A Nerve Wracking Escape
With a fearless spirit and a camera in hand, Nyein defies the traditional expectations placed upon her as a woman in Burmese culture. Cultivating this attitude during the democratic transition of the 2010s, she has become a trailblazer as the country's only female photojournalist, capturing powerful images of military oppression. Despite her successes, she remains acutely aware of the ongoing limitations and discrimination faced by women in her society. As the coup unfolded, she documented the growing protests in Yangon, despite the danger it presented to her as a woman and a photojournalist. But it was an experience on March 14th, 2021, in Hlaing Thayar that would change her life forever. Trapped among the protesters as the military opened fire, Nyein witnessed death and destruction all around her. She sought refuge on an apartment balcony, continuing to capture the chaos below, but the trauma would lead to a complete mental breakdown. Through meditation, therapy, and medication, Nyein slowly began to heal. But as her reputation grew, she no longer felt safe in her own home and was forced to constantly change her sleeping location. Ultimately, she realized that the only way to truly be safe was to leave Myanmar. Her departure from Yangon Airport was a nerve-wracking experience, but she managed to make it safely to Thailand. Now in her new home, Nyein remains resolute in her determination to follow her dreams, urging others to do the same, regardless of gender or sexual orientation. "If you're really interested in photography," she says, "you just have to have to follow your dreams." Listen to the full interview with Nyein to learn more about her amazing story.
“When I move to another place, I always think about the escape plan. I even try it out with climbing ropes, because I usually I usually do rock climbing.”
There was one day that in Sanchaung - the police and the people - there was a young man who drew up a gun against the soldier. It happened near my house. So, in the evening, the police were trying to search again, and I don't know if they were really searching for the gun, but the family who lived down downstairs from my building, they told me that the police and the other soldiers, they knocked really hard on my door! It's really lucky, because at that time I was on my way back home; so, one of my friends who lived on the same road, near me, told me that there are a lot of soldiers and police at my place.
She sent me photos of it. I was really freaked out, because I was worrying about what I left at home and what if they break into my house? But actually they didn’t do it; after they knocked for like 30 minutes, they went back. Yeah, that was really close. Then I moved to another place. When I move to another place, I always think about the escape plan. I even try it out with climbing ropes, because I usually I usually do rock climbing. So, I set up my room with a lot of ropes and when it is really happening, I have to escape it at all costs.
In September of last year, I thought about leaving Myanmar, because I had sleepless nights and really mental breaking down, and I couldn't even look back at my photos that I took during the coup. There were these kind of really terrifying moments. So, for the time being, I couldn’t look back at my photos. I decided to escape Myanmar. But that time I thought about going without a passport and crossing the border, but I took a risk. I flew from the airport and then entered to Thailand. So, in the airport, it is a really exciting moment; my knees are shaking.
When the one in the immigration counter – before I waited at the boarding gate, we have to pass the immigration counter - at that time the police officer from the immigration counter checked my passport for like five or ten minutes. I had to wait. Other times, I was like, ‘Oh shit! I'm going to be arrested!’ And those kinds of thoughts inside me. Even when I was waiting at the boarding gate, I couldn’t sit really peacefully. I went to the toilet like three or four times before I boarded the flight. So, that's how I escaped. It was really nerve-wracking.”