For some the nightmare has returned, but for ethnic people the nightmare never stopped
When the military seized power on February 1, arresting elected National League for Democracy (NLD) leaders including State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi and President Win Myint, the current nightmare started.
The people of Myanmar already know what life is like under a military regime: No rule of law. No right to speak or to move freely. A poor education system and a lack of healthcare. Social problems, economic stagnation, and a loss of livelihoods. No human rights.
But for ethnic nationalities there is also an added dimension: fear.
While the media focus has largely been on the protests against the coup in Myanmar’s major cities, there has been little attention paid to the uniquely challenging plight of the country’s ethnic and indigenous peoples, who make up at least 30 percent of the population. There has been little coverage of military operations now occurring in ethnic territories.
Esther Wah
