Even in Karen State we played scrabble to improve our English. If we couldn’t afford to buy a scrabble set we would make our own out of bamboo.
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UNSEEN MAE LA
An innovative arts project for Karen refugees from Burma to describe their lives through photography.
UNSEEN MAE LA
An innovative arts project for Karen refugees from Burma to describe their lives through photography.
My Story
I fled my homeland because my life was in danger. When the Burmese military first attacked my village they killed all of our animals, even our chickens. They forced us to build a military camp for them in our village. No one was paid for the labor or supplies we used to build their camp. They called it “volunteer labor”. One day they came and took my brother away. He was forced to travel with them to a nearby village. His job was to walk in front of the soldiers in case there were any landmines. My brother was lucky that day because no landmines exploded. Others have been less lucky.
I want to be a politician. If our people understand politics we can secure our human rights and achieve freedom. If we have representatives we can stand up to oppression and gain international support. I love the ideas of Gandhi and would like to learn more about other leaders like him. Unfortunately in Burma, if we try to protest non-violently we are killed, especially the ethnic minorities. Therefore we need soldiers to defend ourselves from the Burmese military. No one else protects our people from their constant attacks. Still I believe through politics we can make greater changes and work towards democracy.
I want to be a politician. If our people understand politics we can secure our human rights and achieve freedom. If we have representatives we can stand up to oppression and gain international support. I love the ideas of Gandhi and would like to learn more about other leaders like him. Unfortunately in Burma, if we try to protest non-violently we are killed, especially the ethnic minorities. Therefore we need soldiers to defend ourselves from the Burmese military. No one else protects our people from their constant attacks. Still I believe through politics we can make greater changes and work towards democracy.