Insight Myanmar

Episode #139: After Bhikkhuni Vimala (they/their) learned about military coup in Myanmar, they wanted to find a way to express their feelings against it. They ultimately landed on the idea of encouraging their monastic friends abroad to take a picture with their alms bowl overturned, since Burmese monastics would likely face arrest and torture for making such a statement. “Even just a simple action like turning over the alms bowl… could get you in prisons or even killed” they explain. An overturned alms symbolizes a monk or nun’s disagreement with the actions of a group of lay supports who have done something that egregiously broke their precepts.Their campaign received an immediate if unexpected boost from such noted monastics as Bhikkhu Analayo and Bhikkhu Bodhi, who immediately sent in images of themselves with overturned alms bowls, and many more followed. Speaking on the subject of Engaged Buddhism, Bhikkhuni Vimala feels first and foremost, that it is essential for the practitioner to continue gaining inner wisdom through insight practice. “You have to find the truth within yourself,” they say. “But while doing so, you notice greater compassion for other people! This is what's often called ‘compassion in action.’” Bhikkhuni Vimala continues, “I think it's really important to help our fellow people in Myanmar. Because how can [people] sit quietly on a cushion and meditate, and pretend that all these things are not going on?... I think it is very important to help people to come to a place where they can practice the Buddhist teachings, and make sure that as Buddha's teachings also live on.”

Episode #138: “Almost everything was propaganda,” Paing comments, reflecting on his childhood growing up in Yangon. His release came in the form of artistic expression through music, largely influenced by Western bands and singers. He describes his songs as being gloomy and melancholic, which also characterizes his feelings about the recent, turbulent events in his country. Recently, however, Paing has been unable to write new music, nor even play his old tracks, because he is still recovering from the trauma of what he witnessed soon after the coup broke in Hlaing Thayar, his hometown. March 15, 2021, Paing watched from his rooftop balcony, as the military brutally assault protesters. Powerless, he saw people falling from injuries and others being killed outright, a memory which he feels has scarred him for life.Paing has been disappointed by both the lackluster international support as well as the leadership of the NUG. With diplomacy failing, he hopes that resistance fighters having better access to weapons can also help. However, as someone who still believes in the principles of non-violence, he is conflicted on this issue, especially as he realizes that a post-Tatmadaw world must include those former soldiers. “You can’t kill everyone that opposes any new idea,” he notes. “You have to see things on a human level, instead of just using guns.”Paing knows the way forward will not be easy. “Again, I'm a pessimist,” he says, laughing. “So I think everything that can go wrong, will go wrong. But the worst thing that could happen is the military winning.”

Episode #137: A lifelong Czech diplomat and currently Ambassador to Austria, Jiří Šitler talks about his career and the interesting ties between his country and Myanmar.He first official task was to negotiate terms for German compensation of Czech citizens who had been victims of forced labor and Nazi war crimes. After this, he was given the Ambassadorship to Thailand. This led to further ambassadorships in Laos, and Cambodia, and eventually the post of Director for Asia in the Czech Foreign Ministry.Šitler describes how Czech President President Havel was sympathetic to the growing Burmese aspirations for democracy. Havel helped get Aung San Suu Kyi nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize. Their efforts were successful, and she and Havel continued their correspondence until Havel’s death in 2011.In May 2001, Šitler was appointed the Czech Ambassador to Myanmar. Because the Czech mission was so explicitly focused on human rights and democracy, the military regime was openly hostile at times. After Šitler left Myanmar in 2005, he stayed actively involved in the country.Stressing that he is speaking personally and not in any official capacity, Šitler feels there is a very compelling case for providing weapons to the resistance. He has also been heartened by the solidarity he has seen among democracy activists, even as he’s been horrified by the level of violence the military has used against its own people.Šitler is uniquely well-positioned to analyze the road to reconciliation in a post-Tatmadaw Myanmar. He thinks that military commanders who massacre civilian population shouldn't be pardoned. “But at the same time, you need to move forward somehow. So it's all always a question of measure, right?”  Although Šitler has traveled the world through his role as diplomat, his experiences in Myanmar stand out above all else. “This incredible commitment to the cause of freedom and democracy where people are risking so much, and still fighting and risking their lives, spending decades in prison… It was like the thoughts and approach of Václav Havel but in another part of the world.”

Episode #136: “I usually do what I want,” Nyein admits openly. Somewhat unusual for a woman in traditional Burmese culture, it is an attitude Nyein cultivated during the democratic transition period of the 2010s. Since the coup, she has become quite possibly the country’s only female photojournalist, one who has captured some of the most violent examples of military oppression. However, she has never been able to quite escape from the confining limitations of gender discrimination still plaguing her culture.When the coup was launched, Nyein was in the capital of Nay Pyi Daw, and came upon a tank parked on a street. She snapped a photograph of it which became an important image in visually confirming the military’s actions that day even as the generals were trying to downplay the military’s presence in the city.Back in Yangon, Nyein documented the non-violent protests that were growing in size. And although the protests were dangerous for everyone, besides standing out as a female photojournalist, her dedication to her profession made it extra risky because when the police began to crack down, she often chose to stay behind doing her job until the last possible moment.But her terrifying experience on March 14th, 2021, in Hlaing Thayar changed everything. She was trapped among the protesters when the military suddenly opened fire, and Nyein saw bodies falling all around her. Eventually she managed to find an apartment balcony where she hid while continuing to capture what was happening below.That experience led to a complete mental breakdown. She turned to meditation, aromatherapy, consulting with a psychologist, and ultimately had to take serious medication. Eventually, because of an increase police presence and her growing reputation as a female photojournalist, she no longer felt safe staying at her home and began changing where she slept every night.  Then one day, she sadly came to the realization that she needed to leave Myanmar. The day of her departure at the Yangon Airport was nerve-wracking, as she was convinced she was going to be apprehended and arrested before her flight took off. Fortunately, she managed to get out safely.Now in Thailand, Nyein’s determination to seek her own path is as resolute as ever. “If you're really interested in photography,” she says, “whether something about your gender, whether you're gay, you just have to have to follow your dreams.”

Episode #135: “We just felt like we knew Myanmar, and it didn't seem like a foreign place to us.” So says Tamara Edwards, currently the Center Teacher at Dhamma Pabha, a vipassana meditation center in the tradition of S.N. Goenka.A chance encounter led Tamara to her first course in 1990. The teachings stuck, and she became dedicated to the practice. Together she and her Dhamma partner, Jamie, sat and served courses. After taking two years away to earn a livelihood, they felt they needed to reorient their life back towards meditation. So in 2012 they enrolled in a 30-day course in Myanmar.They also traveled widely throughout the country, particularly those sites in the lineage of S.N. Goenka. Eventually, they found a sense of home and community at the Webu Sayadaw Monastery in Ingyinbin, which she describes as “the most peaceful place on Earth.”  After repeated extended visits to the monastery, Tamara came to feel she wanted to take a deeper plunge, and so decided to ordain as a nun there. Doing so opened up her practice as well as her interactions within the community in ways she never could have anticipated. Tamara later decided to don robes a second time, and following her return to lay life, she felt fulfilled in this particular aspiration.Tamara finds something ironic, and deeply tragic, about recalling these memories now. “I felt so helpless [when the coup started] that there was absolutely nothing we could do,” she notes. “But I couldn't turn away from it!” Eventually her obsession began unbalancing her mind, and so Tamara had to take steps to limit how much she was following the latest news, while still trying to be in touch with close friends and giving donations to nonprofits.  Her practice is also of great help during these difficult times.

Episode #134: Liv Gaborit, a Danish social scientist with a background in psychology, conducted a groundbreaking study about intensive vipassana meditation retreats offered in the tradition of S. N. Goenka in notorious, overcrowded, Insein prison.Gaborit was told a story about a high-level military figure who regretted his bloody actions in suppressing the 1988 democratic uprising. Seeking spiritual salvation, he traveled to India, where he took a course in the Goenka tradition and was determined to bring it back to the prison system in Myanmar.Gaborit’s study centered on the experience of hearing voices in solitary confinement versus during a meditation retreat. Solitary confinement can lead to a range of hallucinations and mental disorders; while during intensive meditation, seeing and hearing from invisible beings can be understood as a deepening practice. Another important factor that Gaborit points to is the presence of metta, or loving-kindness. When political prisoners hear voices on meditation courses, metta is in the environment and cushions the experience, while in solitary, it is quite a different story. For the political prisoners on the prison course, Gaborit says that the result of that positive energy was remarkable, while for the monk, the lack of being able to receive or practice metta no doubt contributed to his mental imbalance.What began as a research project has transformed into something far larger for Gaborit: her own life trajectory has been radically altered. After the coup, Gaborit left her position in academia to become a full-time activist, and co-founded Myanmar Action Group Denmark.

Episode #133: Zach Abuza, a professor at the National War College who shared his analysis of the Burmese military in our previous discussion, now turns his attention to the resistance movement.While initially the concern about the Peoples’ Defense Force [PDFs] was that they were well -intentioned yet poorly trained individuals going up against a ruthless and brutal military, much has changed since. Every one of the country’s 330 townships now boasts at least one PDF unit, and they have steadily increased their supply of materiel. The PDFs were created “bottom-up,” with people coming together organically for the purpose of self-defense. Thus, most PDFs are regional, largely funded by the population they have been set up to protect, and from whom they derive their sense of legitimacy. But this “horizontal network” creates organizational and coordination challenges much more challenging, and chain of command unwieldy.  The concern now is how to best manage them.To try and impose discipline across the resistance, the NUG has tried to extract at least some kind of nominal pledge from these groups that they fight solely for the purpose of resisting the military, with the eventual goal of creating a federal democracy. However, this has become somewhat more challenging by the fact that the NUG has almost nothing to offer these now semi-autonomously functioning units in return for their allegiance—neither funds, nor arms, nor strategic military advice, nor on-the-ground leadership. Whatever challenges remain in this regard, Abuza is amazed at the spirit and courage the PDFs have shown.Like many people, Abuza is keen to envision a post-Tatmadaw Myanmar, yet he is not optimistic by what he sees. “I could easily see the NUG winning the war and losing the peace, because they are unable to fulfill the aspirations of the EAOs and establish a true federal democracy.” Moreover, he wonders what would happen to these hundreds of PDF organizations throughout the country, which by that time will have become well-armed, effective fighting forces.

