Twenty years ago, millions of Burmese took to the streets to defy the dictatorial government of General Ne Win. This year marks the 20th anniversary of Burma's democracy uprising. The uprising is known as the four 8s, or 8/8/88, because student activists called for a nationwide uprising on August 8, 1988.
The number 8 brought bloodshed, tears and hope for democratic change in Burma. The irony now is that the Beijing Olympics will begin on Aug 8, 2008.
There have been calls for a boycott against the Beijing Olympics ever since the bloody crackdown in September in Burma. But why target China?
The connection is simply that many people feel Burma is China's client state _ Beijing has been Rangoon's political consultant. Besides, China is a main source of diplomatic, military and economic support that has prolonged the repressive rule in Burma. Beijing has been a good friend of the repressive regime in Burma _ China repeatedly vetoed Burma resolutions at the United Nations Security Council.
After the bloody crackdown in September, Beijing sent a number of mixed signals to the international community.
First, China asked the junta to work toward national reconciliation and democratisation. Beijing urged the international community to engage the regime and not to use sanctions to pressure the junta to change. The Chinese also played a positive role in encouraging the regime to issue a visa to UN Special Envoy Ibrahim Gambari to enter Burma.
Since the crackdown, Burma has twice dispatched envoys to Beijing to give special briefings on its ''internal affairs.'' China's support for the regime has been consistent. Critics say China's policy on Burma is designed to preserve the regime.
Aside from political backing, Beijing continues to provide military aid, economic assistance and soft loans to the junta. China now has more than 700 development projects under way in Burma, including building roads, dams and factories.
In return, Burma sells gas and natural resources to China and provides overland routes to access the Indian Ocean. Diplomatically, it also promotes the one-China policy.
But Burma's internal troubles won't go away easily, and they are on China's doorstep. The Chinese are rightly worried about bad publicity surrounding the Olympics Games in Beijing.
The world will be focusing on China, and the buildup to the Olympics could create bad press and calls for a boycott of the Olympics. The Chinese leaders are nervous.
Outside of China, bad Olympic publicity increased when American actress Mia Farrow criticised Beijing for contributing to the atrocities in Darfur through its economic deals with the Sudanese government, which human rights activists say is committing genocide. In a Wall Street Journal article, Ms Farrow said China was getting ready to hold a ''Genocide Olympics''.
Film director Steven Spielberg also joined the protest. He recently said in a statement: ''Sudan's government bears the bulk of the responsibility for these ongoing crimes, but the international community, and particularly China, should be doing more.''
On Burma, Beijing has gone on the defensive, saying sports and politics should be separated.
Liu Jingmin, the vice mayor of Beijing and vice president of the Beijing Olympics organising committee, said it was unfair to link China's policies on Burma to boycotts.
''I believe that any political issue or issues that have nothing to do with the Olympics should not be linked with the Olympic Games,'' he told correspondents in Beijing late last year.
''The Chinese government has played a constructive and responsible part in the Myanmar issue,'' Mr Liu said. ''The constructive role by China has been recognised by all. I think the attempt to use this issue as an excuse to boycott the Beijing Olympics is both inappropriate and unpopular.''
In any case, the boycott campaign will grow as Beijing's diplomatic and military support for the repressive junta in Burma has remained unchanged.
Indeed, the anti-junta campaigns planned for the Beijing Olympics are starting to gather momentum. In the near future, foreign and Burmese activists will stage demonstrations and issue calls for the Chinese government to use its influence to pressure the generals to engage in serious political reform.
The campaign, known as 808, has called on China to:
Endorse a UN Security Council resolution that would impose a global arms embargo and visa ban on Burma's generals;
Publicly call for the release of all political prisoners in Burma and an end to attacks in eastern Burma; and
Pressure Burma's generals to begin a genuine dialogue with the democracy movement led by Aung San Suu Kyi, and Burma's ethnic groups.
Campaign activists insisted theirs was not a boycott campaign but an attempt to seek to engage the Olympic movement, including China. Campaign activists said they stood in solidarity with the athletes and their fans, and with the fundamental principles of peace and human dignity upon which the Olympic movement was built.
But it would not be surprising to see ''Free Burma'' leaflets and ''Free Suu Kyi'' banners unfurl, starting August 8. The protests will occur, if not in China.
In Burma, on the day when the Beijing Olympics begins, many Burmese activists and monks who have been imprisoned, will be commemorating the 20th anniversary of 8/8/88.
Burmese refugees and internally displaced people hiding in the jungles from the junta's soldiers _ who are equipped with Chinese-made automatic rifles, trucks and jet fighters _ understand why Ms Farrow called for a boycott of the ''Genocide Olympics''.
The Games' inaugural ceremony on August 8, 2008 symbolises the heavy price the Burmese people have paid at the hands of a repressive dictatorship.