the 249^th Anniversary of the Fallen Day of Hongsawatoi Mon Kingdom

(19 May 2006)

The Mon people are one of the oldest ethnic groups in Burma .  They lived in Hongsawatoi (Pegu) Mon kingdom until it was invaded and occupied by the Burmese king, Aung Zay Ya, in 1757. In the course of this occupation, tens of thousands of innocent Mon civilians including women, children and over 3000 learned Mon priests were brutally massacred.  Hundreds of thousands of Mon fled to Thailand to escape genocide and ethnic cleansing.  Most historical records, including Mon manuscripts and stone inscriptions, were destroyed.

 

Friday 19 May 2006 is the 249th anniversary of the fall of the Hongsawatoi Mon kingdom and the holocaust memorial day of the Mon people.  On this day we celebrate our history, mourn the victims of genocide, and pay tribute to those who sacrificed their lives defending the Mon kingdom and the others who are still fighting for the freedom of the Mon people.

 

Since the fall of Hongsawatoi Mon Kingdom , the once immensely prosperous and highly civilised Mon have been reduced to a people without a country.  In Burma Mon people are deprived of their fundamental human rights and may not even teach and practice the Mon language.

The present military regime, the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC), still pursues genocidal and ethnic cleansing policies against the Mon and other non-Burman ethnic nationalities in Burma .  Such policies have led to many human rights violations, including rape, murder, imprisonment and forced portering.  Since 1995, more than 700,000 refugees have fled to neighbouring countries, over 2,700 villages were destroyed, and thousands of acres of private land in the Mon State have been confiscated by the military regime.  Currently the SPDC is launching military operations against ethnic Karens, with over 12,000 innocent Karen people forced to flee from their homeland.

 

The most important political goal of our Mon people is to regain the fundamental right of self-determination and recognition as a nationality within Burma . We are committed to work in concert with other ethnic nationalities and democratic forces in Burma for the emergence and establishment of a genuine democratic federal union, where all nationalities, including Burman, will equally enjoy freedom and prosperity.

 

On this important day, we urge:

 

1. The Mon people everywhere to join together for the struggle for Mon freedom;

 

2. The SPDC to immediately stop the practice of genocide, ethnic cleansing, and all forms of human rights violations against the Mon and all other ethnic nationalities, and immediately withdraw its military forces from the homeland of the Mon and other ethnic nationalities;

 

3. The SPDC to immediately initiate a genuine tripartite dialogue comprised of leaders of ethnic nationalities, elected representatives, and military regime as recommended by the United Nations;

 

4. The United Nations Security Council to immediately take steps to stop the present genocide and ethnic cleansing policies of the Burmese military regime.

 

This statement is joined by:

 

              

 

1.The Australia Mon Association (AMA)

 

2. Euro-Mon Community

 

3. Mon Canadian Society Of Alberta

 

4. Mon Women's Association of America

 

5. Monland Restoration Council (MRC), USA

 

6. Overseas Mon National Students Organization (OMNSO), Thailand