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Many of us take physical security for granted because we live in a country governed by the rule of law. If we are subjected to abuse, it is an aberration with a corresponding legal remedy. The people of Burma have no such luxury. The current military regime, the State Peace and Development Council, wages a constant war on its citizens to maintain power and control. Oppression and repression are the two prongs of the regime's philosophy of governance and violence is their instrument. Those who do not practice blind obedience are subjected to physical abuse, while even those who are compliant are subjected to a daily barrage of psychological abuse. The Burmese army has sustained a constant climate of fear for years by undertaking a regular program of physical assault, torture, extrajudicial execution, and rape. Thousands of incidents have been documented by credible nongovernmental organizations working in the region and governments have issued reports decrying the human rights abuses the Burmese people endure. Nonetheless, the military regime categorically denies these reports and claims that human rights abuses are nonexistent. According to the State Peace and Development Council, state-sponsored torture, murder, disembowelment, and rape do not happen in Burma. Look at these pictures and decide for yourself…