The Saffron Curtain Opens: Hope and Change in Burma
by Gregg Chadwick Gregg Chadwick Road to Mandalay 40"x30" oil on linen 2011 “For decades Americans have been deeply concerned about the denial of basic human rights for the Burmese people. The persecution of democratic reformers, the brutality shown toward ethnic minorities and the concentration of power in the hands of a few military leaders has challenged our conscience and isolated Burma from the United States and much of the world. After years of darkness, we’ve seen flickers of progress in these last several weeks as the president and Parliament in Myanmar, which is also known as Burma, have taken steps toward reform. Of course there’s far more to be done." -President Barack Obama, November 2011 (Statement on Burma delivered at the 2011 Pacific Rim Meeting in Bali, Indonesia) Four years after the Saffron Revolution in Burma, enough progress towards a free Burma has been made that President Barack Obama is sending Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on a tr...