Episode #132: Zach Abuza, a columnist at Radio Free Asia and a professor at the National War College in Washington, DC, provides his analysis of the tactical and strategic situation facing the Tatmadaw nearly two years into their attempted coup.He debunks several theories regarding the Burmese military. One is the size of the Burmese military, which he believes is much smaller than is often assumed, and is now showing signs of strain. There is also an increasing number of defections, and Abuza estimates that around 15% of the Tatmadaw’s soldiers have been killed, wounded, or defected.In the past, the military relied on an urban Bamar population who could at worst be counted on to tacitly support their incursions into ethnic territories. Now, however, Abuza says, “The people are not being cowed into submission…it's got to drive Min Aung Hlaing and Soe Win absolutely batshit that the population continues to resist the military every day!” People with almost nothing still manage to give whatever they can to the People’s Defense Forces (PDFs), a clear sign of how determined they are to continue to sacrifice in hopes of seeing the military defeated once and for all.  In terms of the military’s resources, on the one hand, Abuza notes that helicopters are the biggest threat to the resistance efforts, and their munitions are produced in-country. However, Abuza has seen a decrease in the number of mortars being launched into villages, indicating that they are concerned about their depleting stocks.With all this in mind, Abuza feels it is critical for the PDFs to begin avoiding direct conflict in favor of “fighting the military's ability to wage war. They have to concentrate on the increasingly depleted logistics network.” His main concern is the resistance’s ability to sustain their efforts, since the Tatmadaw still benefits from relationships with China and Russia.

Episode #131: Mike Davis is CEO of Global Witness, an international NGO that seeks “justice for those disproportionately affected by the climate crisis: people in the global south, indigenous communities and communities of colour, women and younger generations.” It published two groundbreaking reports on Myanmar’s mining industry.One is Jade and Conflict, which shines a light on the dangers, corruption and environmental degradation of the lucrative jade mining industry in Kachin State, which is largely controlled by Chinese companies in collusion with Myanmar military elites. The other, Myanmar’s Poisoned Mountains, covers the mining of the rare earth metals dysprosium and terbium, which go into a variety of everyday electronics, and for which the demand will only be increasing. They had previously been mined in China, but the environmental cost of doing so was so extreme that even the Chinese government realized it was no longer viable. So, they outsourced their “filthy mining operation” to Myanmar, which also has reserves of these rare earth metals.Mike points out that while his organization supports the mission to seek alternatives to fossil fuels and locate more renewable energy sources, it must be done in a way which is equitable and environmentally conscious. Towards these ends, Global Witness is hoping that their advocacy can encourage countries to ban the import of products which source from this region, as well as to lobby companies to refuse to acquire them. “The renewable transition wants to buy greener products but they also want to see the companies that supply them controlling their production supply chains in a way which is in line with the high ethical standards which they purport to purport to abide by,” he says.And with the rampant logging also taking place in that same region, Davis paints the picture of a vast web of illegal operations that benefit only the very top elites, with local populations suffering and the overall environment being devastated in the process. It is a significant and extremely messy situation that adds a sense of increased gravity and immediacy to the already disastrous military coup.

Episode #130: Igor Blaževič experienced the chaos, violence and fear of the Bosnian War at a young age. Once the war ended, Igor wanted to support others who were suffering from the lack of freedom he had only just escaped from. With this in mind, Igor traveled to such hotspots as Kosovo, Chechnya, Cuba, Belarus, and eventually to Myanmar.This work led to a close friendship with Czech President Václav Havel, whose own country had recently emerged from a traumatic past. Havel’s participation at events that Igor sponsored ensured a wider visibility to their cause.In Myanmar, Igor found the oppression similar to what he had seen elsewhere. He stayed in the country for five years, working with former political prisoners and ethnic activists. These were the transition years, and despite the optimism brought by the new period of openness, Igor saw red flags from the start. He tried to explain that it was only a superficial democratic façade, but the situation only deteriorated when the Rohingya crisis hit. And as the crisis worsened, things began to play out in a way that was eerily familiar to Igor from his experience with communal violence in Bosnia.Igor saw how military intelligence was infiltrating and radicalizing parts of the Saṅgha, using the highly respected monastic clergy to advance its own fear tactics under the guise of Buddhism, spreading the poison of ethnocentrism and xenophobia. But he wasn’t heard, dismissed as a know-nothing foreigner. Even so, Igor was totally taken by surprise when the military coup was launched last year. However, he now found that diverse groups in Myanmar were united in facing a common enemy, and so he saw a chance for building solidarity that had not been possible before. To him the course is clear: recognize that the Tatmadaw is the common enemy, unite to destroy it, and then work together to build a better future after it is defeated.

Episode #129: Andrea Passeri and Hunter Marsten co-authored an article which looks at Myanmar’s quest for a non-aligned foreign policy, and that is the subject of this podcast discussion.In 2011-12, following many years of military rule, the Thein Sein administration moved quickly to gain both domestic and international legitimacy. It instituted economic and political reforms, allowing the NLD, who had boycotted the elections, back into the political mainstream.From the military junta’s previous negative-neutral foreign policy, the new government began shifting to a positive and active policy of non-alignment. There was a tangible feeling of openness and hope taking root. With Aung Sang Suu Kyi’s ascendence in the years that followed, this more outward-looking foreign policy continued; Passeri and Marsten consider this a high-water mark for Myanmar in terms of a policy of positive neutrality.However, things started to turn in 2016, when the Rohyinga crisis played out on a worldwide stage. As a result, sanctions once again began to be imposed on the country. Aung Sang Suu Kyi’s apologist stance towards the military turned off once-enthusiastic international supporters; foreign aid and investment dried up, and the country once again became more inward-looking. So as Myanmar’s international legitimacy dissolved, the pendulum began swinging back towards negative neutralism.The authors emphasize the role that self-reliance plays in the ability to successfully enact both positive non-alignment and negative neutralist policies. It is, in fact, quite a challenge for small countries like Myanmar either way, because they are most often not self-reliant enough to “go it alone.” So while Myanmar may never have fully realized a goal of positive non-alignment, it has never really been able to fully realize negative neutralism, either. Today, with few countries willing to countenance the Tatmadaw’s violent and repressive rule, Myanmar is a pariah nation internationally and has become increasingly aligned with the authoritarian Great Powers, China and Russia. However, Marsten remains optimistic about the future because he believes that the younger generation has learned the lessons it needs to have learned to ultimately gain power and realize those goals.

“The greatest tragedy of Myanmar as a country is that it gets the headline for a week or two, and then it generally gets buried, because so many other things are happening,” Matt Davis explains. With this in mind, Matt decided to head to Chin State, one of the regions where the conflict has been among the worst, and report on the resistance movement. His work ultimately resulted in a feature on Australia Broadcasting Corporation’s popular current affairs program, Foreign Correspondent.Matt was struck by how many ordinary young people from all walks of life had chosen to stand up to the military’s aggressions, no matter the risk or personal sacrifice. He recalls meeting a mother whose son had been injured attempting to disarm a landmine. When asking about her concern for her son in returning to the front, the mother was resolute that everyone must be willing to sacrifice, no matter what the risks.Yet while Matt is inspired to see how normal civilians have managed to effectively resist their own military, he is disheartened by the continued lack of support from beyond Myanmar’s borders. “I think it's a question that we should ask of our governments, and to be prepared to demand that they do more.” Compared to the Ukraine, so much less support has been shown to the Burmese people, and they can’t understand why they haven’t received even a small part of such sympathy. They have begun to ask, “What about us?”What Matt observed in Chin State is perhaps a microcosm of the wider movement now taking place across the country, and even outside, to support the emerging democracy movement. “There is only one goal now: that is to remove the military and restore democracy to the country of Myanmar. So that’s… what gives me hope that things might change. But it may still take some time, particularly if they're not supported by the international community.”

Episode #127: “I basically started meditating about eight years ago, and it's it changed my life completely,” Claire Thorp tells us.For years, Claire had been intrigued observing how her partner kept up a daily sitting and was curious to give it a try herself. Her initial course in the Burmese lineage of S.N. Goenka was very challenging for her. However, she felt sort of a “magnetic pull” to the tradition and returned to start sitting and serving.Some time later, Claire traveled to India for further meditation. She ended up visiting Jaipur, where she took a course in natural dyeing. This would eventually lead to the creation of her company, Sati Designs, which produces meditation cushions. The Pāḷi word “sati” means “mindfulness,” and that began to guide the company’s vision.Claire fell in love with the artisan community in Jaipur. Many of these artisans come from families who have been using traditional techniques for generations, and work right out of their homes. Through her connections, she located sources for every part of the production.Following her second Vipassanā course, she had made a strong resolution to visit Myanmar. From the moment she arrived in 2016, she felt a sense of warmth and inclusion. She took a course at Dhamma Joti, and was immediately struck by how serious her fellow Burmese yogis were, and how long they could sit with only minimal cushions and support. She made wonderful friendships in a short time, and was struck by the way supporting Dhamma is woven through the society.Claire has since been following the unfolding events in Myanmar with sadness, while trying to bring attention and support. Towards this end, she has generously offered a special two-week promotional period lasting from October 14th to the 28th, in which 20% from all sales at Sati Designs will be donated to Better Burma.

