EastMojo in Thailand: How Myanmar women persist and resist in exile

In June, EastMojo Mizoram correspondent Kimi Colney interacted with Myanmar nationals living in exile in Thailand. This is the first of the three part series from that visit.

On the evening of June 12, EastMojo met a nine-month-pregnant Ah Hla Lay Thuzar. If not for the pregnancy, she seemed no different from a young teen with a steady stream of energy as we devoured some fish and rice. Her long, black hair swayed around as she spoke heartily about her child and her work. But, behind her hearty laughter, there was a story meant for the books, of imprisonment and a life of fear.

Just two years ago, on 22 November 2022, Ah Hla Lay Thuzar better known by her pen name, Ma Thuzar, was sentenced to two years in jail after completing 15 months in pretrial detention. She was sentenced under Section 505 (a) of Myanmar’s penal code for allegedly “causing fear, spreading false news and agitating crimes against a government employee.”

Ah Hla Lay Thuzar who was kept in Insein prison in Yangon division was released in January 2023 after serving 16 months for “inciting national unrest” under Section 505(a) on September 1, 2021, in Yangon City’s Kamayut township. 

“I was arrested because I was live streaming the protests,” she said. According to a report by Voice of America, since February 1, 2021, at least four journalists have been killed and 176 have been arrested. Due to fear of being arrested again, she sought asylum in a new country. 

Ah Hla Lay Thuzar has been a journalist for nearly 15 years, with her work appearing in the Modern Journal, RFA News, 7 Days News Media, and Friday Time, among others. Since the February 2021 coup, she has been working as a freelance reporter for the Friday Time Journal and the MPA. She continued working as a journalist after the coup but had been in hiding from May 2021 until her arrest in September of that year.

Despite the risks to her life, she continues working as a journalist, hoping to aid in the Spring Revolution through her reportage.

Sharing the challenges she faces as a journalist in exile with EastMojo, she said, “It is more difficult to stand as a journalist when abroad because it is further away from the ground conditions. It has become more difficult to get the voice of the people inside Myanmar. Journalists can uncover the truth only when they are on the ground. Myanmar’s local media can’t stand long-term. For senior journalists like us, the job shortage worsens when we go abroad. Most journalists are out of work. As for me, I continue to work as a journalist as a hobby. Additionally, we need to continue to enhance our skills to work for international media. Another difficulty for us is that we can be arrested at any time in Myanmar, so we have to flee to the border, like Thailand, illegally. It is more difficult for us in the current illegal situation.”

Al Hla Lay Thuzar highlighted that she was not safe as she had come to the Thai border illegally to avoid being arrested a second time by the military dictator, “While in the current situation, we are no longer in the territory of the military dictator, but if we are arrested in Thailand, we can be sent back to Myanmar at any time, so it is not safe for me,” she said. 

But the challenges do not hold her back, “If experienced journalists like us can’t write news, the truth of our country will disappear. As for me, the experience of being arrested and beaten during the interrogation. The situations in which he was unjustly arrested in prison were a really good experience. These should be identified and written. That’s why I continue to uncover and write news.”

Hundreds of journalists have fled the country since the coup, facing a myriad of challenges even if they managed to escape arrest. Take, for example, Judy.* The 34-year-old journalist began her career in 2010 with a passion for storytelling. When the coup happened, she worked on a documentary highlighting the work of media persons under the coup and the struggles they faced. Soon, she started receiving threats. As the Tatmadaw intensified their crackdown on dissenters, media persons, including Judy,* found themselves in the spotlight.

She had two choices, one, to live with her family in a rural area of the country and quit journalism or to leave her family behind with the possibility that she may never see them again and seek asylum in a new country. Her 60-year-old father had health issues and became paralyzed sometime after the coup. Bringing her parents to her new location without documentation and access to health insurance was a risk she was too scared to take.

“I wanted to continue journalism, it was the only way I could help my country,” she said, as she described a tearful goodbye with her family. “As a journalist, I have no freedom of speech. I could choose to reside in a remote area but I would have to live in constant fear, now I can freely express and report about the military,” she said.  

Jude* had worked as a journalist for fourteen years through four presidential eras. She was given the option to switch to entertainment news or change her profession entirely, but she was determined to continue her work.

Hundreds of women journalists are continuing their fight against the army regime in Myanmar, some through their mobile phones, some through social media, and some through offices with laptops. No matter their circumstances, they are intent on getting the word of their people’s sufferings out to the rest of the world. The Myanmar Women in Media records over 30 women journalists currently practising their work in exile. 

But it is not just journalism where women of the spring revolution are making waves. 

If you type in the words “Breaking Brainwashed” on YouTube, you will find an intriguing series of videos where former junta members share their experiences in the military. The channel was founded by Su Thit Ser Zaw, a former hotel sales and marketing manager who lived in Yangon before the coup.

But what led this woman to dedicate her life to documenting the “brainwashing” techniques of the military junta? Su Thit Zer Saw’s husband joined the Defence Services Academy – the premier military service academy of Myanmar at the young age of sixteen. 

By 2021, he had risen to the rank of commander. However, when Su Thit Zer Saw witnessed the atrocities being committed after the coup, she repeatedly made appeals to her husband through phone calls, explaining that what they were doing was wrong. 

“When the coup happened I told him to defect but it was hard for him to change his mind quickly. It was after he witnessed a general shooting a civilian in Kachin state on March 27, 2021, that he started seeing what the generals were doing. As they spoke on the phone I helped him see the reality and explained to him that I do not want future generations to say that we were on the wrong side of history,” she said.  

