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New York, United States – Nay Myint, a leading student in the 1988 uprisings against Myanmar’s previous military dictatorship, was imprisoned and tortured for his efforts.
“I gave a speech in front of the people about democracy, human rights and freedom. Shortly afterwards, I was arrested by military intelligence and then sentenced to life imprisonment. I spent 15 years in prison, 10 years incommunicado, ”he told Al Jazeera.
Last weekend, rather than giving a speech in front of the Yangon crowd, U.S. activists addressed the Myanmar community in New York, which had gathered in Union Square to protest the February military coup.
The take power ended a brief experiment with democracy and removed civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi and her National League for Democracy (NLD), which won a landslide victory in the November elections; the result that the military says it is a scam. The coup resulted in a marked protest movement and savage repression, and the military was still unable to secure full control over the country three months later.
While in prison, Nay Myint was subjected to harsh treatment, including physical torture.
“They put iron ropes between my legs for two years,” he said, which caused permanent damage to his left leg. “But I thought I was in the right situation. My people supported me. I am a Buddhist, I thought about relaxing my body. That’s how I survived, ”he said.
A few years after his release, people began to mobilize again 2007 Saffron Revolution, which was a reference to the color of the monks’ costumes that led the demonstrations. Military authorities who took part in the 1988 protests began pre-trial detention, so Nay Myint fled the Thai border and was stationed in the US in 2008.
According to Pew Research, as of 2019, there were nearly 200,000 residents in the U.S. of Myanmar origin. From 2010 to 2020, Myanmar contributed more refugees to the US than any other country. Most of Myanmar is located in Minneapolis but New York has about 7,000 people of Myanmar origin, making it the state with the fifth largest population in Myanmar in the country.
Me Me Khant has been studying in the US since 2016, but the 25-year-old remembers as a child going to protest with his mother during the Sule Pagoda in Yangon during the Saffron Revolution.
“I remember I heard a few shots and then the police started beating people, then my mom and I ran. Everyone was running,” he said. “I think the only thing that drives us is anger and how many people fled the country after 88 and 2007. This has to end; this has to be the last fight.”
‘Survivor Guilt’
Me Me Khant was on a beach in California on the day of the coup, celebrating a friend’s birthday. He turned off the phone data to avoid distractions.
“I was trying to show a video to my friend on the phone. I turned on the data and all those messages were flooded … I couldn’t believe it, “he said.” We knew people were going to protest, we knew things were going to look ugly going forward. “
On February 28 this year, mostly after peaceful protests for about three weeks, security forces fired on the demonstrations and killed at least 18 people. It was just the taste of the massacre that was coming. As of May 23, the military has killed more than 800 civilians, including dozens of children, according to the Association for the Support of Political Prisoners, and is monitoring the deaths. Some of the victims were burned alive or tortured into custody.
“That was the hardest part when the crackdown started,” Me Me Khan said. “We woke up every morning and watched videos of the violence. There is a feeling of guilt and you always want to know what is going on. I couldn’t get out of there. A few weeks have passed since the news of the violence spread. “
Myanmar’s atrocities have prompted many members of the diaspora to do everything they can to fight, including a woman named Shin, who helps Nay Myint organize events in New York.
“You have the kind of guilt alive, I think that’s the best way to describe my feeling. Because your life doesn’t really change. You can do what you want here too. You can have your comfort and safety. But the friends out there are losing everything,” he said. , asking him to use only part of his name for fear of revenge.
Shin said that as soon as the coup took place, he began attending protests in New York and continued “every time.” “The more we step on it, the more we have to climb from here, because we can safely climb,” he said.
Protests that take place approximately every two weeks usually attract a few hundred people, even with the march. Milk Tea Alliance, The Pan-Asian democracy movement, attracted about 3,000 supporters, according to Shin.
The US has taken it the strongest stance against the coup in the international community, The Board of Directors of the State – a governing body created by coup leaders – and the punishment of many members of the cabinet, children of senior military officials and companies associated with the military
But Shin wants more action, including recognition from the US and others Government of the National Union – government in exile – as a legitimate government in Myanmar. NUG members were nominated by a group of legislators elected in the November elections and included representatives from the NLD, ethnic minority groups, civil society and other minor parties.
In September 2017, houses were set on fire in the village of Gawdu Zara in northern Rakhine. Hundreds of thousands of Rohingya have been described as military genocides that sent refugees fleeing to Bangladesh. [File: AP Photo]
But the NUG has also condemned Rohighya’s policy. In 2017, the military a The savage campaign of violence against the Rohingya minority of the Muslim majority in Rakhine State, Crossing about 700,000 border to Bangladesh, has since been said to be ethnic cleansing and genocide.
Aung San Suu Kyi and NLD were condemned for not doing the right thing against cruelty. In 2019, Aung San Suu Kyi defended the country against allegations of genocide in the International Court of Justice.
Earlier this month, Democratic members of the U.S. House of Representatives put Myanmar’s UN representative on the grill as he remained loyal to the civilian government, demanding Rohingya citizenship and a Rohingya representative nominated for the NUG.
“The U.S. would not support the Burmese National Union government if it did not gather the Rohingya delegation,” said California Representative Ted Lieu.
Shin says he understands why some don’t like the NLD but compares the situation to former presidential candidate Bernie Sanders, a spokesman for President Joe Biden, to defeat his predecessor Donald Trump.
“They may not like everything about the NUG, but we voted for it,” he said, saying the attitude is “contemptuous”.
“The exclusion of the NUG is a rejection and damage to democracy.”
Shin believes the NUG will soon publish some of the criticisms of the Rohingya crisis, but has asked foreign powers not to delay recognition.
Financial support
In addition to holding demonstrations and putting pressure on the US government, members of the Myanmar diaspora have also been raising money.
Aung Moe Win, with the Burmese Support the Democracy Movement, said his organization was able to raise more than $ 100,000 in a single day at a fundraising bazaar in Burma’s New Jersey New Year.
Demonstrators gathered around the White House in Washington (DC) last month to show support for the anti-coup movement in Myanmar [FIle: Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images via AFP]
“I think that’s the most that has been created outside of Burma in any city in the world,” he said. Another fundraiser is scheduled for June 19, Aung San Suu Kyi’s birthday.
One-third of the fund has been earmarked for soldiers who have refused to work as soldiers on strike but in many cases have lost their income or been evicted from government housing. One-third has been for representatives of the parallel civilian government. The last part was handed over to civilians who have been displaced by the conflict, after major ethnic armed groups denied the coup and several civil wars broke out in various parts of the country.
As they participated in the pro-democracy movement abroad, Aung Moe Win was forced to flee the country.
“I left Burma and worked for The Irrawaddy magazine in Thailand in Chiang Mai. That was a big change, once I worked at The Irrawaddy, I was exiled. I could never go back, ”he said, referring to a news outlet that has long been critical of the military.
He spent a few years in Thailand before moving to the US before the saffron revolution.
“We are making every effort to help the Burmese, even though we are far away. We can live our lives here; we don’t have to worry about anything,” he said. “But still, we care so much about the country and we want the people of Burma to have the same freedoms and rights that we have in the United States.”
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