Episode #126: When Rose Metro sat down to write Have Fun In Burma, a novel set during the Rohingya crisis, she was already well aware that the country has long been viewed through an exotified, Orientalist lens. Being quite conscious of this past narrative, she wanted to draw attention to cultural conflict, using multiple perspectives. The protagonist, Adela Frost, is a politically progressive young woman. She interacts with diverse characters who represent common archetypes from the transition period in Myanmar. While this diverse cast of characters may well not communicate skillfully across cultures even in the best of times, their misunderstandings take on far more serious consequences, in a story built around the developing Rohingya crisis. Adela applies her values and perspective to the unfolding violence, unable to understand how the Burmese characters see the situation differently. Because they cannot even agree on a shared set of facts, let alone find a resolution, the tension mirrors the wildly divergent ways that the Rohingya crisis was covered by the media. Rose also brings the subject of meditation into her narrative. Adela is taught a Mahasi style practice by the abbot of the monastery. For Rose, it was important that the meditation part of Adela’s journey, and its role in the wider Burma experience, did not happen in isolation, but was integrated into everything else taking place both at the monastery and in society at large. “I think that's just the central tension. We have to have that balance of compassion and equanimity. That's so hard. How can you keep being open to feeling empathy for people when their suffering is so great? But also, how can you not just be like Adela and be like, ‘Okay, I'll fix it….’ If it has any chance of reducing suffering, either mine or someone else's, it's worth doing. I think that kind of humility is something that can take a long time to get to.”

Episode #125: Given the deteriorating and destabilizing situation in Myanmar, one might assume that experts in the fields of Burma Studies, along with Burmese language teachers, would be more important now than ever. Yet nonetheless, the University of London’s School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) has elected to terminate the post of Professor of Burmese.Burmese language instruction at SOAS dates back to 1917, when civil servants associated with Britain’s colonial administration studied Burmese. Yet the institution is now experiencing financial problems that can be traced back to Brexit, and Covid has only exacerbated the situation. As a result, Justin Watkins, who currently holds the position, was informed in the summer in 2020 that his position was at risk of being cut, and he was given two years to seek out funding to build an endowment. However, the military coup happened only months later, it became very difficult to ask for funding for his program that otherwise would probably go to supporting a country in such dire circumstances. Watkins has requested a two-year extension, but the post is set to expire this month.Watkins fears that at a time when it has been so difficult for the crisis in Myanmar to break into the international community’s consciousness, cutting his program would only serve to further relegate the country and its people to the background. Plus, SOAS is one of the few institutions in the world that still offers Burmese language study.Watkins points to the negative effect that decreased opportunities for Burmese language study will have on aid workers, diplomats, human rights activists, and others who can do far better work when they are able to speak in the local language.

Episode #124: Today’s guest, Guillaume de Langre, worked for several years in Naypyidaw as an adviser to the Myanmar Ministry of Electricity and Energy (MOEE), and explains the history of electrification in Myanmar.From the post-independence period through the 2000s, he describes how much of the country was dark. One reason is that Tatmadaw was never really interested in developing access to electricity to much of the country. It may seem strange that the military regime did not seek a more prosperous economy, which would have required a more efficient and widespread electricity grid. But de Langre explains how the generals followed a Soviet style plan of state-owned industries where actual productivity was never the goal.Then in 2000, providing access to electricity suddenly became a priority, and brought about a rapid transformation that greatly benefited the Burmese people and economy. However, usage rates went way up, straining the system in a new way.  De Langre notes that the government ended up spending more on energy subsidies than even on education, which ultimately led to sharp price hikes in 2019.  This led to exploring plans for alternative energy sources, like solar or imported power plants, several of which were in place on the eve of the coup. However, everything fell apart after the coup, as investors balked at what had become high-risk projects overnight.Sadly, de Langre also believes that even if the military is defeated, “it would still take years to fix the damage done to the energy sector by the coup… It will take years for companies to trust again and to lower their perception of risk.”

Episode #123: Lucine has been the liaison officer between France and Myanmar for decades. With this rich experience, she offers an insightful perspective on the workings and machinations of the hidden world of diplomats across multiple crises in Myanmar.Burma used to be viewed as a kind of remote backwater that few knew much about. But that all changed with the ’88 democratic uprising. Working with the European countries and the US, Lucine advocated for an immediate travel ban and economic restrictions on high level military figures. Surprisingly, she was never arrested, a mystery that eludes her to this day.Back then, Western countries were very sympathetic to Burma’s plight. But since Aung San Suu Kyi’s fateful decision to personally defend the Rohingya genocide at the IJC, that all changed. Lucine explains that Aung San Suu Kyi hoped her hard stand would both help her election chances and placate the military, making a coup less likely. However, not only did Aung San Suu Kyi single-handedly lose worldwide sympathy and support for her country’s democratic transition, the military ultimately launched a coup anyway.Away from Myanmar, Lucine describes the anxiety many Burmese exiles now have in not knowing if their respective ambassadors support the democracy movement, or are little more than spies for the junta. Even worse, the military has instructed its embassies not to issue new passports, leaving approximately 80,000 stateless Burmese in limbo.Lucine cannot understand how most of the international community has simply stood by and watched the suffering of the Myanmar people grow exponentially. “No sympathy, no empathy, I would say! They don't care how many people are killed in a day, even though we've been sharing news and we've been crying out in many ways around the world!”

Episode #122: Gil Fronsdal’s single visit to Myanmar came over three decades ago, but the impact of the trip on his spiritual life stays with him still.Initially practicing Zen, he went to Japan to deepen his practice, but he soon became disillusioned with the emphasis on ritual. He traveled on to Thailand, where he took a Mahasi course. Immediately impressed, he felt inspired go to the source of the teaching and seek further guidance under Sayadaw U Pandita, himself.When Gil did finally arrive in the country, he devoted himself to intensive meditation at the large Mahasi center in Yangon, including several months as an ordained bhikkhu. The experienced touched him “in some deep, emotional way.”However, studying under U Pandita was not easy. Gil knew a lot of the Westerners who burned out and developed psychological problems under U Pandita’s stern and exacting teaching about striving for attainment. But Gil’s Zen background helped temper the effect of this, while at the same he was fascinated with the attention to detail the Mahasi practice afforded. He began sitting in extended periods of bliss.In the context of Gil’s balanced and deeper practice space, Sayadaw U Pandita’s emphasis also resonated with him in a new, more concrete way, helping him realize how, in the “micro-moments” of his life, he was not so accepting as he believed himself to be. This eventually impacted his own teaching career, as Gil became increasingly conscious of not only presenting meditation as an aid to leading a balanced life, but also reminding his students about the potential of full liberation.Overall, that brief stay in the Golden Land continues to be a special memory for Gil. “Of the eight months I was there in the Mahasi center, I really felt like I was a guest of the country, and the whole culture. The whole country was hosting me and caring for me.”Following the talk, Gil requested that Insight Myanmar address his group, The Sati Center for Buddhist Studies. This talk will take place September 17 at 9.30 am, Pacific time. If you would like to join the discussion, you can register here.

Episode #121: While perhaps a strange choice for some, Steve Jarand and Kati Schweitzer elected to spend part of their honeymoon meditating in Myanmar. Both being practitioners in the vipassana tradition of S.N. Goenka—a Burmese citizen of Indian heritage who trained in a Burmese lineage—that 2016 trip was something of a spiritual homecoming for them.The visit broadened their horizons regarding their spiritual path. For example, Steve learned to appreciate Burmese Buddhist culture on its own terms through the realization that “it's much more rich and complex than just what I had known about the practice!” And from the start, Kati appreciated how interwoven the practice was in daily life throughout Myanmar. They also found much meaning while staying longer in monastic environments.Overall, there was much joy to remember from the trip, particularly the way they always found their Burmese friends quick to smile, and their amazing generosity. With the memory of that kindness in mind, Steve and Kati speak to the wider practitioner community about how important it is to support the people of Myanmar during these very dark days, since the military coup, and find a way to reciprocate.

Episode #120: On Thursday, August 25th, 2022, the accomplished artist and longtime activist, Htein Lin, was arrested along with his wife, Vicki Bowman. We had only just recently interviewed him, so hearing this news was doubly shocking.Htein Lin became was involved in the 1988 uprising in opposition to the military junta, and experienced guerilla warfare as a member of the revolutionary group, All Burma Students’ Democratic Front. While living in a reconnaissance camp along the Indian border, Htein Lin met an artist from Mandalay who became his mentor. Together they discussed art and painting techniques, and Htein Lin’s passion for art grew.Then in 1998, Htein Lin was arrested for nearly seven years when the letter of an old friend, a retired school teacher, was intercepted by the Tatmadaw. In prison, he continued to work as an artist, using objects found around the jail, such as pieces of glass, dismantled cigarette lighters, and syringes, etc. He even staged an art exhibition of this work for guards and prisoners.At one point, Htein Lin was transferred to Death Row. He and a poet friend were confined more than 23 hours per day with serious criminals, including at least two murderers. Yet his new neighbors offered up the one thing in their possession: their white, prison-issue sarongs as cloth upon which Htein Lin could continue to paint.Then just as suddenly, he was released. After returning to civil society, Htein Lin became increasingly involved in artists’ discussion groups and experimental performance art. He met and married his wife, Vicki Bowman, the former British ambassador to Burma.  Together, they sought and found meaningful spiritual community in Dhamma Dipa, a vipassana meditation center in the tradition of SN Goenka. This led to further awakening and integration of his life and art: “If you are living in the present without reacting, without anger, and [if you] share in anything negative, sharing with loving-kindness and compassion in you, you become a very beautiful piece of art.”May his equanimity be of support to Htein Lin in his recent re-arrest.

