Sep 29, 2008 (DVB), Veteran journalist and National League for Democracy member U Win Tin stressed the need for unity within the pro-democracy movement in an address he gave yesterday to youth activists.
Thirty National League for Democracy members from Lower Burma went to pay their respects to newly-released political prisoners U Win Tin and Kyauktan township MP-elect Dr Than Nyein on 28 September.
U Win Tin said he had emphasised the importance of unity to the youth activists.
"Discuss and connect with each other. Then if you have to argue, argue, but please don’t fight each other," he told them.
"Discussion is saying what you have and listening to what others have. Negotiation is taking a little bit from you and from others as necessary to make something happen," he went on.
"Don’t fight among yourselves. Don’t fight with the NLD leaders or our members. Similarly, don’t fight other organisations," he said.
"The other thing I said was, don’t come and talk to me about the constitution and so on. We will concentrate on the release of [political] prisoners first and rally for dialogue."
U Win Tin said youth activists should find their own ways of fighting for democracy in Burma.
"Today’s young people have to find their own answers. Political solutions can’t be written down on paper, they have to come out of the struggle," he said.
"What the young people have to do now is find the solution they like and they must struggle for that solution."
Youth member Nay Chi said U Win Tin's words had been welcomed by the NLD youth members.
"It was like seeing the parents we thought we would never see again and it is like rediscovering our figurehead and we are very happy," Nay Chi said.
"What we really appreciated and supported was when [U Win Tin] said that bringing the SPDC to the table for talks for democracy can’t be done by the NLD alone," he said.
"We have to work with all pro-democracy people and the public. When we heard that, for all the NLD youth it was like falling into a well when one is thirsty."
Reporting by Yee May Aung
