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This
country has been controlled by harsh dictators since 1962.
Things took a turn for the
worse in 1962, when a cruel dictator named Ne Win, seen at left,
seized control of the government, in a takeover known as a coup.
Ne Win created the harsh junta that exists today. One way he
kept power was by keeping the country separate from the rest
of the world. His economic policies were very damaging, and the
country slid into poverty. By the late 1980s, the people were
growing increasingly angry. And in August 1988, the people stormed
the streets, in an event that had a very violent end. Government
soldiers killed thousands of people. Can you believe a government
would kill its own people just to hold onto power?
One ray of hope for the Burmese people came that very same year.
The daughter of Aung San, the man who brought independence to
Burma in 1947, returned to her home country after living for
years in Britain. Aung San Suu Kyi has become famous all over
the world for her quiet, nonviolent protest against the junta
that controls the nation her father died for. In 1989, the same
year the junta officially changed the country's name to Myanmar,
the junta placed Aung San Suu Kyi under house arrest. They offered
her freedom if she would leave the country. But she wouldn't
go. And she is still under house arrest today. She received the
Nobel Peace Prize in 1991. What made her a good choice for
this prize? Why do you think her quiet protest is so threatening
to the junta? Do you think she has helped bring courage to her
people?
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THOUGHT
QUESTIONS:
Do you think the U.S. thought
that the refugee situation would be one of the "side effects"
of the war?
Will Iraqi refugees be treated
differently here than people from other countries?
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FOR MORE INFORMATION:
The U.N. warns of 5 million Iraqi refugees.
Learn more about the UNHCR
and its efforts in Iraq
Read about Ryan Crocker's statements
at CBS News.com.
This Reuters story looks at the role of the
U.S. and the West in the refugee crisis.
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