Episode #119: Erin Murphy has been involved in Asia issues since 2001, and Myanmar, in particular, since 2008. She relates all this in her recently released book, Burmese Haze. She contrasts the somewhat distorted, emotionally charged view of Myanmar held by American policy-makers during the transition period with the harsh, even brutal military reality in Myanmar that was lurking just under the surface. Murphy recalls the sheer callousness of the military government’s refusal to accept humanitarian aid in the aftermath of the horrific and devastating Cyclone Nargis in 2008. Regarding sanctions, for some in the American government the push for sanctions against the Tatmadaw has become almost a moral crusade. However, Murphy explains that the effect of any sanctions imposed on the regime will not be that onerous if other countries do not follow suit. As for any role that China might play, Murphy states, “I think one word that summarizes [the relationship between Myanmar and China] is ‘complicated’.” When asked to speculate about the motivations of Aung San Suu Kyi, Murphy says that we may never know exactly what she was planning. She believes that The Lady has had to walk a fine line, balancing priorities, and no one really knows what her internal calculus was. As for the Rohingya, it is but one of many decades-long, ethnic wars waged by the Burmese junta. Murphy says many in the international community should have seen it coming, but did nothing to stop it. Besides being an overall global failure, more recently it’s an instance of unfortunate timing, in which international attention got distracted by Myanmar’s nascent yet fragile democracy period. On a sobering but positive note, Murphy concludes by saying that none of the protests have been in vain. “These are lessons; I don't see them as failures. Did they succeed in getting a democracy? No. But did they succeed in getting their cause recognized by the world? People know about it. And that's important, laying the groundwork… What you do is you keep getting new generations of people interested and then they bring in their tools, and their thoughts and their experiences.”

Episode #118: Kyar Phyu returns to the Insight Myanmar Podcast to update listeners on how eventful the past number of months have been, in particular regarding her association with the CDM.Her activities came to the notice of military intelligence, and Kyar Phyu was forced to flee, taking refuge in a safe house for eight months. During that entire time, she only ventured outside twice, both times out of necessity: first when she contracted COVID, and then when her safe house became compromised, and she had to move to another. Eventually, Kyar Phyu realized it would only be a matter of time until she was captured if she stayed put. Eventually, she went to Thailand, ultimately settling in Mae Sot.To maintain her mental balance amid all the stress and challenges, she took up ānāpāna meditation, following the instructions of pyit-pyet (ဖြစ်ပျက်), or the arising and passing away of breath from the nostrils. “It made me be more compassionate to myself,” she says. “It made me more peaceful, so I can accept anything that happens.” Though Kyar Phyu also admits that balancing Buddhist meditation with a concerted effort to defeat an evil enemy is no easy to task.While Kyar Phyu still sees CDM as essential to the cause, she recognizes that it could not be sustained, financially or otherwise; many had to leave hiding and return to the office due to financial hardships, while many other workers were either pressured to return to work or arrested and found themselves in jail. She asserts that the People’s Defense Forces are the most important component of the movement now, more than the NUG.She also calls attention to the emerging woman soldier divisions, and is in awe of the brave, young Burmese females who are putting their lives on the line. This is no small thing in traditional Burmese society, with its heavily circumscribed gender roles.Finally, she remains confident that the SAC is facing defeat. “We are winning, but still, we have to be more systematic and have stronger communication. But still I feel we are in very good situation now.”

Episode #117: “The army believed democratic fighters were hiding in my center, so they moved very aggressively. They entered my meditation center! They shouted, ‘Hey, I will kill you. I will kill you!’ Their soldiers knocked in the door of the female kūtis. Oh God, everyone is very scared. Very afraid. They are shooting; they are firing in the air. But when they came to the female Dhamma Hall, they saw the female yogis are practicing in the Dhamma Hall. So, they are very surprised and shocked, and they see that this is a meditation center, and see we are practicing. So, they calm down their anger.”The first portion of this interview contains a blow-by-blow narrative about the direct and personal experience of war, as experienced from the confines of a silent meditation retreat at Kyun Pin monastery, a meditation center in the tradition of Sayadaw U Pandita. Myanmar’s military bombarded two neighboring villages with mortars and rockets for two days, and at one point barged into the meditation center itself. Calmly and in great detail, Sayadaw U Jatila relates the screaming, the burning of houses for days on end, and the purposeful destruction of animals and basic necessities for daily life. He describes soldiers who have lost their minds due to alcohol and drugs, and ordered by higher military officials to engage in brutal acts against their own people.He then goes to discuss a wide range of matters. U Jatila feels strongly that people from all ethnic and religious backgrounds in Myanmar should enjoy basic human rights of freedom and safety. He calls out the military for using scare tactics to promote a nationalist Buddhist agenda that encourages anti-Islam sentiments. He also recounts his past meetings with Aung San Suu Kyi, and discusses what he learned about her meditation practice. Finally, he touches upon the very sensitive topic of armed resistance, discussing how Burmese democracy activists can resist the military.

Episode #116: On July 7th, the official account of the European Union in Myanmar posted a two-minute video urging factories in conflict-torn Myanmar to re-open, charging that the factory shutdowns had driven former employees to poverty and even prostitution. In response, many charged that the EU was trying to manipulate Burmese voices to advocate for a policy that would benefit themselves but goes against the aspirations of the democracy movement. Today’s guest, Maung Maung, currently president of the Confederation of Trade Unions in Myanmar (CTUM), addresses this video, as well as labor’s role in the current revolution and the overall conditions for Myanmar’s workers.While Maung Maung does not dispute an accusation in the video that the closed factories harm ordinary Burmese workers, he believes it is hurting the regime more, and that is the current priority.Maung Maung also found the video highly offensive because it is quite chauvinistic and insulting for Western powers to try and “educate” the Burmese people on the dangers of local young women turning to prostitution.To make matters worse, the junta has picked up on the video and has begun to promote it as a way to normalize their brutal regime, meaning that, in effect, the EU has managed to provide the Tatmadaw with a key piece of propaganda to boost their rule.Yet, as hard as things are now in the country, Maung Maung is hopeful for the future. “We are winning. We want people to not just think like well, ‘The military is going to win again.’ No, it is not!”

Episode #115: Matthew Wells is a member of Amnesty International’s Crisis Response team specializing in human rights violations, and has spent years investigating the ongoing atrocities by the Tatmadaw. One of the patterns that has come up repeatedly in their group’s study has been the Burmese military’s targeting of civilian communities rather than armed opponents.One particular Tatmadaw tactic that stands out to Wells is its reliance on airstrikes. Heavy bombardment is effectively traumatizing an entire population, and many Burmese are terrified whenever they hear a loud sound now, however distant. This is likely not unintentional, but rather part of a concerted effort to frighten the population into submission and create further instability.Recently, Wells’ group published a report documenting war crimes and displacement in eastern Myanmar. In some of these cases, villages were bombarded for days and nights without end, even though there were no lawful targets in the area. To make matters even worse, the military has launched assaults on IDP camps as well, so the people simply have nowhere to go now. He describes soldiers having become little more than bands of marauders that rape, pillage, steal, and burn their way through the Burmese countryside.The military has been doing everything it can to limit news of its atrocities, shutting off electricity and internet access, and punishing journalists and others. In spite of these obstacles, Amnesty’s work in uncovering the true story has been nothing short of miraculous. Through their examination of satellite imagery and a confidential in-country network, they have managed to document the ongoing reign of terror.Still, Wells is not satisfied that their work is achieving its desired outcome because of a lack of international response. And he is even less hopeful about the damage being done to the country’s essential infrastructure: a collapsed economy, a decimated health care system, long-term food insecurity, and disrupted education. These structural problems are exacerbated by the real challenge of effectively getting humanitarian aid into the country.Wells calls on listeners to do what they can to continue to keep Myanmar in the news and hold their local representatives accountable. “It's on all of us to try to bring more attention to the situation here and to make sure that our governments wherever we are in the world are likewise putting priority on this.” He also encourages people to continue donating to nonprofits that are providing aid.

Episode #114: Growing up in the Bay Area, raised by parents who followed the Vietnamese meditation master Thich Nhat Hanh, Derek Pyle was no stranger to Buddhist theory and practice. While some Western practitioners separate their formal meditation practice from their experience of everyday life, Derek has always found value in integrating them, and has looked for inspiration from formal sitting practice to sutta study to undertaking projects as an Engaged Buddhist.One of his first projects was in 2017, when the Tatmadaw ramped up their aggression against the Rohingya. Derek reached out to Alan Senauke, and the they worked on a petition and fundraising campaign in support of the Rohingya.Beyond this, Derek has been looking for ways that local Saṅghas can engage in the world in accordance with their values. This is especially important regarding the present situation in Myanmar. “[Given] the incredible violence being perpetuated by the military in Myanmar, I think it would be really interesting for Buddhist communities… to be thinking about… ‘What are the different approaches we could take to really think about how we might be able to intervene in a way that actually reduces violence?‘”Citing Aric McBay’s Full Spectrum Resistance, Derek has come to believe that “resistance movements are more effective if there is an amount of armed resistance, but that can't be the main tactic used.” This exploration has led to even deeper soul-searching on his own part, in hopes of finding answers to difficult questions such as whether non-violence is actually a viable method of resisting oppression.Derek calls out not only Buddhist organizations in the West for not doing enough to support the Myanmar resistance, but more generally, liberal democracy. He asserts that while it may stake out principled positions in favor of progressive change in theory, it may be preventing meaningful change in practice. He takes particular issue with a stance of “neutrality” towards oppression and violence, noting that it often means—in reality—tacitly supporting the side that perpetuates injustice.Derek continues to support the Burmese people. “I find it heartbreaking and terrifying that this is a reality people have to live in, and also incredibly inspiring that people are so courageous, and creative and rambunctious in the midst of all of that. It's really powerful.”

