Insight Myanmar28 Aug 2025

Barely Breathing

Episode #386: Maw Htun, Deputy Minister for Electricity and Energy in Myanmar's National Unity Government (NUG), has navigated a path defined by personal tribulation and transformation since the 2021 coup. His journey began with joining the NUG to fulfill a lifelong dream of systemic change, but was soon overshadowed by a battle with cancer. With his critical illness and having to endure a series of complex medical procedures, Maw Htun faced an existential crisis. This harrowing experience, including a miraculous recovery linked to a burgeoning meditation practice, radically reshaped his worldview and even his political outlook.

Previously driven by achievements, he found a deeper humility, recognizing the fragility of life and the illusion of fixed identities. Though recognizing his Kachin and Christian identities, his experience of suffering led him to perceive social identities as “constructs,” advocating for a politics focused on shared humanity. He advocates for a federal democracy that genuinely ensures “making life better no matter who you are.”

Maw Htun's role in the NUG is central to this vision. He describes the body as a legitimate government and a revolutionary force, battling resource constraints and public expectations. He asserts its essential role in rallying support and establishing defense forces, arguing that the junta's brutal aerial attacks prove “the NUG mechanism is working.” While acknowledging valid criticisms regarding efficiency and representation, he stresses the NUG's dedication to human rights and its non-static, evolving nature– a resilience that fuels his resolve to fight for a future Myanmar free from discrimination.

Denne episoden er hentet fra en åpen RSS-feed og er ikke publisert av Podme. Den kan derfor inneholde annonser.

Episoder(564)

The Architecture Of Exclusion

Episode #549: Mohammad Siraj, a Rohingya researcher, political analyst, educator, and aspiring legal scholar living in a refugee camp in Bangladesh, studies citizenship, constitutional reform, educati...

5 Jun 1h 28min

An Officer and a Gentleman

Episode #548: Sunda Khin shares a remarkable family journey through contemporary Burmese history. She starts with her father, U Chan Htoon, who suggested that a young Indian businessman named S.N. Goe...

4 Jun 2h 36min

No Man’s Land

Episode #547: Scott Leckie, an international human rights lawyer, and Jose Arraiza, a specialist in housing, land, and property rights and citizenship in conflict-affected settings, argue that land in...

2 Jun 1h 42min

From the Other Shore

Episode #546: Recorded in Kuala Lumpur during Malaysia’s final stretch as ASEAN chair, this is the second episode in a three part series which looks less at policy language and more at political conse...

1 Jun 1h 17min

The Long Fuse

Episode #545: The promise of justice for war crimes in Myanmar is far from perfect, says Dr. Stuart Casey-Maslen, a leading legal expert on disarmament and international humanitarian law. The military...

29 Mai 1h 19min

Acts of Translation

Episode #544: May Shine, a recent graduate of the Elliott School of International Affairs, approaches policy work from the position of someone shaped by displacement and minority identity within Myanm...

28 Mai 1h 17min

Through the Interregnum

Episode #543: “We believe in dialogs among people of different backgrounds,” says Chayan Vaddhanaphuti, a Thai professor at Chiang Mai University and director of the Regional Center for Social Science...

26 Mai 1h 8min

The Path Awakens

Episode #542: Max Ante, a former deeply committed practitioner of the Goenka Vipassana tradition, describes a spiritual journey shaped by a relentless desire to understand reality directly, regardless...

25 Mai 2h 30min