"Our generation will not tolerate them anymore."
Real Stories Not Tales (RSNT) is a dedicated team in and out of Myanmar that aims to bring awareness to the reality of young people’s lives since the Myanmar military staged a coup on February 1st, 2021. Stories are collected through interviews with each protagonist by the team, either in Burmese or in English. Each character is drawn by a professional illustrator bringing a visual context to the story. RSNT is a anonymous name that is used by the group to guarantee security to all parties involved in the collection of the Stories. These posts are part of collaboration between Tea Circle and Insight Myanmar to publish Real Stories Not Tale's Report #2. To read Report #1, visit Tea Circle or Insight Myanmar. Two additional stories from RSNT’s Report #2 will be published on Tea Circle at a later date.
Saw Eh Done is an active citizen passionate about community development in Karen State. He was interviewed on July 14th.
“We have lost everything because of the coup: our hope, our human rights. Sometimes it feels like we don’t even own the fresh air around us.”
"Before the coup, I was working for a local organization in Karen State. We focused on strengthening civil society and provided different kinds of trainings and support for the community. When the coup happened, we decided to temporarily suspend our activities. Three months later, when the situation in the country didn't improve, we had to close down, and so I have been unemployed since then.
It's been terrible. We have lost everything because of the coup: our hope, our human rights. Sometimes it feels like we don't even own the fresh air around us. There is a mountain in my area I used to hike, but now there are soldiers stationed at the top to watch out for protesters through their binoculars.
Instead of working, I am supporting the revolution by fundraising for military trainings in KNU-controlled areas. I serve as a contact person for people who want to take part in these trainings, and I am also responsible for arranging transportation to the training sites. On weekends, I attend an English language course. Two of my siblings are participating in the CDM, and my mum died in April because she couldn't receive the necessary treatment in time, since the responsible doctor was a part of the CDM too. If she had gotten the treatment she needed, she would still be alive.
In some ways, Karen State is quite similar to other states and regions in Myanmar, since people here are also participating in the CDM and online activism. However, what’s different is people don’t really think that demonstrations are very effective, so they are only organized rarely and mostly in the bigger towns. Instead, most people are moving to KNU-controlled areas to learn how to shoot or prepare explosives. I think non-violence is only one form of protest, and we have been practicing it for a long time, but still, the military remains so cruel; they don't even follow their own rules or the international law as to how soldiers or the police should behave. So I believe that this time, it is better to use weapons against them. Our generation will not tolerate them anymore.
I try to will myself to be stronger, to stay patient. Every morning when I wake up, I am faced with a stream of bad news of the military killing innocent people. It’s difficult. What helps me is chatting or meeting with my friends, and I also meditate and go to the monastery during a full moon. I had been planning to apply for a scholarship to study abroad, but now I want to invest as much of myself as possible into the revolution, so the situation in the country gets better and we finally get democracy.
My wish for Myanmar is to stay strong, patient, and hopeful. It is true that we are facing many difficulties now, but who knows, maybe the military is in even a worse situation than us."