This 25-year-old Kachin protester in Myitkyina hoped to study abroad this year, but now his priority is to protest the coup. He wants all Myanmar’s ethnic groups to work in solidarity - and he calls on Aung San Suu Kyi’s party to do more to reach out to the country’s minorities.
When I decided to take part in the protests, I knew that I might be arrested and tortured by the fascist police and Tatmadaw (army). I’m told I am now on the watch list. I am a human. I am afraid. But it is nothing when compared to the suffering of the IDPs (Internal Displaced Persons) who had to flee their homes, the children who lost their parents, the ones who have been victimized by the Tatmadaw for many years So, although it is a dark rough journey, I have to continue.
I don’t want to be a bystander or stay silent when people are suffering, or when they have witnessed an act of injustice by the Burmese military, the so-called Tatmadaw. It doesn’t matter whether they come from the same ethnic background as me or not, I would like to express my solidarity with them. I like to side with the oppressed.
And I want to end the dictatorship anyway. At this moment, all the diverse citizens of Burma are united and strongly against the military dictatorship, so this makes me really motivated to join in.
A lot of innocent people have been detained since the coup. At night police try to kidnap activists and government staff who are taking part in the CDM (civil disobedience movement).
The oppression of citizens has also come through unjust laws like the draft Cyber Security Law, which threatens people’s security in online social platforms, the enforcement of section 144 banning gatherings of more than five people, and amendments to the colonial-era Penal Code allow police to arrest anyone without a warrant.
I joined this mass protest movement because I also want to express my personal political demands for the good of the people and the country. These are to abolish the 2008 constitution, which legitimizes military junta rule and only provides pseudo-democracy, and to establish a Federal Union through a new constitution drawn up with democratic principles.
Many Bamars (Myanmar’s ethnic majority, which dominates both the military and Aung San Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy party) used to avoid using these terms because they see them as political and are not familiar with them. This might be seen as a result of the failure of the ruling NLD party to create and reinforce the federal foundations for the nation in the past. Now, through these protests, this topic is being increasingly discussed. If these two demands are not met, it would be easy for a military coup or dictatorship to happen again in the future.
For Kachins, there are two big concerns about the mass protest movement.
The first one is that similar to other ethnic communities, many Kachin worry this general strike is for the interest of a single party or person. They hope this moment can bring us real, positive political change - not just the release of the leaders of a party and then reconcile with the military. But sadly, there is still a long way to go.
The second one is a lack of trust between the Kachin and the majority Bamars. Many Kachins still feel the Bamars were silent and failed to side with them when they needed help the most, because of Tatmadaw oppression that has happened since the army resumed fighting with the Kachin Independence Army. Some Kachins think the tyranny of the majority has threatened their safety. As a result, they refuse to join the mass protest movement. This shows that the NLD should make reconciliation and forming alliances with ethnic communities a priority.
My belief is there is no need to add the label Kachin, Bamar or whoever when we are talking about being oppressed by dictatorship. That’s why I am working with some of my friends from other ethnic backgrounds for the protest and the CDM.
2020 was a tough year just because of COVID-19 and I was hoping for a better year in 2021. I planned to study abroad, but suddenly this tragedy happened and my entire plan had to be abandoned.
But I’ve been trying to reject dictatorship for my entire life, so now my priority is to end it.
