RESISTING MILITARY RULE IN BURMA (1988-2024); Story of Mizzima Media: Born in Exile, Banned in Myanmar

Description

In 1990, Soe Myint, a Burmese activist hijacked a plane and landed in India. Living in exile, he co-founded a media house, Mizzima. The role of Mizzima in exposing the brutalities of the military junta to the international community was no small feat. Following the restoration of democracy, in 2012, Soe Myint returned to Myanmar and Mizzima became the first media in exile to return to Myanmar. But, in February 2021, the military once again staged a coup. Mizzima was banned, raided and forced to go underground; yet, they persisted, and continued to report.

The courage, grit and determination of Burmese journalists like Soe Myint and several others to report in the face of threats, arrests, summary executions and aerial bombings is awe-inspiring and gut wrenching. This book is about their courageous journalism against all odds and their role in the resistance to the military junta in Myanmar.

Soe Myint and Nandita Haksar, an Indian human rights lawyer, have been friends for more than three decades, and their friendship is a living testimony to the enduring value of human solidarity. In this book, they come together to lay bare a conflict that has serious repercussions not only to Burma, but to the entire region, especially Northeastern region of India.

Nandita Haksar (70) has been a human rights lawyer since the 1980s. She has been taking up the cause of Burmese refugees since 1990 and has set precedents in refugee law. Haksar, is the author of several books, including Rouge Agent: How India’s Military Intelligence Betrayed the Burmese Resistance (2009). Several of Haksar’s books have been awarded for spreading the message of peace, including the first ever ‘Rotary Writing For Peace Award’ in 2022.

Soe Myint (58) is an award-winning Burmese journalist. He is the Managing Director and Editor-in-Chief, Mizzime Media Group. After the military coup in February 2021 Mizzima was banned. Soe Myint and 17 other Mizzima journalists are charged by the junta for crimes that could carry life sentences. Soe Myint and his Mizzima team continues to work from difference locations inside and outside the country.