I very rarely get "off topic" here to talk about anything not travel-related, but there’s a first time for everything. I tend to believe that you don’t change the world from the top of a soapbox; you change it by treating those around you with respect, an open heart, and a lot of patience (for me, that last one is the hard part). But as someone who practically lives in "cyberspace", I thought I should comment on why I’m not green.

Just to be clear, I’m not talking about global warming, I’m talking about the other big "green" issue of the day: Iran. The election turmoil in Iran has become the cause célèbre of cyberspace, or more specifically, the "Twitterverse", where people have been turning their profile pictures green or adding green ribbons to them in support of the people of Iran. But you’ll note that my picture remains uncolored and unadorned.

Now, I don’t dispute that there was certainly something very fishy about this election, and I believe the Iranian people have a right to question and peacefully protest something that smells as bad as a shrimp boat with a full hold. The fact that the situation evolved and continues to develop through the use of modern technology certainly means that no matter what happens, the 2009 Iran election aftermath will go down as the first "Internet revolution".

However, there does seem to be some question as to whether the actual end result would be any different without the funny business. Furthermore, you don’t have to read much about the opposition to conclude that Iran probably wouldn’t be any ‘nicer’ where the West was concerned if one of the other candidates had won. But my decision not get on the green bandwagon goes beyond these doubts.

The question for me is, why is Iran so important? Granted there’s a certain geo-political significance to what happens in Iran, but does it really warrant such exclusive attention? What about all the other people in all the other countries denied the right to determine their own futures? For example, there’s another election that hasn’t had much attention these days. There’s no question that Aung San Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy (NLD) won the elections in Burma in 1990, but the generals who run the country – and proved their ineptitude by holding the elections in the first place – refused to recognize the will of the people, and have kept Suu Kyi under house arrest for much of the 19 years since then. Now, she’s on trial for "allowing" someone break into her prison-home. There have been a few outcries about this, but the incident seems to have been quickly forgotten and Suu Kyi is still in jail.

A few days ago, two NLD supporters were sentenced to 18 months in prison. Their crime? They prayed for Aung San Suu Kyi. The generals have now decided that simply praying for anyone they don’t like is an "insult to religion" and punishable by imprisonment. This was reported by a few media outlets, but quickly forgotten. No outrage at the lack of religious freedom, nothing.

Do the people of Burma not deserve our support because they’re too poor to buy iPhones and don’t have ready access to the Internet? I’m not trying to convince you that Burma is more important that Iran. They’re both causes worthy of our attention. But it seems too easy to focus on just the one issue everyone else is focused on, and that’s how the Burmas, Darfurs and Tibets of the world get forgotten.

So, even though some people say I look good in green, my profile picture is going to remain the same old natural color it’s always been.

Now it’s time to get off my soapbox and start packing. I’ve got a plane to Manila to catch.

Posted by michael under Events

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