Hear Me Now
Insight Myanmar12 Apr 2025

Hear Me Now

Episode #335: “It was super hard to cope with.” That’s how Mia Kruska, a German researcher and policy advisor with the Green Party in Berlin, describes learning about the devastating earthquake that recently struck Myanmar. Mia has cultivated personal, academic, and professional ties to the country over the past decade. Her connection began with a backpacking trip in 2014 that evolved into her academic career. She also served as board chair of the Myanmar Institut in Germany and currently works on Southeast Asia policy issues.

When the earthquake hit, after checking in on her friends in Myanmar and along the Thai border, she was overwhelmed by emotion and helplessness. But rather than simply repost traumatic images, she turned to a lesson from her early time in Myanmar: Burmese generosity. She recalls, “You have to be thankful for giving,” and used this insight to encourage meaningful, grassroots donations.

Mia challenges Western narratives that cast Myanmar as mainly a victim. She emphasizes the resilience and reciprocity of its people—both within the country and in exile. She also reflects critically on the ethical responsibilities of Western researchers, highlighting the importance of acknowledging privilege and subjective bias, and the willingness to engage with humility in collaborative endeavors.

Her message to fellow allies is clear: show empathy, offer material support, and don’t be deterred by complexity. “Even ten euros make a little difference,” she says. Ultimately, despite the many challenges, Mia concludes with an enduring sentiment: “I still have hope.”

Episoder(542)

Bonus Episode: Shelter From The Storm

Bonus Episode: Shelter From The Storm

In this bonus episode, Better Burma’s monastic donation manager, Mora, shares what he has been seeing on the ground in Myanmar after years of conflict and displacement, now compounded by the March 28,...

1 Apr 38min

Coming to Practice

Coming to Practice

Episode #511: Like many young Kiwis, Jarrod Newell wanted to see the world. Taking advantage of the special working holiday visas available in the United Kingdom, he traveled to London,where he partic...

31 Mar 2h 29min

On the Threshold

On the Threshold

Episode #510: “I'm not an activist,” says Bart Was Not Here, a Burmese artist whose politically oriented work reflects a life shaped by dictatorship and displacement. He argues that art creates a spac...

30 Mar 2h 9min

Reality Bites

Reality Bites

Episode #509: “I don’t have hope. But I think that this is something that I should accept. It is reality.” Chalida Tajaroensuk, a longtime advocate of democratic reform and human rights across the Sou...

27 Mar 1h 48min

The Justice League

The Justice League

Episode #508: Damian Lilly, a veteran humanitarian and human-rights specialist, who has worked in conflict zones across the world, believes assistance must be joined with protection and accountability...

26 Mar 1h 40min

Terra Incognita

Terra Incognita

Episode #507: “It’s a process of learning and unlearning, and understanding that knowledge exists in many places and is everywhere, not just in the academy,” says Davina Quinlivan, an Anglo-Burmese wr...

24 Mar 1h 19min

Never Again

Never Again

Episode #506: “I think the toll of doing dedicated work even as we grow older is so small compared to that of so many brave Myanmar activists. I can support the cause, but I can also choose not to con...

23 Mar 2h 6min

Conflict Takes Root

Conflict Takes Root

Episode #505: In February, Timor-Leste opened judicial proceedings against Myanmar’s military regime, marking the first time one ASEAN member has initiated legal action against another. Supporting the...

20 Mar 2h 2min

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