Episode #113: “I often asked myself how people can really have the presence of mind to sit down and write amidst such extraordinarily difficult circumstances, to be able to reflect on the kinds of traumas that that they're experiencing.”So says Brian Haman, who, along with ko ko thett, is the co-editor of “Picking Off New Shoots Will Not Stop the Spring: Witness poems and essays from Burma/Myanmar (1988-2021),” the first published literary work to come out of Myanmar since the military coup. It is a stunning collection of poetry and prose, bringing profound and heart-wrenching perspectives from a variety of Burmese people impacted by the ongoing conflict.Many of their selections for the anthology unflinchingly present the harsh reality of that violence, fear, despair, loss, and grief. What readers experience is a rawness of emotion and expression that overwhelms the many aspects of the coup and its aftermath that have been somewhat clinically reported on in the past year and a half in the mainstream media.Despite the extreme forms of violence being waged on innocent civilians, Brian was in awe of the power they displayed when they fought back with their voices. This was a force that the regime was equally aware of, and in fact anxious about, as they went to great lengths to go after those creative leaders whose art, music, poetry, or words were motivating the resistance movement.And even amid all the brutality and suffering, Brian still senses an underlying spirit that the Burmese people, that they believe they will eventually triumph. “For all the suffering and for all of the loss and trauma from the death and torture and things like that, nevertheless there is a spirit of optimism… [T]here is this kind of indomitable spring that that just doesn't seem to be able to be suppressed or repressed.”

Episode #112: Simon traces the arc of his Chin homeland’s history and politics from the mists of history to the present-day conflict.Chin State is the poorest part of Myanmar, which suffers from an lack of developed infrastructure. Due to the lack of available medical care, Simon decided the best way he could serve his community was by becoming a doctor.He explains how perhaps Chin State’s root problem now is poor access to education. There are just a small number of woefully supplied schools several days of walking away for many villagers. And those fortunate enough to attend school often carry painful memories of the oppressive “Burmanization” of the curriculum, where Chin students were required to speak the Burmese language at school, and though largely Christian, were forced to memorize and recite Buddhist suttas. Simon notes the enormous popular support for resisting the coup in Chin State after the military forcibly took power. Massive street protests erupted all over the province. Chin state also boasted the highest percentage of employees who joined CDM. The Tatmadaw responded with a swift and utter brutality that drove many Chin to ethnic camps to join the armed resistance. The Burmese military, in turn, responded with even more vicious ground attacks and airstrikes, which sent residents of entire towns fleeing on foot for their lives, many across the Indian border in Mizoram.“If we can wipe out, from the face of Myanmar, this military in the future, then all the Myanmar people will be joyful, peaceful and prosperous.”

Episode #111: Emerging from under decades of harsh censorship, local journalism and investigative reporting made great strides in Myanmar during the democratic transition in the 2010s. But all that was wiped out in a single blow when the military grabbed power. They began revoking licenses, arresting journalists, and torturing and even killing some in prison, posing a real risk to anyone trying to document the current conflict, and forcing many to go underground.This is the backdrop to the formation of the media collective Visual Rebellion, a platform for Burmese photographers, filmmakers and artists to display their work as an act of resistance against the military government. Two of the collective’s members appear as guests on this episode.Laure, a French journalist based in Bangkok, had provided media trainings in Myanmar prior to the pandemic. As the situation grew increasingly dire following the military coup, Laure reached out through her network to former participants from her trainings, and soon learned the difficulties they were operating under. This helped give rise to Visual Rebellion.Visual Rebellion team members currently reporting from Myanmar have all assumed code names for their safety, and attended cybersecurity training. Any material they are able to smuggle out of the country—often accomplished at enormous risk to their personal safety—is immediately posted and distributed by Laure and her colleagues.Next, Khant Pyae Kyaw discusses his role as a documentarian for the Visual Rebellion team. When the coup hit, Khant Pyae Kyaw was out on the streets covering the weeks of nonviolent demonstrations. But one day he witnessed the killing of his friend and other protesters, which shook him to his core. He has since faced other dangers in his reporting, including being accused of being a PDF soldier, and interrogated. Still, with the help of the resources that the Visual Rebellion team is providing, he persists in doing all he can to tell the story of what continues to happen in Myanmar.

Episode #110: Ariya Baumann’s spiritual journey began far away from the tropical surroundings of the Golden Land. She grew in a small town in Switzerland, among the snowy Alps. Raised in a Christian home, she began to ask herself existential questions about God. As she began to investigate possible answers, she came across some writings on Buddhism, and was immediately intrigued by the promise of meditation.Ariya tried on her own for a while, but wanted to take a more formal retreat, so she took off on a trip around the world. In Thailand, she joined a course at Wat Suan Mokkh, and then several Tibetan retreats in India. Two years later, she fell in love with an Australian man, and ended up following him back to his country, where she learned about an upcoming visit from Chan Myay Yeiktha Sayadaw U Janaka, a teacher in the Mahasi tradition. U Janaka encouraged Ariya to slow down her movements, so as to be able to observe every moment of mental and physical action. She found the results “stunning.” She had found her way.It was 1992, and very hard for foreigners to get visas for extended periods in Myanmar, but U Janaka managed to get her a six-month visa. She decided to ordain temporarily as a nun. But as months stretched into years, Ariya stayed in robes. She was amazed by what she experienced. “With the meditation, mindfulness, and concentration, and looking carefully, just like becoming an electronic microscope, we see more and more deeply into the true nature of this body of physical processes.”Over time, she picked up the Burmese language, which eventually led to her role as translator for Chan Myay Myaing Sayadaw U Indaka. She moved from the Yangon branch to the Hmawbi monastery, where longer meditation retreats were held, and became the foreign manager, and eventually, a teacher there. Her teaching career only grew from here. Alongside Daw Viranani and Chan Myay Myaing Sayadaw, she began offering intensive mettā retreats in English. Before COVID, the course was so popular that yogis would fly from all over the world to attend, and it was usually filled just days after registration opened.Today, Ariya is heartbroken about the current coup. “My heart is bleeding, and I'm so sad about what is happening in Myanmar right now,” she says. But as the devastation from the conflict continue to wreak havoc in the country, Ariya comes back to how much gratitude she has for the priceless spiritual lessons she learned there. “The fact that in Burma, the practice of meditation is respected and understood as something very precious. This makes Burma so special!... I find many people who have come to Burma have felt the same.”

Stephen Campbell has spent the last twelve years studying labor movements in Myanmar and other Southeast Asian countries. Going back and forth across the history of the country’s labor movement, he describes something of a convoluted legacy of the role of labor in Myanmar, leading through the transition period and into the coup.1988 was a watershed year for labor in Myanmar, according to Campbell. After being declared illegal in the 1962 coup, informal labor unions began to spring up, initiated by workers unhappy with the military regime. But when the new regime took over following the failure of the democratic revolution, many labor leaders soon found themselves behind barsSmall changes finally came under the Thein Sein administration in 2011, when workers were allowed to unionize legally. Then the following year, tripartite collective bargaining was permitted by workers. But those gains are diminished somewhat because Burmese laborers are more dependent than ever on their wages, due to large-scale military- and corporate-land grabs throughout much of the countryside, which stripped countless poor families of their homes—and for many, thus their livelihoods—without any legal recourse. And overall, working conditions remained deplorable, with low pay, long hours, and unsafe conditions.Just six days after the military took power in 2021, 4,000 factory women, mostly young women, took to the streets in downtown Yangon. Campbell says that the organizing that took place in the initial days following the coup by labor was a template for the even larger, more general strikes that followed.Campbell sees much potential in the role of labor during the current revolution. He notes that if Burmese workers can develop greater solidarity, they would have the ability to shut the country down, a power that few other groups in the country can claim. And if they were able to do that, Campbell doesn’t see how the military would be able to fill their positions with replacement workers. Yet for that to happen, workers would need substantial outside support; many are living in dire economic conditions, and some compelled to return to their factory jobs to support their families.

“You can you hear from how I speak that these days, I am very distracted and distressed by the development of the entire thing,” Han Htoo Khant Paing admits during this urgent and emotional interview.Han Htoo is the author of a recent The Diplomat article describing the four state executions that the Tatmadaw has ordered. In the context of the military’s terrible brutality and atrocities—abducting, raping, burning, and killing with impunity since the start of the coup in February, 2021—some may wonder about the significance of just four killings.  But Han Htoo believes they are very important and symbolic.Two of the condemned, Hla Myo Aung and Aung Thura Zaw, are accused of the murder of a schoolteacher they believed to be a military informer. The other two are very prominent names from the democracy movement over the past few decades. One, Ko Jimmy was a student leader back in 1988 as well as being one of the key organizers of the 2007 Saffron Revolution. The other is an important Burmese hip hop artist named Zayar Thaw, who was also an elected Member of Parliament.Moving to the wider international context, Han Htoo is unsure what larger bodies could—and would—do. He focuses his comments on ASEAN (The Association of Southeast Asian Nations), Han Htoo unfortunately doubts that ASEAN will exert its influence beyond pro forma actions. He explains, “What [ASEAN member states] are really concerned about is stability, and the regional security threat,” and the executions don't really fit into that calculus directly. However, Han Htoo believes that the executions will only instigate more resentment from the resistance, which could further escalate the conflict and generate increased instability.In closing, Han Htoo urges listeners to do whatever they can in sharing his article and this interview, and writing to one’s local elected officials. He reminds us that if enough pressure is put on the Tatmadaw, it may literally save lives. “Please do anything that you can to save the lives of four champions of democracy and human rights.”

