Poets for Poets
Wednesday, February 6, 2013 at 5:19PM As an arts organization, OMB has a special interest in the rights of artists: Ai Wei Wei; Pussy Riot, and many others. Today, we're thinking about poets and writers in Burma.
Check out this story from SF Gate, which I believe maybe the San Francisco Chronicle's online alter ego...I just lifted it wholesale, so make sure you go to the site at some point and see how overall marvelous it is!
Poet Saw Wai
Rangoon, Burma --
Poet Saw Wai parked himself on the lawn, unfurled a map of Burma with a blob of blood-red paint dripping down from a spot up north and invited people to make poetry with him.
"He's calling for more trouble," said a passer-by.
What the message lacked in subtlety it made up for in brazenness. Government forces have been pounding ethnic rebels in Burma's northern Kachin state, displacing tens of thousands and testing the country's fast-growing friendship with the West. It's the sort of thing you couldn't really talk about here for 50 years.
Nearly two years into reformist President Thein Sein's term, the rush of hope and idealism that greeted many new freedoms - most strikingly freedom of speech - is turning into a measured assessment of the nation's progress. Long accustomed to writing around censorship, Burma's writers are relearning the habits of free thought and testing the boundaries of speech.
Saw Wai, who served 28 months as a political prisoner, grinned as he handed out photocopies of his latest poems.
"I'm not afraid," he said. "I'm just a guinea pig, testing freedom of expression on behalf of the people."
Burma's censorship board, which shut in August, was officially rebranded the Copyrights and Registration Division at the end of January, just in time for Rangoon's first international literary festival, where Saw Wai staged his poetry performance.
The festival, which ended Sunday, brought together around 80 Burmese authors - including exiles and former political prisoners like opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi. Burma is also known as Myanmar.
For decades Burmese authors were subject to the censor's red pen, which slashed across manuscript pages. Writers bearing gifts of food, clothing and books pleaded with censors not to cut too deep. Authors also had to submit copies of their printed work before distribution. Pages that didn't conform to the government's edit were torn out, undesirable phrases blacked over.
Burma's Constitution enshrines freedom of expression if it doesn't harm "community peace" or "public order and morality." Such sweeping measures can be used for political prosecutions. Burma is working on a new press law, which could address issues such as defamation and the right to access information.
And this article, International Literary Festival Opens in Burma, at Time World.com is an interesting compliment.
Reader Comments (1)
We, the Seguin High school in Arlington , Texas. just completed the challenge. It will be on display at our annual Youth Art Month Show. What started out as a small classroom project escalated into three schools and several teachers getting involved. I am very proud of the effort the students put into it. if anyone is in town for the National Art Educators convention in Fort Worth 2013. - The bone installation will be showing at a local museum that is nearby. The Arlington Art museum in Arlington Texas. Please visit.