Chairman of the State Peace and Development Council of the Union of Myanmar Senior General Than Shwe and wife Daw Kyaing Kyaing hosted a dinner to mark the 60th Anniversary Independence Day at the City Hall, here, this evening. At 6.30 pm, Senior General Than Shwe arrived at the City Hall where the dinner to mark the 60th Anniversary Independence Day was to be held. Vice- Chairman of the State Peace and Development Council Vice-Senior General Maung Aye, SPDC member General Thura Shwe Mann of the Ministry of Defence, Prime Minister General Thein Sein, Secretary- 1 of the SPDC Lt-Gen Thiha Thura Tin Aung Myint Oo, diplomats led by Acting Dean of the Diplomatic Corps Pakistani Ambassador Mr Muh...

Chairman of the State Peace and Development Council of the Union of Myanmar Senior General Than Shwe and wife Daw Kyaing Kyaing hosted a dinner to mark the 60th Anniversary Independence Day at the City Hall, here, this evening. At 6.30 pm, Senior General Than Shwe arrived at the City Hall where the dinner to mark the 60th Anniversary Independence Day was to be held. Vice- Chairman of the State Peace and Development Council Vice-Senior General Maung Aye, SPDC member General Thura Shwe Mann of the Ministry of Defence, Prime Minister General Thein Sein, Secretary- 1 of the SPDC Lt-Gen Thiha Thura Tin Aung Myint Oo, diplomats led by Acting Dean of the Diplomatic Corps Pakistani Ambassador Mr Muhammad Nawaz Chaudhry and their wives welcomed the Senior General. Also present at the dinner were Vice- Chairman of the State Peace and Development Council Vice-Senior General Maung Aye, SPDC member General Thura Shwe Mann of the Ministry of Defence and wife, Prime Minister General Thein Sein and wife, Secretary- 1 Lt-Gen Thiha Thura Tin Aung Myint Oo and wife, SPDC members and their wives, the Commander- in-Chief (Navy), the Commander-in-Chief (Air) and senior military officers of the Ministry of Defence and their wives, the Commander of Nay Pyi Taw Command, ministers and wives, the Auditor-General, the Chairman of Civil Service Selection and Training Board, the Mayor of Nay Pyi Taw, deputy ministers and their wives, directors-general of the SPDC Office, Government Office, President Office, Pyithu Hluttaw Office and Ministry of Foreign Affairs, diplomats led by Acting Dean of the Diplomatic Corps Pakistani Ambassador Mr Muhammad Nawaz Chaudhry and their wives, resident representatives of UN agencies and their wives, members of the Central Committee and Subcommittees for Organizing the 60th Anniversary Independence Day, regional organizers of State and Division Union Solidarity and Development Associations and guests.

For most nations, the anniversary of a successful independence struggle against imperial overlords would be marked with flag-waving, official celebrations and perhaps even a public holiday. Not so in Burma. On 4 January 1948, more than 60 years of British colonial rule came to an end. Many Burmese had fared badly under the British, as integration into the empire's political and economic systems took its toll.

The authorities carried out mass executions as they sought to control the country, people's pride took a battering as Burma was absorbed into India, and the landscape was devastated as mangroves and lush jungle were cleared to create industrial-scale rice fields[/qu...

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For most nations, the anniversary of a successful independence struggle against imperial overlords would be marked with flag-waving, official celebrations and perhaps even a public holiday. Not so in Burma. On 4 January 1948, more than 60 years of British colonial rule came to an end. Many Burmese had fared badly under the British, as integration into the empire's political and economic systems took its toll.

The authorities carried out mass executions as they sought to control the country, people's pride took a battering as Burma was absorbed into India, and the landscape was devastated as mangroves and lush jungle were cleared to create industrial-scale rice fields

By the early 20th Century, the British had created an impoverished, dysfunctional society with the world's second-highest murder rate. The seeds of rebellion had been sewn. Aung San emerged as the figurehead of resistance but he and six of his cabinet were murdered by a rival and the fallout has blighted the nation ever since.

From a clip I made on 4 January