Soeya Min first got his start in the travel industry, then switched to the entertainment field. When the pandemic struck, with a lot of free time on his hands, he started learning about psychology.All these endeavors led him to podcasts, and he started up his own program, called Thoughts and Opinions, in which he talks with guests from a wide range of backgrounds. More than just looking to boost his own platform, Soeya Min is looking to helping elevate the entire local podcasting industry in Myanmar.The coup has helped him appreciate the value of psychology, which he now recognizes as critical to helping ameliorate the varying degrees of trauma that people have been going through. With a colleague, he opened his own mental health service platform, and now supports many who are in need. In Myanmar, however, this was no easy task because of the stigma carried by issues of “mental health.”Soeya Min feels that the entire country has been living through trauma since the coup, and has seen an acute rise in depression cases. Some of his recent clients have included defected soldiers, which provides a rare insight into the psychology of the Tatmadaw. Such work has required him to listen without judgment, hard as that may be, while realizing that what the soldiers really need is a type of re-parenting.Soeya Min’s understanding of psychology is influenced by his Buddhist meditation practice, and has been intrigued to realize how closely related the two actually are. While mainly self-taught as a practitioner, he has drawn on some techniques from the Mahasi tradition. These days, he has also found a focus on mettā particularly helpful, especially as a mental health professional dealing with clients who are going through terrible circumstances.As a mental health professional, Soeya Min is quite concerned with how long the Burmese people can keep going without any outside assistance. “All the Burmese people are asking for support... But when you have not received the same reaction or support [as Ukraine], people might turn cynical. That's what I'm afraid of, people get cynical and down. Then what to do?”

Like many of his Bamar colleagues, Khun Be Du and his Karenni community first attempted to resist the military coup through non-violent means. When that could no longer be sustained, he banded together with friends to form a local defense force. Today, he is playing a leading role in the Karenni Nationalities Defense Force (KNDF), while also serving as Deputy Minister for Natural Resources and Environmental Conservation for the National Unity Government (NUG).Tatmadaw incursions into Karenni state are not new. Khun Be Du recalls hearing about crackdowns following Ne Win’s 1962 coup, when they attempted to deprive ethnic forces of food, funding, intelligence, and recruits. Peace negotiations were finally achieved in the transition period, finally allowing much-needed development work to proceed.But the Tatmadaw has rekindled past horrors. They now station 3,500 soldiers in Karenni State and have strategically terrorized over 100 villages. “We have to fight it,” Khun Be Du says simply. He estimates that for every local fighter killed, the Burmese military loses 30 men. In the face of such untenable losses, the Tatmadaw has taken a different tack, using tanks, mortar and artillery fire against vulnerable populations, and targeting schools, hospitals, IDP camps and other civilian centers.Perhaps the Tatmadaw’s worst evil came on an otherwise holy date for the largely Christian Karenni: December 24th, 2021. Soldiers stopped vehicles and gathered passengers into a group, stole their valuables and then proceeded to torture and kill them, then burning the bodies.Given that the atrocities being perpetuated on a daily basis in Karenni state are equally as bad as the current Russian aggression in Ukraine, Khun Be Du is frustrated that the plight of his people isn’t gathering more international attention and support. He ponders, “I wonder how much we have to die so that the international community will take action.”

The days turned dark in March 2020 when the Burmese military began attacking and killing nonviolent protesters. Soon after the crackdown, activists still courageous enough to take to the streets began holding signs that read: “We Need R2P.” R2P, or the Responsibility to Protect, is an international norm that the UN unanimously adopted in 2005, which purports to protect populations around the world from atrocity crimes, such as ethnic cleansing. However, R2P is not a legal doctrine, and so it can only be enforced when there is the political will to do so, and Scott feels it is most certainly needed now in Myanmar. But the international community has yet to act.This inaction has caused frustration among Burmese activists who have been calling for R2P for over a year now. Our guest today, Liam Scott, believes that criticism should not be directed at the R2P doctrine itself, but rather at those international bodies who refuse to respond.Scott thinks that the NUG has certainly “been specific in what particular tools of R2P they want the international community to employ, like with arms embargoes, with sanctions on oil and gas, and with depriving the military of the legitimacy that it craves on the international stage.” He also suggests taking a more nuanced view of R2P is more realistic as well as optimistic, where “boots on the ground intervention” is the only sign of effectiveness. He hopes that there can be a string of smaller successes that gradually develop into something larger. Still, Scott confesses he simply doesn’t know what more beyond the horrible things the Tatmadaw are already doing that would push international organizations to action. And he certainly wishes something would be done. Scott points to the fact that the Burmese military has never been successfully prosecuted for any past crimes, and suggests this is one reason why they are acting now with such impunity. He admits that the wheels of justice move slowly… though perhaps far too slowly for those victims still being persecuted. “I completely recognize and empathize with the fact that so many of these questions are coming from a place of pure desperation and frustration with an international community that has done so little in response,” Scott concludes.

The Myanmar military’s violent response to the democracy movement has caused angst among many devout Burmese Buddhists about how to defend themselves and their fundamental freedoms, while remaining true to their religion. Many are faced with that line where the cold edge of sila (ethics) melts along the warm edge of lived experience. Is sila black-and-white, or might there be more shades of grey? Bhikkhu Bodhi helps unpack this moral quandary in this follow-up discussion to our interview last year.Bhikkhu Bodhi acknowledges that the farther one’s own reality is from needing to make terrible, life-or-death choices, the easier it probably is to take an absolutist perspective on observing sila. However, those situations now unfortunately symbolize the “real reality” that the people of Myanmar face on a daily basis. What is compassionate guidance for those who do face such kinds of choices, who do have to act to save loved ones from the indiscriminate, murderous violence of the Tatmadaw, and restore basic safety and freedoms to their country? Bhikkhu Bodhi establishes two related frames of reference within which we can make reasonable choices. The first is to know the intent of our mind. It is not the action itself, but the intention that matters from a karmic perspective, and we should never kill out of hate. The second is to be sure of the reasons behind our actions. If we are not motivated by hatred of the enemy, but feel there is no other choice in order to save the lives of innocent people, it’s the very best we can do. Bhikkhu Bodhi also stresses that in the suttas, the Buddha is never depicted as being faced with these kinds of moral dilemmas. And he reminds us that this is the complex, modern, 21st century world we live in, not the 5th century BCE. So he says that the appropriate teaching around these issues is perhaps not so “obvious.” 

Kenton Clymer joins the podcast to speak about his book, "A Delicate Relationship: The United States and Burma/Myanmar since 1945." In the waning days of World War II, Americans were primarily concerned with stopping the spread of Communism, especially after Mao’s revolution, which thrust neighboring Burma into an important geopolitical position. Initially, the US thought that U Nu, Burma’s first Prime Minister, was too Socialist-leaning, while Ne Win, the eventual dictator, was seen as an anti-Communist strongman.The 1950s were a challenging decade for the Burmese government. The country’s ethnic groups were suspicious of a powerful central government—with some like the Karen actively fighting against it—and the Chinese and Americans were engaged in geopolitical maneuvering in the north of the country.After Ne Win’s second coup in 1962, the primary concern on the American side was ensuring that Burma didn’t fall into the Soviet or Chinese camp as a result. For the next 26 years, the US looked on as civil liberties continued to erode, the economy collapsed, ethnic groups pushed for greater rights, scores of Indians were exiled, and the country became increasingly isolated and shut off from the rest of the world.Besides Communism, the only other real area of American interest in Burma was the narcotics trade. As Ne Win was staunchly opposed to drugs, he accepted American support, including aircraft and intelligence sharing, to eradicate the poppy fields. However, it is uncertain how effective this collaboration was, and in fact human rights activists later discovered that the Tatmadaw used the chemical sprays on human targets in the country’s ethnic regions.The perception of Burma, and the shape of US relations, changed irrevocably in 1988, with the violent crackdown on student protests and the nullification of the subsequent election. The anti-Communist prism through which the American government’s Burma policy had been viewed for decades changed to one of human rights; Aung San Suu Kyi was its figurehead.  Clymer addresses some important developments in recent Myanmar history up to the NLD’s electoral victory in 2015, when his book was published, and discusses what occurred since. While he sees recurring cycles at play in the current situation, he also has reason for optimism. He feels that the current group of Gen-Z activists will not put up with oppressive military rule like in the past.

Ma Thida’s book, Prisoner of Conscience, details her remarkable and inspiring life journey.She was attending medical school when, in 1988, the military violently suppressed peaceful protesters. Soon, she found herself volunteering at local NLD offices that had formed in the wake of the unrest. In 1993 Ma Thida was arrested on a trumped up charge and given 20 years.Adjustment to prison life was not easy. She first found relief in the form of smuggled books, which she could only read secretly under a blanket. But over time, she turned to meditation. Transforming her prison cell into a meditation cell, she informed inmates and guards alike she would be practicing intensively for up to twenty hours per day.She worked with teachings from the Mahasi and Mogok traditions, and carried on a clandestine correspondence with Chan Myay Yeitha Sayadaw U Janaka. She mainly chose to practice Cittanupassana (contemplation of mind). And as might be expected in a prison, she focused in particular on the experience of dukkha (suffering).In the meantime and unbeknownst to her, Ma Thida’s arrest had turned into something of a cause célèbre abroad, attracting celebrity support, and even a visit from President Bill Clinton’s foreign emissary, Bill Richardson. Her case was also mentioned at the UN’s Fourth World Conference on Women held in 1995 in Beijing.Ma Thida was released in 1999, her prison sentence commuted. She did not involve herself further in politics, but has continued to followed the country’s momentous events, including the rise and fall of Aung San Suu Kyi. But as someone who was by Aung San Suu Kyi’s side during her initial rise to prominence, she expresses a concern that her status as an icon may have gone to her head, and also that she never truly understood the Tatmadaw.Today, many young Burmese activists have turned to her book to better understand their own path forward. For her part, Ma Thida, is impressed by how much this current generation seems to know, and how much and how fast they are able to learn. For this current generation of democracy activists, Ma Thida advises them to “focus on principle, not on person… [keep] an eye on the will of the majority of people, not just one person or yourself.”

