Ramdhan Muhaimin, Jakarta – Around 50 people from Humanist Solidarity for Myanmar (SKUM) held a demonstration in Bali on Sunday October 30 against the violence by the military junta in Myanmar.

The action, which was attended by a number of organisations including the Indonesian Legal Aid Association (PBHI), the Denpasar Indonesian Journalists Alliance (AJI), the Balinese Television Journalists Association (IJTI) and students from the Udayana University, was held on Jl. Sudirman in the provincial capital of Denpasar.

The demonstrators, many of whom were wearing red shirts, held a long-march from the Udayana University campus towards the intersection on Jl. Sudirman. They also brought posters condemning the violence by the Myanmar military junta with messages such as “Stop the Myanmar military junta”, “Military arrogance kills democracy” and “Don’t shoot journalists”.

In a speech, action coordinator Wayan Suardana called for an end to the violence in Myanmar. He also urged the Indonesian government – as the largest country in ASIAN – to be at the forefront of supporting a peace process in Myanmar. “The Myanmar issue is no longer a domestic issue rather it has become a global issue”, he said.

A representative from AJI Denpasar, Muhammad Ridwan, said that the death of a Japanese journalist while on duty in Myanmar represents a hindrance to the freedom of the press. “If [there is no press] freedom then the people’s voice will fade away,” he said. (rmd/nrl)

[Translated by James Balowski.]