A Soldier's Wife
The following was written by Ma Thwe Thwe Aye and translated by Nasir. The story is made possible from the team behind Breaking Brainwashed, an organization dedicated to encouraging soldier defections.
“It is true that if you marry a soldier, you are forced to remain with the military.
Before I got married, I was always confident in my decisions and thoughts. I did not have worries about living, as I thought that I could eat what I farm. Then when I agreed to marry my husband, I thought that I could save money from his military salary, which was about 2 lakh. But I learned how wrong I was after we got married! I can not save any money because they take money out of my husband’s salary for insurance, a welfare fund, the U Paing fund, etc. I don’t have eny money for monastery donations or even basic shopping. I can’t even buy new clothes for myself! It is fortunate that we do not have any children yet!
I knew that our lives within the military would be different than in the outside world. But I can not abide the reality of this military life! We cannot live our own lives. We have to do what the commander and his wife order, otherwise my husband would not be allowed to return from the front lines. I have to clean, cook and wash clothes at my husband’s commander’s house, as if I were their maid! But even a maid gets paid for such work. Yet we military spouses have to do this work for free, while also fearing our husband’s superior officers and their wives. And sometimes we also have to attend long talks, and we can’t do anything else that day.
Normal housewives enjoy a much better life than we soldiers’ wives. They can concentrate on their own housework and pursue their hobbies or even try to make money through a business. They can do whatever they want, really!
Initially, I was proud of being a soldier’s wife as I believed that our soldiers sacrifice their lives for the country. But now, I only see an angry civilian population being oppressed by the military and its soldiers. There are no civilians left who have any love left for our soldiers. But since the coup, I don’t dare say anything and can’t even use social media freely because our Facebook accounts are all under the control of military. I feel pity for my husband who is now posted on the front lines of the battlefield. I want to talk with him to better understand the situation, and I want us to stand on the same side as the civilians. I don’t want him to lose his life just for the senior officers’ benefit!
I only ever wanted him to serve in the army while standing for justice and not in any way engaged in an abuse of authority.
Thank you so much for reading.”