While our recent episodes have focused on the reality in Myanmar, this show explores the condition of allies outside the country who support the democracy movement. Although free from physical harm and living in basic safety, many find that they shoulder a heavy emotional burden by immersing themselves so deeply in the struggles and trauma experienced every day by the people of Myanmar, even if from afar.Rick Hanson is a mindfulness practitioner “interested in bringing a kind of Mahayana spirit of foregrounding and appreciation of notions of emptiness and sort of the unconditioned ground of all, combined with the rigor and the clarity, and the precision and the moral foundations that we find in Theravada Buddhism and in early Buddhism altogether.” He is a Senior Fellow at UC Berkeley’s Greater Good Science Center and founding the Wellspring Institute for Neuroscience and Contemplative Wisdom, as well as a best-selling author, penning Buddha’s Brain among other important works.Rick suggests several good practices to become more grounded even in the most difficult of situations. First, there is mindfulness, which he describes as the “capacity to witness your experiences, rather than being completely consumed by them, completely swept along and hijacked by them.” He notes that the Buddha taught about the importance of balancing compassion with equanimity, and how strengthening the latter is able to build up the former. The second is a “feeling of heart,” which Rick characterizes as a sense of connection with other people, or perhaps any living being, or even nature. Third is in developing a more expansive physical perspective, such as gazing at the horizon or sky, which helps bring us into the present neurologically, and dissolves self-preoccupation. And, Rick advises us to be on guard against negative concepts that can easily become embedded in heart and mind.  For example, we can avoid becoming engulfed in the agony of the moment by recognizing the good that still exists in the world.Rick recommends as well that activists seek camaraderie among themselves, creating a community of mutual support, as well as to consciously imbue a sense of meaning and purpose into one’s efforts. He strongly urges activists to engage self-care, such as finding time to rest. “You can't do this stuff 24 hours a day. You need a break!”

The past ten years of Myanmar’s history have certainly not been boring, and journalist Mratt Kyaw Thu has been there to chronicle a lot of it.Hailing from Rakhine state, Mratt made his way to Yangon in 2005, graduating from Dagon University and going into journalism soon after. He worked for Mizzima, where he ended up on the crime beat, and also began covering stories about the military’s snatching up bits of prime real estate throughout the country.Mratt then began filing a series of reports about the drug trade, tracing the routes that traffickers used to smuggle in methamphetamines from the Golden Triangle region.  He was based in Maungdaw where, on October 9, 2016, Muslim residents of the city staged an attack on the police. Mratt instantly realized the significance of the moment, and the events he personally witnessed would resonate around the world.Later, Mratt was informed by several sources that a second attack would be coming. He urgently warned authorities at every level, but his words went unheeded. Not long after, about thirty police stations were attacked. This violence in turn became the impetus for the displacement of over 90,000 Rohingyas.Mratt returned to Maungdaw with some journalist colleagues, but they were identified as outsiders by someone who gathered a mob to harass them. The situation got dangerously tense, but eventually they managed to escape in a hired car. On the way out, Mratt saw entire Muslim villages burned to the ground.Mratt also discussed how his home region of Rakhine has been faring since the military coup. “Everyone's talking about Rakhine and the Arakan Army [AA], and why they don’t fight against the military.” Mratt notes. He explains that before the coup, many Bamar openly supported the Tatmadaw in their offensives against the AA. There are many complex negotiations taking place now.At present, Mratt is focused on telling the story of the ongoing conflict as best as he can—doing so from Spain, as being a journalist has become too personally dangerous in Myanmar since the coup. These days, Mratt has difficulty even seeing those Facebook memories that pop up automatically from previous years—they now seem filled with false optimism and fake news. “People learned a lot,” he says. “So I think those kinds of lessons learned will be something different in the future for my country and for my own people.”

On February 1st, 2021, General Min Aung Hlaing orchestrated a military coup in Myanmar. On February 24th, 2022, Russian President Vladimir Putin authorized missiles and airstrikes as the first blow in his invasion of Ukraine. On today’s show, two very experienced and highly credentialed international relations experts compare and contrast these two crises: Hunter Marston, who speaks to the situation in Myanmar, and Emily Channell-Justice, who addresses the Russian invasion of Ukraine.As neither Ukraine nor Russia are signatories to the International Criminal Court, Emily notes that it is up to the ICC to pursue its own charges. In Myanmar, Hunter explains that it is unlikely that the junta will own up to its genocide charge; he adds that the NUG might possibly cooperate with any investigation. Neither Russia, Ukraine, nor Myanmar have signed on to the Rome Statue of the International Criminal Court, which defines genocide and other crimes against humanity.In terms of international organizations, Ukraine is neither a member of the European Union nor NATO, although both were immediately supportive following the Russian invasion. As for the situation in Myanmar, Hunter references the European dependence on Russian gas, saying, “I don't think any country is dependent on Myanmar's exports or its resources. But that hasn't stopped [ASEAN] from in part protecting the Myanmar military.”Another parallel between the two conflicts is the question of negotiations. Hunter feels the military does not intend to engage in any real, constructive dialog that brings with it the possibility of losing any of their power in future elections. For her part, Emily similarly sees little reason to trust any promises made by Putin.In terms of the international response to the respective conflicts, Emily points to the outpouring of support that has come in the way of popular support, funds, weapons, medical supplies, and more. This is, perhaps, the most jarring point of difference when contrasting the situations in the two countries. Hunter explains, “The international community, for better or worse, has not taken sides to support either the Myanmar military or the PDFs or the ethnic armed groups across the country.”

Episode #98: Linn Thant never expected to see another military coup in Myanmar. In 1988, he was arrested, locked away, tortured for years and eventually sentenced to death. So Linn Thant did not expect to live much longer. Linn Thant spent a total of twenty years in prison, eight of those on Death Row. He was beaten so badly that both his leg and collarbone were broken, and every tooth was knocked out. His meditation practice saved him, though, being the one thing that they could never take away. He would awake early and meditate for hours in his cell, following the instructions he had learned in the Mahasi and Taungpulu traditions. Still, they tried; his prison guards beat him until he couldn’t stand if they saw him sitting cross-legged. And even when his body was too broken to endure more punishment, he would just pay close attention to his sense doors. There certainly was nothing good coming in, but he took everything as objects of contemplation, whether the sounds of a nearby inmate being tortured, or the taste of food so rotten and vile that even dogs wouldn’t touch it.But amazingly, through all the torture and abuse, Linn Thant says he has never harbored a single thought of ill will towards any of his tormenters. He even found gratitude for his death sentence, as it gave him a clear sense of impending death, which only sharpened his meditation.Linn Thant was released as part of a general amnesty in 2008. However, he soon realized that he still could not remain safely in his native country. He settled in the Czech Republic in 2011, and he has been there ever since. The National Unity Government has officially named him their Czech representative.As devoted as he is to his meditation practice, Linn Thant is not afraid to call out Buddhist monks who continue to emphasize the virtues of patience and pacifism to their followers, which carries an underlying message of accepting the brutal dictatorship.

From deep meditative absorption with Pa Auk Sayadaw, to sitting in caves in southern Spain in the company of drug addicts and criminals, Beth Upton has led a most amazing spiritual life!  In 2008, Beth went to Pa Auk Monastery in Myanmar to take a deeper plunge into the spiritual life, and she remained there for five years. She cultivated deep states of jhāna under his tutelage, and enhanced powers of perception. Beth describes the peace and happiness of jhānic states in compelling terms. She contrasts the fleeting happiness born of satisfying sense desire, with the deep blissfulness of jhānic states that develop with a mind of non-clinging. In the Pa Auk system, one turns the deeply concentrated mind towards seeing beyond concepts, into the moment-by-moment change of materiality and mentality, which leads to some quite unusual experiences.After leaving Myanmar, Beth—still in robes—ended up living in a series of caves in southern Spain. These caves “were inhabited by addicts and criminals. It's like the Gypsy suburb!” But no one gave her any problems, and eventually some even approached her asking to be taught meditation. After she disrobed in 2018, the transition to lay life was not completely smooth. Around this time, she became involved in a non-sexual, but abusive relationship, which Beth opens up about in a vulnerable and honest way. It was the most suffering she ever experienced, and at the time did not see how any of the skills she had learned on the cushion could help her. She had spent so long practicing to dissolve concepts of self, that her “self” did not know how to respond when the abuser crossed the line. Eventually, she worked her way out of that challenging relationship, and in retrospect learned a lot. Now, both as a meditator and as a teacher, she is trying to integrate meditative skills with life skills, balancing a “soft inner, trusting core” with a “harder, protective, outer layer.”Pa Auk Sayadaw has encouraged her inclination to teach in the West, and told her to go with the flow and teach from her heart, which provides more flexibility. In that spirit, she bases her teaching on the Pa Auk method, but tailors her instruction to individual meditators. 

Some listeners may recall Chit Tun’s first interview with Insight Myanmar, just weeks after the coup was launched. At that time, he was leading nonviolent protests throughout Yangon. He was hiding out at a monastery, his voice hoarse from the speeches he’d been giving, and the internet being cut in the middle of the talk. Shortly after that interview, Chit Tun escaped a manhunt by going on the run, ultimately finding refuge in Karen state. He spent the better part of the next year there in combat training, eventually being asked to take a leadership position.  It was a challenging year, too, both personally and for the movement.Looking back, Chit Tun realized that in the early days of the protests, his vision was narrow and local, focused mainly on the loss of freedom within his own community. But over time, he realized that he was not fighting merely for the rights of his own group, but for everyone living in the country… even those different to him. In particular, he thought about how the military manipulated Buddhism to divide the country.Chit Tun found he was resisting the coup to support democracy on one hand, yet concerned with Buddhism’s continuing ability to flourish in Myanmar on the other. Did he want to see Myanmar as a Buddhist state that provided overt support to monasteries and pagodas, or a federalist country founded on principles of equality and democracy?This concern generated a deeper scrutiny into his own faith, exposing previously unquestioned assumptions that he harbored about his religion’s superiority. His internal conflict was not over what the historical Buddha taught, but in how people in powerful positions in Burmese society were interpreting and manipulating those teachings. Where his own interest in Buddhism stemmed from being a better person in the world, he found that it was being used by a select group of generals, crony businessmen, and monks as a means of increasing their own power, wealth and prestige, while creating divisions amongst other groups. Ultimately, he came to realize that Buddhism can survive in any free society without state support, as it only needs the pure hearts of the practitioner in order to thrive.

