65 Years in Prison for a Poem

Poetic Justice (This is the translation from Saw Wai's Burmese poem entitled 14th February)

Aaron Beck, the psychiatrist, said

Only if you know how to suffer painfully 

Only if you are crazy – crazy

Can you appreciate a great work of Art

Dear little photomodel who makes me dizzy

They say it is a broken liver disease, a great and terrible one
[note: broken heart in Burmese is usually expressed as a broken liver]

Millions of those who know how to love 

Laugh and clap those gold-gilded hands

Saw Wai, Published January 10, 2008 (The bold words describe Gen Than Shwe as a power-crazy madman)

I am sorry that I missed this when it came out a year ago. This young Burmese poet has been sentenced to 65 years in prison for his poem. Please read the full article at the link below.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/asia/article5129509.ece