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oday, Aug. 8 is the 21st anniversary of the 1998 Popular Uprising in Myanmar. It began as students protested about corrupt government and economic mismanagement in Rangoon but spread throughout the country.

The students were joined in their protests by people from all walks of life - saffron-robed monks, teachers, young children, housewives and doctors. A general strike took place on Aug. 8, 1988, an auspicious date. But Myanmar's first popular uprising was put down the next month in the most bloody and ruthless manner.

A brutal repression of the people that has continued to this day, and which we last witnessed in the beating and killing of monks and civilians in November 2008.

It was 8888 that brought Aung Sang Suu Kyi (ASSK) to the forefront of the struggle for democracy, freedom and civil liberties. ASSK is the best known of Myanmar's political prisoners and she is the Myanmarese people's beacon of hope. But she is currently subject to a political show trial and faces the prospect of a prison sentence on Aug. 11 - a date the regime have set to avoid the anniversary of 1998, and because the Senior General believes 11 is his lucky number. Relying on numbers, lucky or otherwise, is a poor substitute for a clear strategic choice of an inclusive democracy.

ASSK's plight also highlights the appalling plight of the over 2100 other political prisoners.

Like ASSK, their stories are heart-rending. They are people with families from whom they are separated. Many of them are sentenced for decades, two from minority ethnic groups have been sentenced to over 100 years each. The regime wants to ensure its critics die in prison. They are people from different ethnic backgrounds and walks of life - Shan, Mon, Burman, lawyers, artists, activists, MPs, a comedian. They are talented people with professional qualifications. Their incarceration demonstrates how much human potential goes unrealized in Myanmar. Their diversity demonstrates that the regime does not discriminate - all dissent in any form is brutally crushed.

What these political prisoners have in common with each other, and what the regime has against them, is an unwavering commitment to peace and national reconciliation.

On the anniversary of 8888, I want to pay tribute to all Myanmar's political prisoners. Their courage and resilience in the face of the abuse of their fundamental human rights is humbling. I also want to repeat the international community's call to the Myanmarese regime to release unconditionally all political prisoners, and commit to a genuine and inclusive process of dialogue and national reconciliation. Until they do so, future elections, such as those they plan for 2010 will have absolutely no legitimacy.