Where is Myanmar headed?
The democratically elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi was ousted in a military coup in 2021. Since then, ethnic minority armed groups and pro-democracy fighters have been battling against the junta’s forces. Over two million people were already displaced within the country. Now, it's estimated that half a million more have been displaced. That's according to the UN. Recently in October, three ethnic minority groups teamed up in northern Shan state and launched a surprise attack against the military. At the beginning of December, Myanmar's junta chief called on ethnic armed groups to find a political solution. This week, China said peace talks had been held. Another meeting was reportedly slated for later this month. China is a major ally and arms supplier of Myanmar's junta. On Wednesday, those ethnic minority groups reaffirmed they would fight to end the country’s dictatorship.
It's not just ethnic minority groups fighting against the military. Take the Sagaing Region where most citizens belong to the majority Bamar ethnic group and are Buddhist. That region is often referred to as a "hotbed of resistance" to the military rule. Some of the first battles occurred in this northwestern region bordering India. Since fighting erupted, the territory has been carved up by anti-junta forces and the military.
But away from the frontline, much of this hotbed of resistance is made up of displaced civilians struggling to survive the conflict. The United Nations tallies over 800,000 displaced in that region alone. That’s over a third of the population there. Justin Higginbottom visited an IDP camp in the Sagaing Region.
Looking for a better life abroad
Overseas workers from the Philippines often take on jobs such as domestic helpers, caregivers or nurses. They send back home money to their families, trying to carve out a better life for them. Going abroad to work is encouraged by the Philippine’s government and there are a ton of agencies advertising jobs. But some of them run a kind of bait-and-switch scheme: they promise one job in a safe country to then send them someplace else: That’s what happened to Lucy Cayamba when she was trafficked to Syria. Ylenia Gostoli met her and other women who are trying to rebuild their lives and fight for justice.
What these women in the Philippines went through also happens elsewhere – people being brought to other countries under false pretenses. Just like what we are about to hear from Kenya. Ineke Mules has more, in this story by Julia Linn.