FACT SHEET

Political Activities
DPM Chairman U Thu Wai's Keynote Speech given at the DPM First All Burma National Congress
After greeting the Political dignitaries from different political shades and color and DPM Delegates U Thu Wai gave an important speech to commemorate First DPM All Burma National Congress which is one of its kind so far in the Burmese political arena. Brief: It is utmost important to have both physical and mental freedom for the people, then and then only we can not only build ourselves but also help assist in the nation building process. As we believe in such concept I am sure the people also have the same ideals. Express the opinion freely but respect other's opinions. Our objective is to express, to listen, to discuss and to implement hands in hands according to the democratic principles. Political Party is like a boat in a race, the goal is to get across and Party Members are the crew. It is incorrect if all do not functions well of their duties by just criticizing others. If there is such phenomenon it is to note that such misbehaviors will have to be corrected at the Party Congress. I am proud to see DPM members hoisting DPM Flag all over the country and serving people; I praised them heartily and pleased with them all. Our country must play in the world's stage with dignity. We are at a very strategic location for the SEA, SA, China and India, we have very versatile sea ports, we have abundance natural resources - on land as well as under water and ground, nonetheless we feel that the people do not have chances to enjoy the fruits of the resources which they owned. Many reasons can be cited - wrong governance, rebellion, unending conflicts between the government and the people, economic sanctions by the Western countries, etc. But the fact of the matter is the people do not know how to plug the fruits systematically; that is the crux of the problem. Therefore, as the political space is now made available, the ball is in peoples' court. Under the previous dictatorial regime political freedom was barred. In the international arena we were isolated. Human rights were seriously violated. No substantial cooperation was received in the economic development. Only the cronies, sycophants and tenderpreneurs who provided kickbacks to the authorities prospered and underprivileged people were deprived. Peace and tranquility lacked, several refugee camps on foreign soil and the brain drained was heavy, the regime was quite unpopular. Now, the system of governance had been changed from dictatorial to democracy, the two opposite systems of opposite pole had been exchanged. Nevertheless, it is not an exchanged from total darkness to the bright day light. With no understanding of the features and nature of governance and demand what we want to have will not bear fruit at all. Many countries, as we have witnessed, could not implement peaceful transition of the systems. The ruling clique have to change their mind settings first. The important thing is to change the mentality. The people also need to change their mentality and if both sides can perform this adjustment the rest will become quite smooth to implement. Many analyzed the government for their void of drastic reforms or change; discarding uniforms alone will not produce change of attitudes; but those

who made criticisms have not changed their attitudes a bit and yet they expect someone to do so. The Fascist Countries like Japan and Germany during Second World War are now providing democratic knowledge for us; once America practiced slave trade and treating Blacks as animals; now they are professing human rights to us. Those who understand the Government's ways of undertaking reforms are providing assistance and cooperation and pointing out instructively how to change the attitudes. Leaders from many countries had visited our country as they came to see the changing facets of the country has become more and more prominent and are planning to increase cooperation. Now we can envisage the brighter future for our people. No matter how much we love our country and want to give all we have for the country we were deprived off such opportunity when our country was under the imperialists or dictatorial rules. We had no rights to say how the Government should allocate the budget for education, health, etc. We had to demonstrate for the downfall of the dictatorial regime so much so that we have no time for the nation building but implementing only destructive politicking. Our youth have no education which is at par with the international standards, after graduating they just become part of the mass of unemployed; there was no medicine for the doctors to cure the sick; there were no factories for the engineers; thus, the youth had but to join hands with the politicians in demanding the change of political system. We had participated in many demonstrations against the dictatorial regime many a time in the past. Now the metamorphosis has begun and the ruling clique has started to discard dictatorial system. They are yearning for democracy. Nonetheless, the country is still in transitional period. It is pertinent to march on onto this road of reform. It is time for the politicians as well as the youth have but to change from destructive to constructive politics. It us time to join hands in nation building process. It is not the time to adopt destructive demonstrations any more but to help implement to raise the standards of education, health, etc. We may need to raise questions what reforms the Government had undertaken? The Government had released jailed politicians; it had allowed people who are residing in foreign countries to return safely; cease fire process is being carrying out with the insurgents groups; it had pleaded gainfully in reducing western sanctions; cooperation and foreign direct investment are being implemented; it is to aim for our people to have a standard of living that is acceptable to all of us. How are we going to implement for proper standard of living as human being? If we have right to education, right to medical treatment, and with no discriminations we all must have equal privileges to earn proper living and right to economic development, then and then only our standard of loving will be raised. All we have in our country is tremendous amount of insufficiency; we have not enough schools, not enough teachers, we have not enough learning instruments, doctors, medicines, clinics, hospitals are copiously needed; if the people are desperately poor then we will be considered as beggars and our Government will become Beggar Government and the country will become a Nation of Beggars.

If Burma is to play on the world's stage with dignity then the citizens must have the right to self determination. Now the trend of providing the rights is being set. For the sake of having true civil democratic society all citizens must have democratic visions and must be well disciplined. Our Party's advantage to other and ours' of well dignified Party is fairly simple; DPM has a vast magnitude of Freedom. Party members have the right to make decision on Party policies. We are no one else's stooges. We accept no financial support from no one and therefore we are under no influence of others. Our Party is clean and our Party is built by the strength of its own members. But, we remain at the stage of insufficiency, so to speak. We will keep working on it in justifiable manners. We are doing it with whatever capacity our strength allows and that is the right way, and the best way and that is our Party's stand. From this National Congress and with this very adopted stand allow me declare that we will find the best ways and means to serve the people and our nation. Thank you all.

12/8/2012 5:07:42 PM

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