Free Burma.

Dear friends, Our emergency petition to stop the crackdown on peaceful protesters in Burma is exploding, with nearly 500,000 signers from every nation of the world. But the situation in Burma remains desperate, with reports of hundreds of monks being massacred and tortured. Burma's rulers have also killed and expelled international journalists, cutting off global media coverage of their cruelty.

China is still the key - the country with the most power to halt the Burmese generals' reign of terror. We're delivering our message this week with a massive ad campaign in major newspapers, beginning with a full page ad in the Financial Times worldwide tomorrow, and in the South China Morning Post on Thursday. The strength of the ad comes from the number of petition signers listed – can we reach our goal of 1 million signatures this week?

The link to sign the petition and view the ad is below, forward this email to all your friends and family! China continues to provide key economic and military support to Burma's dictatorship, but it has been openly critical of the crackdown.

Now we need the government to match words with actions. Our ad paints a powerful moment of choice for China in its relationship with the world – will it be a responsible and respected member of the global community, or will it be associated with tyranny and oppression? People power, on the streets of Burma, and around the world, can triumph over tyranny. Our strength is in our numbers, spread the word!

With hope and determination, Ricken, Paul, Ben, Graziela, Pascal, Galit and the whole Avaaz team. For the best local reporting on the situation in Burma, try these links [1 and 2].