Activists send female underwear to Burmese embassies
Martin Hodgson
Friday October 19, 2007
Guardian Unlimited
Activists exasperated at the failure of diplomacy to apply pressure on
Burma's military regime are resorting to a new means of protest against
the regime's recent crackdown: sending female underwear to Burmese embassies.
Embassies in the UK, Thailand, Australia and Singapore have all been
targeted by the "Panties for Peace" campaign, co-ordinated by an activist
group based in Chiang Mai, Thailand.
The manoeuvre is a calculated insult to the junta and its leader, General
Than Shwe. Superstitious junta members believe that any contact with female
undergarments - clean or dirty - will sap them of their power, said Jackie
Pollack, a member of the Lanna Action for Burma Committee.
"Not only are they brutal, but they are also very superstitious. They
believe that touching a woman's pants or sarong will make them lose their
strength," Ms Pollack told Guardian Unlimited.
So far, hundreds of pairs of pants have been posted, according to another
campaigner, Liz Hilton. "One group sent 140 pairs to the Burmese embassy
in Geneva," she said... Read on>>
Martin Hodgson
Friday October 19, 2007
Guardian Unlimited
Activists exasperated at the failure of diplomacy to apply pressure on
Burma's military regime are resorting to a new means of protest against
the regime's recent crackdown: sending female underwear to Burmese embassies.
Embassies in the UK, Thailand, Australia and Singapore have all been
targeted by the "Panties for Peace" campaign, co-ordinated by an activist
group based in Chiang Mai, Thailand.
The manoeuvre is a calculated insult to the junta and its leader, General
Than Shwe. Superstitious junta members believe that any contact with female
undergarments - clean or dirty - will sap them of their power, said Jackie
Pollack, a member of the Lanna Action for Burma Committee.
"Not only are they brutal, but they are also very superstitious. They
believe that touching a woman's pants or sarong will make them lose their
strength," Ms Pollack told Guardian Unlimited.
So far, hundreds of pairs of pants have been posted, according to another
campaigner, Liz Hilton. "One group sent 140 pairs to the Burmese embassy
in Geneva," she said... Read on>>
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