The Spirit of Disobedience

Episode #388: “Every day in Myanmar, people are living in constant fear, fear of air strike, fear of artillery, fear of arbitrary arrest, fear of extra judicial killing. As long as the military is in power, the country will not be in peace,” says Alex, a Burmese activist-in-exile about Myanmar's brutal reality under military rule. His believes that the military’s planned, upcoming elections are in his words “a sham,” just a strategy to consolidate power and a deceptive charade to gain international legitimacy. Because they already hold 25% of the Parliamentary seats under the fraudulent 2008 Constitution, which sets the minimum limit of 33% of the total seats as the threshold for being able to form a government, they just need 8% more. This leads Alex to conclude that the junta will easily be able to manipulate the results to achieve whatever outcome they want. “They are trying to lie to the world, to the country, that’s what they have been doing since day one.”

The second guest is Wunna, and he describes how on the morning of February 1, 2021, he recalls an eerie silence. The internet was down and phone lines had been cut. Wunna and a friend drove to Naypyidaw to see what was happening – they observed MPs being held under house arrest, guarded by soldiers. “I couldn’t even describe how I felt that day. It was really powerless and hopeless on the first day.” This direct experience at Ground Zero propelled him into action. He joined the Civil Disobedience Movement (CDM), arranging safe houses and transportation for civil servants. But his bank account was subsequently frozen, and the escalating risk finally forced him to reluctantly make the agonizing decision to leave Myanmar, joining countless exiles.

Despite his personal sacrifice, Wunna clings to a powerful conviction. He believes the revolution, built from nothing, still has the opportunity to prevail. To avoid despair, he just focuses on what is within his power to do. He acknowledges international skepticism to the resistance but affirms its strength. He advocates for constructive criticism, but says that it should be accompanied by practical suggestions, and not just empty theorizing. His final message is a call to global solidarity: “I just want to request, be part of our history in defending and nurturing democracy.”