The Breaking Brainwashed founder said many soldiers are not able to see the reality and while some see the reality they cannot defect as their families are detained. 

Su Thit Zer Saw and her husband fled in August 2021 but they continue to live in fear in their asylum country. 

However, it has not deterred them from opening up about their experience on social media to help others. Breaking Brainwashed has a team of 17 people and a total of 254k subscribers. So far they have published 868 videos. “We have been able to help almost 200 soldiers escape the military. Many of these soldiers wish to remain in hiding and away from the civil disobedience movement as they fear their lives,” said the founder. 

The channel’s about page states, “Most soldiers and their families who are inside the military have been brainwashed for many decades by the military propaganda that is nationalistic, fascist, and militaristic. …the propaganda erodes their consciences, thus preventing them from distinguishing between right and wrong. They blindly follow every order and whim of the military generals.

“Such a fascist military is damaging to our people and our country. To change this situation, we have adopted a mission to educate, help, and unpeel the propaganda that has been ingrained in the minds of the soldiers, so that they can differentiate right and wrong, moral and immoral. We believe when they can do that, they will leave the dictator, and join the people.”

The coup has also led to a rise in sexual atrocities and domestic violence against women. This growing concern inspired Lily* and her activist friends to found Sisters2Sisters.

In late 2021, Lily,* along with her husband and children, crossed the border in a car. She had been actively protesting the junta coup since February. Despite many of her colleagues being arrested, she continued to engage in resistance activities. However, by September, she had no choice but to leave the country with her family due to the increasing risk to their safety.

Lily,* now 27 years old, had always been a part of the resistance, even before the coup. She joined the All Burma Federation of Student Unions in 2017 and was active in youth-centric movements. In 2017, she took part in protests against the violence inflicted upon the Rakhine community, and in 2019, she participated in an environmental strike.

With bright round eyes, and shoulder-length hair with frosted blond tips, conversing with Sandra will soon show you that she is full of heart and while the last few years have not been easy, it has only encouraged her to resist harder. 

“My grandfather used to listen to the radio during the 2007 (saffron) revolution. Hearing about the revolution was the first step that ignited the activist in me. Through the radio, I got to listen to how the military was torturing people. While I had initially found interest in environmental activism, after this revolution, I became engaged in the political situation,” she said when asked about her initial foray into activism. 

In April 2021, along with other female activists, they founded Sisters2Sisters. It started as a social media solidarity campaign for Myanmar in response to reports of torture and sexual violence experienced by those imprisoned in Myanmar.

They wanted to raise awareness about the use of excessive force and violence against women, perpetrated by the fascist military in Myanmar/Burma.

“We handle cases of rape and domestic violence against women,” she explained, sharing the story of one such victim who suffered a miscarriage due to physical abuse. Sisters2Sisters was able to help her escape and find a place of refuge. However, a major challenge they face is fighting for justice, as most of the refugees, including this domestic violence victim, are undocumented and cannot go to the police to file a complaint.

“There are a lot of domestic violence cases, many do not speak out. We are planning to build a shelter as these victims have nowhere to go as they cannot go back to their family in Myanmar, and it is hard to find a solution due to legal factors,” she said. The number of domestic violence and sexual assault cases has risen after the coup, both from the members of the military and also from the shadow government’s forces including PDF soldiers and activists.

On March 8, 2023, the National Unity Government (NUG) Ministry of Women, Youth and Children’s Affairs and the National Unity Consultative Council Joint Coordination Committee on Gender Policy said in a statement that the junta has sexually assaulted at least 122 women.

“Before the coup, women had started fighting for their rights but now, everything has stopped and sexual exploitation has gotten worse. With the coup, the main focus is on the war, people are favouring male comrades and the women are treated like they need help,” she explained, “The (Spring) Revolution should not only be for fighting but about having more places for women’s rights.”

In Myanmar, patriarchal norms are deeply entrenched. For instance, men’s and women’s clothes are washed in separate basins, based on the belief that washing them together would negatively affect men’s “aura.” Similarly, when drying clothes, women’s garments must be hung lower than men’s.

But in the Spring Revolution, it is the women who are creating waves of change. While Sandra’s NGO deals with the victims of assault and violence, Kao’s organisation helps displaced persons find a footing through craftwork and provides support to trauma victims. 

Kao, the founder of Hero’s Assist Migrants (HAM), was an active climate change and environmental educator before the coup. After fleeing the military regime, she found her new calling in aiding displaced persons in her asylum country.

She established HAM, where migrants can sell items they craft, such as crochet pieces, bags, and eco-printed goods.  They conduct training on eco-printing, embroidery & crochet, upcycling jewellery and artisan toolkits. They also conduct workshops on art therapy, clay art therapy and social wellbeing. “When we have something to do with our hands, it dispels negativity,” she explained, noting how these activities help refugees stay occupied, ease their mental burden, and earn a living.

Sharing the reason behind her motivation with EastMojo, she said, “I started an NGO in 2016 when I was in Myanmar and had to leave everything behind because of the coup. If not, all my teammates would be affected.  One month after I delivered my first child, on 5 May 2022, I initiated the non-formal education for the CDM which is the beginning of HAM. With the support of my former colleagues and friends, I could expand HAM’s activities. As our motto is Together, We Survive, I believe that nothing can stop us no matter what. My inspiration is my comrades who never give up in any situation.”

HAM also runs programs to support survivors experiencing trauma. These programs focus on helping them achieve their goals through a recovery-oriented and strengths-based approach. They were able to raise over $60,000 within two years and conducted over 35 vocational training sessions. 

This output is a product of a visit arranged by Borders & Broader Conversations Initiative.

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