Literature is an echoing voice of people's thought. Myanmar literature and media have suffered a lot along with people during five decades of censorship. The majority of Myanmar's population are voiceless, and many untold stories are yet to be discovered by local or international writers and journalists. Here let's try to find and listen to what problems people are feeling, thinking, and facing regarding freedom of expression in everyday lives in Myanmar.
Ma Thida is a Burmese human rights activist, writer, medical doctor, and former prisoner of consciousness. In 1993, she was sentenced to twenty years in Burma's Insein Prison for actively supporting the Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi. She served six years of her sentence, largely in solitary confinement and was released through the efforts of Amnesty International and PEN International. She has published nine books in Burmese and English, including The Sunflower (1999), The Roadmap (2011), and Sanchaung, Insein, Harvard (2012), a memoir. Ma Thida is currently president of PEN Myanmar.
Are People Living in the State of Confusion?
by Ma Thida / September 30, 2016
Ma Thida discusses the circumstances surrounding the 2016 Panglong Peace Conference in Myanmar.
Transparency is the Best Propaganda for Burma's New Government
by Ma Thida / July 1, 2016
Ma Thida comments on the Ministry of Information's censorship of the 4th Human Rights and Human Dignity film festival in Myanmar.
Will Peace Reconcile Burma's New Government and Army?
by Ma Thida / March 21, 2016
After a historic election in November 2015, Burma's many ethnic and political groups face the challenges of transitioning to a citizen-led government.
Is National Reconciliation Finally Possible in Burma?
by Ma Thida / December 2, 2015
The 2015 election results show promise that a new government might be able to foster reconciliation between it and the Burmese people.
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