Protesters Defiant in Burma

With the drama involving Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and the crises in the Middle East, it's easy to focus on news that addresses this region alone. But there is another situation that is becoming increasingly more tense in Burma, where more than 100,000 monks have taken the streets in protest against the military government that has ruled the country for the past two decades:

The march, cheered and applauded by thousands of bystanders, is the latest and largest in a series of protests by Burma's monks and dissidents. Diplomats fear that the country has now reached a turning point, with the generals who have ruled the country with an iron fist for nearly half a century facing the biggest challenge to their power for 20 years.

While a protest could be seen by many in the United States as a peaceful exercise in free speech, the Burmese government sees it as a threat to their power. They have repeatedly asked the monks to cease the protests, and many fear if they continue, there could be a repeat of the 1988 massacre, where approximately 3,000 demonstrators were killed when the government stepped in. Today, the junta brought out the guns:

YANGON (Reuters) - The Myanmar junta poured troops and police armed with rifles into central Yangon on Tuesday in an attempt to end the biggest demonstrations against military rule in nearly 20 years.

Hundreds of them surrounded the Sule Pagoda, focus of two days of mass protests led by thousands of maroon-robed monks, and appeared to be preparing to seal off the area, witnesses said.

President Bush has ordered new sanctions against the military government, and has voiced support for the protesters. China, Burma's chief ally, has also warned against the use of force:

At the start of the year, China and Russia vetoed a UN Security Council resolution directing the Secretary-General to open negotiations with the Burmese regime, in part because of China's longstanding opposition to international interference in "domestic affairs".

Now, on the same principle, it is declining to offer public backing for the generals.

Hopefully the international pressure prevents the use of force to quell the dissent.