Gen A | Youth in Revolt: Myanmar

Myanmar girl with Megaphone - Robert Bociaga Olk Bon - Shutterstock

#WhatsHappeningInMyanmar: How are young women leading Myanmar’s anti-coup protests from within and outside of national borders?

Since the Myanmar military seized power in February, acts of civilian opposition are being met with increasing brutality. Peaceful protestors resisting military take over and demanding the release of civilian leaders including Aung San Suu Kyi are losing their lives at the hands of the junta. Those on the front lines of these pro-democracy demonstrations are overwhelmingly young people, who, despite the gravity of the situation and a lack of financial and other resources, are continuing to mobilise with humour, creativity, and a digital expertise not known by the generations that came before them. Emerging too is a growing number of women taking a lead role in the fight for freedom and democracy.

Asia Society Australia is honoured to host Burmese activists Wai Wai Nu and Aye Thiri Kyaw, in-conversation with ANU's Dr Justine Chambers, for an important discussion on the growing unrest in Myanmar and how women and young people are exercising agency and the tools at their disposal to lead the decentralised anti-coup movement, moderated by Asia Society Policy Institute Senior Fellow Richard Maude.

Date: Thursday 15 April 2021
Time: 11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. AEST

This event is open to all Asia Society members and youth partners and is by invitation only. Registration is essential. For any enquiries, please contact programaustralia@asiasociety.org. If you would like to access this event and are a member of an Australian Asia-focused youth organisation, please contact your organisation’s executive team.

About the Series

Youth in Revolt: Asia’s Pro-Democracy Movements

Pro-democracy sentiment is sweeping across Asia and young people are leading the charge. #MilkTeaAlliance has emerged as not only a hashtag, but a rallying cry and display of solidarity against increasing authoritarianism throughout the region. In Hong Kong, Thailand, and now Myanmar, harrowing scenes of militarised violence are often juxtaposed with images of pop culture, pop music and puns - Gen Z’s flair pervades despite the very serious risk to life and livelihood posed to those demonstrating.

Asia Society Australia, under our Generation Asia initiative, is proud to announce a new series exploring youth-led pro-democracy movements across Asia.

This series will track the human cost and impact of youth-led movements, unpack the role and capacity for social media to mobilise the masses and examine how young people are demanding action, stepping into their power and emerging as a powerful force in the fight for democracy. Discussions will bring youth activists together with leading analysts and academics from foreign policy, defence and security, and social sciences.

About our Speakers

Wai Wai Nu, Founder and Executive Director, Women’s Peace Network

After seven years as a political prisoner in Burma, Wai Wai Nu emerged as a prominent voice fighting for equal rights and democracy. In 2013, she founded Women’s Peace Network.

Since then, she has tirelessly fought against the political oppression, violence and genocide that’s plagued women, youth and marginalized communities, especially those from the Rakhine State. Her continued peace building efforts have earned her national and international recognition. Wai Wai Nu received her bachelor’s degree in law from the University of Yangon in Myanmar, and obtained her master’s degree in law from the University of California, Berkeley.

∨ Show More

Aye Thiri Kyaw, Academic and Activist

Aye Thiri is a violence against woman researcher and activist from Myanmar. She is a social scientist whose research interests focuses on the feminist movement, the intersection of violence against women and children, and evidence-based policymaking.

Aye Thiri recently completed her Master's Degree from the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), where she received the Delia Ashworth prize for her outstanding performance. Before LSE, she worked for the UN in Myanmar for 3 years. Her exceptional contribution to humanitarian work has earned her the recognition of Women of the future in South East Asia. You can listen to her TEDx talk here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N9yttv-YgVc. For more published work, visit http://ayethirikyaw.com/.

∨ Show More

Justine Chambers, Visiting Fellow at the School of Culture, History and Language, Australian National University

Dr Justine Chambers is a Visiting Fellow at the School of Culture, History and Language at the Australian National University. She has a PhD in Anthropology from the ANU and has conducted research on Myanmar’s Karen since 2014.

Her research interests include understandings of morality, ethno-national conflict, youth, Buddhism and gender relations and her work has appeared in The Asia-Pacific Journal of Anthropology and Sojourn: Journal of Social Issues.

She has also co-edited two volumes for the ANU’s Myanmar Update series, with the latest Living with Myanmar published in November 2020 by the ISEAS-Yusok Ishak Institute in Singapore. Dr Chambers has also worked as a research consultant for the British Council in Myanmar on issues related to customary land rights and the country’s plural justice systems.

∨ Show More

Richard Maude, Executive Director, Policy, Asia Society Australia and Senior Fellow, Asia Society Policy Institute

Richard Maude is Executive Director of Policy at Asia Society Australia and a Senior Fellow at the Asia Society Policy Institute. He is a former senior Australian government official with 30 years’ experience in foreign policy and national security.

From 2018 to 2019, Mr Maude was Deputy Secretary, Indo-Pacific Group, in the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and Australia’s senior official to the East Asia Summit.

In 2017, Mr Maude was head of the whole-of-government taskforce which supported the preparation of the Australian Government’s 2017 Foreign Policy White Paper.

Mr Maude was Director-General of the Office of National Assessments from May 2013 until November 2016. Before taking up this position, Mr Maude was the senior adviser on foreign policy and national security issues to Prime Minister Julia Gillard.

He has served overseas in Malaysia, where he was Deputy High Commissioner, Singapore and as the Liaison Officer for the Office of National Assessments in the Australian Embassy in Washington DC.

Mr Maude is a member of the Futures Council of the National Security College at the Australian National University and Director of the ANU Crawford Leadership Forum.

∨ Show More

Gen A (Generation Asia) is Asia Society Australia’s young leaders network. It is a learning and leadership development platform for early career professionals (under 35) from our member and partner organisations. Gen A activities are content-driven and designed to enrich participants understanding of Asia and Australia’s place in the region. Gen A members gain access to leading business, policy, trade, diversity and cultural thinkers on Asia and join a network of peers who are passionate about our region.from the business, political, educational and cultural institutions that make up the Asia Society network.

Asia Society Australia acknowledges the support of the Victorian Government.

Event Details

Online

Thu 15 Apr 2021

11 a.m. - 12 p.m.

Melbourne Time

Calculate your local time »

20210415T110000 20210415T120000 Australia/Sydney Asia Society: Gen A | Youth in Revolt: Myanmar MEMBER AND YOUTH PARTNERS Join Burmese youth activists and analysts for an update on the growing unrest in Myanmar and how women and young people are exercising agency and using the tools at their disposal to lead the anti-coup movement. For event details visit https://asiasociety.org/australia/events/gen-youth-revolt-myanmar For event details visit https://asiasociety.org/australia/events/gen-youth-revolt-myanmar