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This photo was taken by a KHRG community member on June 6th 2016 in N--- village, Htantabin Township, Toungoo District. It shows a woman arriving at her farm to bring her husband his lunch which she prepared at home. [Photo: KHRG]
“In my opinion, I can’t entirely trust what the government said. … They both [the government and the KNU] held their guns, here and there. They were enemies before. Now, they made peace. I can’t believe it yet, but if they stop holding their guns, I can believe.”
Naw T--- (female, 50), S--- village, K’Dee Poo village tract, Thaton Township, Thaton District/northern Mon State (interviewed in May 2012)
The time period covered in Hidden Strengths, Hidden Struggles, January 2012 to March 2016, was characterised by dramatic and substantial changes in Myanmar, including the political reform process; the 2012 preliminary ceasefire agreement between the Karen National Union (KNU) and the Government of Myanmar; the 2015 Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA); and the November 2015 general election, in which the National League for Democracy (NLD) won a landslide victory, marking a change of course from the previous reign of consecutive military-backed governments.
This report comes ten years after KHRG published Dignity in the Shadow of Oppression, an extensive report highlighting the abuse and agency of Karen women in southeast Myanmar, in a highly militarised context during the conflict period. Hidden Strengths, Hidden Struggles revisits perspectives and abuses explored in that report, as well as new ones identified by KHRG community members, and sheds light on the situation for women in the present context. KHRG launches this report at a time when women’s issues, both in Myanmar and globally, are gaining momentum, and women are increasingly asserting their right to be considered as equal stakeholders in Myanmar’s future.
The detailed portrayal of women’s voices in this report is based on an analysis of 1,048 documents, including 98 interviews with women, collected by KHRG between January 2012 and March 2016. This report aims to present a comprehensive picture of the changing roles and experiences of women in southeast Myanmar.
KHRG presents the perspectives of local women on issues identified by them, including livelihoods, militarisation,health, education, and others. The report outlines human rights abuses that are of particular concern for women, including gender-based violence (GBV), and how continued human rights abuses in southeast Myanmar affect women and men differently, an aspect that is often overlooked. In addition, it highlights the agency strategies that women employ for self-protection, and the challenges they face when attempting to access justice for abuses. Finally, the report suggests ways to address the issues raised and improve the situation for women in southeast Myanmar, by giving concrete recommendations to the Government of Myanmar, ethnic armed organisations, local and international civil society organisations, and the international community supporting the peace process and in Myanmar. KHRG is confident that this report will provide a valuable resource for practitioners and stakeholders working on issues related to southeast Myanmar, and that it can be used as a tool in developing an awareness of local women’s concerns and agency. KHRG also believes that the report will be equally interesting for members of the general public who would like to learn more about women’s perspectives of the situation on the ground in rural southeast Myanmar.
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All the photos were taken by a KHRG member. The first was taken on November 13th 2014, at a hill farm in H--- village, Daw Poo village tract, Hpapun District. The photo shows two women winnowing rice, an ancient technique which separates the grain from the chaff. The second photo, taken on February 7th 2015, shows a Myanmar government nurse in M--- village, Kyainseikgyi Township, Dooplay District, giving a health check to a pregnant woman. The nurse offered vaccinations to children under the age of two, and health checks for the pregnant women. The next photo was also taken in Dooplaya District, in February 2012, in N--- village, Kawkareik Township. Naw P--- is 47 years old, and was injured by a landmine near N---village before a warning sign was placed there. Her left leg was badly injured, as was her left foot, which later had to be amputated. She received treatment at Maesot General Hospital in Thailand. Nae P--- has six children. The last photo was taken on January 6th 2015, in D--- village, Toungoo District. It shows students in Standard 4 at their school. Villagers reported that the children were trying to learn how to read and write the Myanmar Language alphabet, but that they were not able to do so due to poor teaching. [Photos: KHRG]
“In my opinion, I can’t entirely trust what the government said. … They both [the government and the KNU] held their guns, here and there. They were enemies before. Now, they made peace. I can’t believe it yet, but if they stop holding their guns, I can believe.”
Naw T--- (female, 50), S--- village, K’Dee Poo village tract, Thaton Township, Thaton District/northern Mon State (interviewed in May 2012)
The time period covered in Hidden Strengths, Hidden Struggles, January 2012 to March 2016, was characterised by dramatic and substantial changes in Myanmar, including the political reform process; the 2012 preliminary ceasefire agreement between the Karen National Union (KNU) and the Government of Myanmar; the 2015 Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA); and the November 2015 general election, in which the National League for Democracy (NLD) won a landslide victory, marking a change of course from the previous reign of consecutive military-backed governments.
This report comes ten years after KHRG published Dignity in the Shadow of Oppression, an extensive report highlighting the abuse and agency of Karen women in southeast Myanmar, in a highly militarised context during the conflict period. Hidden Strengths, Hidden Struggles revisits perspectives and abuses explored in that report, as well as new ones identified by KHRG community members, and sheds light on the situation for women in the present context. KHRG launches this report at a time when women’s issues, both in Myanmar and globally, are gaining momentum, and women are increasingly asserting their right to be considered as equal stakeholders in Myanmar’s future.
The detailed portrayal of women’s voices in this report is based on an analysis of 1,048 documents, including 98 interviews with women, collected by KHRG between January 2012 and March 2016. This report aims to present a comprehensive picture of the changing roles and experiences of women in southeast Myanmar.
KHRG presents the perspectives of local women on issues identified by them, including livelihoods, militarisation,health, education, and others. The report outlines human rights abuses that are of particular concern for women, including gender-based violence (GBV), and how continued human rights abuses in southeast Myanmar affect women and men differently, an aspect that is often overlooked. In addition, it highlights the agency strategies that women employ for self-protection, and the challenges they face when attempting to access justice for abuses. Finally, the report suggests ways to address the issues raised and improve the situation for women in southeast Myanmar, by giving concrete recommendations to the Government of Myanmar, ethnic armed organisations, local and international civil society organisations, and the international community supporting the peace process and in Myanmar. KHRG is confident that this report will provide a valuable resource for practitioners and stakeholders working on issues related to southeast Myanmar, and that it can be used as a tool in developing an awareness of local women’s concerns and agency. KHRG also believes that the report will be equally interesting for members of the general public who would like to learn more about women’s perspectives of the situation on the ground in rural southeast Myanmar.