I was thrilled to get to see Aung San Suu Kyi here in Bergen today. She came here to accept the Rafto Prize, which was the first international prize recognizing her work in Burma, way back in 1990.
She was given the prize for her tireless, courageous, and peaceful struggle for democracy and against the military dictatorship in Burma. She couldn't come at that time because she was under house arrest, but Myanmar is starting to change. She has been elected to the government now!
There were a couple of speeches, Nelson Mandela's favorite hymn, a couple of violin pieces, then she spoke. As you see, she did not use notes. Her voice was strong and her English remarkable. She talked about Bergen, and how many different nationalities she has seen here living happily. She hopes that the different ethnicities in Burma can someday unify like this. She also said that you cannot use security to deny people's freedom, which I feel is a key message for the US.
After she left the stage, it was taken over by a fabulous group, Fargespill. Farge = color, spill = play. They are 60 kids from 20 countries that live in Bergen. They wore bunads, other native costumes, t-shirts and jeans. They sang and danced many types of music. The link will give you an idea of how dynamic they are.
As a final note, I found this link while looking for Fargespill. Children of the Rainbow is a children's song with words like
"Together we shall live,
"Every sister, every brother
"Small children of the rainbow".
The link is to the wonderful NPR story/video about thousands of Norwegians singing it together in the rain in April - because Anders Behring Breivik hates it. Breivik, in case you forgot, is the Norwegian who killed all those youths last summer. The Associated Press said, "Shocked by Breivik's lack of remorse for his massacre, Norwegians by and large have decided the best way to confront him is by demonstrating their commitment to everything he loathes."
Peace!
She was given the prize for her tireless, courageous, and peaceful struggle for democracy and against the military dictatorship in Burma. She couldn't come at that time because she was under house arrest, but Myanmar is starting to change. She has been elected to the government now!
There were a couple of speeches, Nelson Mandela's favorite hymn, a couple of violin pieces, then she spoke. As you see, she did not use notes. Her voice was strong and her English remarkable. She talked about Bergen, and how many different nationalities she has seen here living happily. She hopes that the different ethnicities in Burma can someday unify like this. She also said that you cannot use security to deny people's freedom, which I feel is a key message for the US.
After she left the stage, it was taken over by a fabulous group, Fargespill. Farge = color, spill = play. They are 60 kids from 20 countries that live in Bergen. They wore bunads, other native costumes, t-shirts and jeans. They sang and danced many types of music. The link will give you an idea of how dynamic they are.
As a final note, I found this link while looking for Fargespill. Children of the Rainbow is a children's song with words like
"Together we shall live,
"Every sister, every brother
"Small children of the rainbow".
The link is to the wonderful NPR story/video about thousands of Norwegians singing it together in the rain in April - because Anders Behring Breivik hates it. Breivik, in case you forgot, is the Norwegian who killed all those youths last summer. The Associated Press said, "Shocked by Breivik's lack of remorse for his massacre, Norwegians by and large have decided the best way to confront him is by demonstrating their commitment to everything he loathes."
Peace!
Thanks for the correction and link, Sadhanandhan. Wasn't it a great moment?
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