Until the End of the World

It seems that l cannot escape the Myanmar Junta even on home soil; the now-former Myanmar envoy to the UK . Kyaw Zwar Minn, was locked out of the embassy in London on Wednesday after speaking out against the coup and supporting the move for Aung San Su Kyi to be reinstated as leader. Of course, the foreign secretary Dominic Raab condemned the 'bullying' tactics of the military but diplomacy has its own rules unbeknownst to you or l and despite Raab's efforts, the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations must be observed. It's a simple process where the government merely needs to inform the host country that the ambassador no longer has the job. Yes, that simple.  The relative simplicity makes this situation all the more ridiculous but also all the more frustrating. Equally as serious is the message this gives to Myanmar people; the Junta is the legitimate government. I went on Twitter earlier today and l was disappointed to read comments saying they were not surprised ...

Over the past few days, protesters have had to continue to come up with creative and innovative ideas to get around the more frequent internet cuts made by the military. One of my students has likened them to their ears and eyes shutting down.  One such response is a daily pamphlet called 'The Voice of Spring', which is circulated to both inform communities of what is happening across the country and to connect them. Again quick-thinking and resourcefulness, two qualities l began to associate with Myanmar in my first few months there, utilized by the people to counter the actions of the security forces. The powers that be may indeed have all the might, but it seems they have completely underestimated a nation of keen survivors; grittiness and perseverance are two further qualities Myanmar people seem to have in abundance, borne out of decades of oppressive military rule. You could say these qualities are firmly entrenched in their DNA. However, whilst I admire Myanmar protester...