Nelson Mandela famously said, “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” Conversely, one of the best ways to prevent change within a society is to limit access, censure what is taught and stifle creative thought. And the military leadership in Myanmar have been doing just this for generations. Saw Tar fills in as guest host in this episode about the role of education in Burmese society. The educational system of a country is charged with instilling knowledge and values in its younger generation, so it is a helpful lens to use when trying to understand the present shape of a society. Saw Tar examines how the failures of the school system have contributed to many of the ongoing problems we see today in Myanmar. He first speaks to Terrence Htoo. Terence spent half his schooling in Myanmar and the other half in the United States, so is able to contrast the two systems of education. Moreover, Terence is ethnic Karen, so his perspective on the Burmanization policies of the government is especially valuable. Anne, an 18-year old, currently attends an international school in Yangon. Very few Burmese are able to attend these more privileged institutions, but she fortunately was able to get a scholarship. Anne gives some insight into the curriculum and culture at these schools, and how they differ from the country’s public schools.

Pyae Phyo Kyaw, a gay doctor, is simultaneously helping his countrymen while taking a sledgehammer to the barriers that have long defined Burmese society.Pyae Phyo Kyaw was aware of his sexual orientation from a young age, and the lack of acceptance grew heavy. He attempted suicide several times, until he finally found a way to let go of his inner shame. He was determined to come out, which he did after he had obtained his medical degree.After the military coup was launched in February 2021, Pyae Phyo Kyaw was touched to see members of the LGBT community marching alongside everyone else in the streets in the nonviolent protests. He also began to detect a kind of sea change in attitudes taking place before his eyes among the online community in Myanmar, particularly on Facebook, and was further amazed when the NUG appointed an openly gay minister.Pyae Phyo Kyaw and his partner chose to leave their employment at a Mandalay hospital to help those in the thick of the conflict zone, settling on an area in Karenni state, where they established a mobile medical tent. Since then, they have treated villagers who have lost limbs to landmines, and seen others die from treatable diseases because they simply couldn’t get the proper medicine. Combined with what that population has had to so long endure, it strengthens Pyae Phyo Kyaw’s commitment to help build a more equitable society in Myanmar.Beyond acting as a bridge between two different cultures, the couple is also making a profound impact on Burmese society as well, having become something of online celebrities. Pyae Phyo Kyaw is quite aware of how their service and sacrifice are breaking down social and cultural barriers for perhaps the first time in that country’s history.

In the aftermath of student strikes in 1968, Alan left Columbia University and moved to Berkeley, California. There, he found himself amid a whirlwind of social unrest: the counter-culture movement, anti-war protests, experimentation with mind-altering chemicals, and increasingly violent crackdowns by the police. Eventually Alan came across Philip Kapleau’s book, The Three Pillars of Zen, and was immediately intrigued. Zen was not completely unfamiliar to Alan. Coming from New York, he was personally familiar with several Beat writers and their flirtations with Zen. But in Kapleau, found something much more substantial. This led to Alan’s first engagement with Buddhist practice, and he eventually took up the meditation of Sōtō Zen, “a practice that is quite receptive and fluid.”As Alan was refining his life as a practitioner, he also started reflecting on the connection between spirituality and broader social and political issues. This led to Alan’s evolving into an “Engaged Buddhist,” through which he viewed the eradication of suffering as applying both to individuals as well as communities.Alan also became increasingly interested in Myanmar. Observing the constrictions that had been placed on the monkhood under a military dictatorship for so many years does not leave him feeling optimistic about the future of Buddhism there. Neither has the lack of involvement by the Sangha in the democratic movement gone unnoticed by Generation Z protesters, who are now sacrificing everything for their country’s freedom. One of the unintended consequences of the coup is that, however it ultimately sorts out, the future of Buddhism in Myanmar is uncertain. Alan’s perspective on the Burmese resistance is quite relevant, given his own involvement as a Buddhist practitioner in “street politics” during the turbulent 1970s in the US. While he came to the conclusion that personally supporting violence would ultimately not be effective, he acknowledges that 2022 Myanmar is not 1968 California, and doubts that a strict adherence to nonviolence alone would be effective in Myanmar’s case.Engaged Buddhist action stands in stark contrast to the widespread spiritual bypass that seems to characterize a large segment of the Western meditator community. Alan has also observed this, commenting that it occurs “often in an individual context where people allow their practice to just cover for the work that they need to be doing on themselves… The spiritual bypass is putting on blinders so that you really can't see what's in front of you.”

Most people would not regard a violent military coup as the best time to start an organization, but that's exactly what Katie Craig and her partners did! Katie has worked with minority language communities around Myanmar for years, which gives her unique insight into the historical, cultural, and political challenges that such communities face. Given the Burmanization policies of the government, this has been no easy task. One of the biggest battlegrounds has been the mandated use of Burmese in all public schools, which often goes hand-in-hand with the prohibition of ethnic language use in the classroom. Katie emphasizes that language is more than simply a way of speaking, it’s also a way of being in the world, and a major factor in identity. She views language diversity as an opportunity for learning, and stresses that her organization is not trying to challenge the supremacy of the Burmese language within the country, but to try to ensure that its instruction does not wipe out indigenous languages. Katie speaks passionately of the trauma that befalls a community when it loses its language, or when it is subject to oppression at the hands of the language majority community. Katie describes another layer of complexity regarding the language situation in Myanmar. Each of the standard, generalized ethnic language categories, such as “Kachin” or “Chin,” actually contains a variety of dialects. Identity is often rooted in temporary political or survival needs. And to make things more complicated still, some language minority communities still do not have their own formalized script, and might alternately use either Burmese or Roman characters depending on the context, and based on preferences in identity and alignment.To help address these complex issues, Katie co-founded Myanmar Indigenous Community Partners (MICP). Part of their work involves assisting peoples within Myanmar who have no written form of language to create one. The work of MICP helps language minority groups not only preserve their language, but also their culture and identity along with it.  

“I think Tatmadaw is a place where soldiers and their families have lost their human rights,” Su Thit asserts. Her bold criticism of Myanmar's military is somewhat unusual because her husband was one of the several hundred thousand soldiers employed by the Tatmadaw.  The couple had enjoyed beginning their adult lives in a transitioning democracy. In a free society, the military would have its rightful place in society, and so at first, they did not need to choose sides between the Tatmadaw and the country’s evolving democratic reforms. But that all changed the moment the coup was launched.Su Thit and Htet Myat committed early on to joining the Civil Disobedience Movement (CDM). They had to endure great risk and discomfort to get to safety. Their life now is a challenge: without any belongings, having lost many friends, and unable to see family, they live under challenging conditions; on some days, she doesn't even have enough water. And yet, they are not just focused on trying to get by, but doing everything they can to encourage more soldiers and their families to leave their posts. Su Thit set up an organization called “Spouses of People’s Soldiers,” which supports military wives in encouraging their husbands to defect, and helps them establish a life outside the Tatmadaw. They also provide opportunities for those who have decided to defect, as they begin to build a new life. Su Thit has been able to receive enough donations to support over 50 families!Su Thit’s organization is run and supported almost entirely by Burmese in-country, and she admits to being slightly perplexed—and feeling isolated—by the lack of support she has received from foreigners, especially those who have long lived and worked in Myanmar, many of whom she had counted as friends. This is another important reason that our platform is so committed to bringing her story to listeners around the world. “Our revolution is close to victory,” Su Thit assures us. With increased defections, “the military can have all the guns in the world, but if there are no soldiers left to use them, we win.”

Like so many other spiritual seekers from the West, Kim Shelton and her husband were attracted to Myanmar by the opportunities that the country presents for developing a deeper Buddhist practice. Kim’s experience there inspired her to create a feature-length documentary, One Thousand Mothers, which examines life in a Buddhist nunnery in the Sagaing Hills.Kim learned that many girls became nuns due to poverty, conflict, or difficult family circumstances, and so the decision to ordain is not necessarily because of spiritual yearning. The young nuns in the film honestly and insightfully discuss both the value of the renunciate’s life, and the alluring attractions of the mundane world. One scene depicts a girl who has left the nunnery, and returns for a dialog with her nun friends, wearing make-up, earrings, etc. The camera captures the fascinating conversation that ensues about the relative merits of lay versus worldly life. The film does not shy away from the more challenging life that Myanmar’s nuns have in contrast to monks. One scene about alms round depicts monks receiving hot spoonsful of cooked rice and nuns getting only small pinches of dry rice.Kim was delighted when the Abbess herself accepted the invitation to be interviewed. She had never been on camera before, and the experience was memorable for everyone involved.  In one of the movie’s more memorable scenes, the Abbess admitted that the presence of the film crew was a disruption to the discipline and education they try to instill in the nuns, yet affirmed that it would all be worthwhile in the end if the film enabled foreigners to learn more about the Buddha’s teachings.One Thousand Mothers provides viewers with a unique opportunity to see the inner workings of a living Buddhist nunnery. The end result is that the nun’s life in Myanmar is authentically portrayed, without falling into the trap of Western exotification, and the nuns interviewed on screen are extremely forthcoming, providing a glimpse into the very minds of these renunciates.