By Hemesh Patel
Daily Bruin Staff
A group of 10 students held a protest around the campus Thursday
morning to represent the rights of 40 million people in Southeast
Asia.
The representatives from the Environmental Coalition
demonstrated against the UC Regents’ investment in stocks
with two companies that do business in Burma.
“The money invested in these companies goes to the
military regime that has taken over the country,” said
Christine Riordan, a third-year Spanish and international
developmental studies student.
The companies in question are Halliburton, a corporation that
manufactures hardware for oil and gas pipelines, and Proctor and
Gamble
According to coalition members, the regents already invest
hundreds of millions of dollars elsewhere, and divesting in these
companies would not be such a difficult task.
Last month, for example, the regents decided to stop investing
in tobacco corporations.
“I would argue they don’t benefit from Burma,”
said Kevin Rudiger, a second-year graduate student in urban
planning. “A number of companies, including Levi-Strauss,
have pulled out for ethical reasons and also corruption.”
While considering the tobacco divestment, several regents raised
concerns over how such financial maneuvers could affect the
UC’s portfolio.
Their investment consultants, Wilshire Associates, warned there
could be a “slippery slope” in investment oversight if
the regents’ divested in too many companies.
UC spokesman Trey Davis said the regents routinely receive a
wide range of concerns from student groups each year regarding
investments.
“The item hasn’t come up on the regents’
agenda yet,” Davis said.
Demonstrators were clad in dark clothes, wearing tombstones with
statistics about the situation in the country. They played
traditional Burmese music as they marched. Students also wore a
piece of cloth over their mouths, representing the silencing of the
Burmese people by the military regime.
Two of the demonstrators were carrying a coffin and some were
chained to each other.
Military rule in Burma began in 1988 and on Aug. 8 of that year,
massive protests ensued, involving thousands of demonstrators.
“The military opened fire on demand and killed over 6,000
people,” Rudiger said.
The democratically elected leader of the country, Aung San Suu
Kyi, has been put under house arrest by the government and has
remained unrecognized by the regime for 11 years. She received the
Nobel Peace Prize in 1991 for her humanitarian work in the
country.
Rudiger said journalists, Burmese people and even family members
have very limited access to her.
“Her husband, who was British, was dying of cancer and
wanted to see his wife for the last time,” Rudiger said.
“They would not let her leave and he died without seeing his
wife ever again.”
A tombstone sign one student wore read “100,009 refugees
along the Thai Burma border,” and another said, “One
out of 20 Burmese forced to flee their homes.”
In addition to the demonstration, the students promoted the
evening’s screening of a documentary outlining the condition
in Burma. After the screening, Burmese exiles spoke about their
experiences.
EC members said the demonstration was not against the
regents.
“Once they understand what is going on in Burma, we hope
they will take some social leadership and stop investing in these
companies,” Rudiger said.
Los Angeles has a Burmese population of about 10,000 ““ the
biggest outside of Southeast Asia.
Rudiger said the population in the city is active in aiming to
stop corporations from investing in their company until democracy
is restored.
“UC students have the opportunity to affect the lives of
40 million people,” Rudiger said.