Villagers paint cross signs on walls, reject constitution

By Maung Dee
Mizzima News

Monday, 28 April 2008 - New Delhi - In an act of open defiance, villagers in central Burma's Myingyan Township have painted their walls and fencings with a cross, symbolizing 'No', rejecting the junta's draft constitution in the May 10 referendum.

Eyewitnesses said, on Saturday, they saw the cross signs painted with lime and tar in most of the fencings and walls of the villagers in Lingyi and Darkyun in Myigyan township of Mandalay division.

"These villagers also had their walls pasted with a paper that has the word 'No' written on it. They also painted and pasted it on the walls of Buddhist monasteries. Almost all the people in the villages had the wall writings," a local resident, who is also a member of a secretly formed referendum monitoring group, told Mizzima.

Following this, two cars loaded with township officials and about 10 policemen came to the villages and inspected the wall writings. However, he said they could not cull further information.

Meanwhile, in an act of appeasement to the junta, a fishing company named "We are Burmese", has begun distributing basic rations such as rice and oil to local residents in the area, as part of a campaign to win supporting votes for the junta, local residents said.

"The company owner Tin Win, has distributed a bag of rice and a tin of edible oil to every household in Yengan village in Taungthar township in Mandalay division, saying they are distributing the ration so that the people would support the draft constitution," said the local.

"He also announced with megaphones in the village that if the villagers vote 'Yes' in the forthcoming referendum, the company would continue providing rations for the villagers," he added.

In a separate incident, local residents said municipal authorities of Myingyan town urged slum dwellers in the town's slum, Nwagudan, to cast 'Yes' votes in return for exempting them from housing tax. But the authorities threatened them that they would be driven out from the locality if they cast a 'No' in the referendum.