‘I’M OKAY, BUT IT’S STILL SCARY’: Ilonggo narrates life in Myanmar amid military coup

By Joseph B.A. Marzan

 

(The name of the interviewee has been changed to protect his identity and for his security)

“Daniel” has been working in Myanmar for several years, living in the more affluent part of the capital city of Naypyidaw where people could not enter if they do not have any official business inside.

Living only six kilometers from the parliament complex, Daniel and his colleagues and friends on February 1, 2021 were shocked when they had learned that the Tatmadaw, the country’s military, had taken over the government.

This was the fourth time the military took over the country more than 60 years after gaining its independence from Britain.

The military, at least on paper, gave the reins of government in 2011.

In the wee hours of February 1, a spokesman for the ruling party, the National League for Democracy, reported that State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi, President Win Myint, and party leader Han Tha Myint were arrested in a raid.

The state-run television station was unable to broadcast and internet connection was also reported to have been cut off as early as 3AM on the same day.

A few hours later, the military announced on a military-run television station that it had taken control of the government, invalidated the results of the November 8, 2020 general election, and that all administrative, legislative, and judiciary powers had been transferred to coup leader Min Aung Hlaing.

This led to weeks of civil unrest in the capital and in major areas in the country such as Yangon (the old capital) and Mandalay.

“Daniel” told Daily Guardian that the events of February 21 happened quickly, and that until now, there was no internet access even in the early hours of the morning.

He had only been relying on a Virtual Private Network (VPN) based in Canada to be able to connect to the internet since then.

Daniel said he was also not a frequent caller to his family in Iloilo, but because of the situation, he has started to reach out to his family more often.

“It was very close, we didn’t anticipate anything and we were just shocked with what had happened. All of us were very shocked because on that day, all means of communication were cut. There was no frequency to call or text. Everything was cut off,” Daniel said.

He said that his previous experience as a journalist back home helped shape his response to the situation, but he could not say the same for others in Myanmar.

“For me, I’m just cool, because I’m used to it. I used to be a journalist, wherever I go, I see the worst scenarios. I am thankful that this had happened to me because this is an experience. I have something to tell. But for others, they are worried, they have anxiety and get sleepless,” he said.

Daniel’s connection to a photographer of one of the arrested protest leaders and his habit of liking and sharing posts also caused him some amount of danger.

He also shared a recent experience of someone knocking on his door at midnight, as well as random “suspicious” phone calls, which prompted him to board up his doors and windows before he goes to sleep.

“In the middle of the night, someone knocked on my door, and to think, where I live is big. I thought at first who it would be, but I didn’t mind. Days before that, someone called me, talking in the local language, he was shocked when I spoke in English and asked if I was a foreigner, to which I said yes. He apologized to me and then dropped the call. After those incidents, I’ve blocked my door with a water jug and heavy wooden furniture. Double-checking my doors and windows has become my routine nowadays,” he narrated.

Despite this, Daniel continues to work from home, but hasn’t been able to have ample access to his finances as well as healthcare services.

He said that this was due to the Civil Disobedience Movement, where professionals including “lawyers, doctors, bankers, down to fortune-tellers”, have stopped working with the aim of crippling businesses, which are also mainly run by military officers.

“Most of my work is in Zoom, especially that there’s a pandemic. I’m still earning enough. I am still financially okay. The only problem is that banks are closed so I’d need to pay in dollars. The tagline ‘Bawal magkasakit’ (Don’t get sick), that’s very applicable right now, because people right now, especially doctors and medical technologists, are not going to work,” he said.

He said that he was personally “neither scared nor worried” thanks to the security of the place where he lived, but still thought about the unrest just a few minutes away from their area.

The military had deployed war tanks and barricades to stop people from protesting, but to no avail.

“I’m not scared or worried, since I didn’t do anything wrong. What’s scary here is that they can arrest you without a warrant. Actually, here in our place, they’re still arranging flowers here. There’s nothing to worry about in this area. But a 15 to 20-minute drive away, because places here are far from each other, the protests are there,” he shared.

Daniel had also been working with the Philippine Embassy in the former capital Yangon to repatriate Filipinos who had wanted to come home.

The Philippine Embassy has arranged for services to fetch people from Yangon, Naypyidaw, and Mandalay, and book them in repatriation flights.

According to Daniel, as of evening on February 21, more than 140 Filipinos had been repatriated back to the Philippines due to the conflicts.

He shared that many of the Filipinos were already distressed by the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic, and that those whose visas and passports were expired or on the verge of expiry were more worried due to the boycotted work.

He added that he would also want to go home because of the conflict, but he looks instead to prioritize other Filipinos who are in a worse situation.

“They’re not okay. For some, their visas and passports expired. If their visas expired, that’s a bit okay, because they would get charged USD3.00 per day. The problem there is that no one is going to work, so how would they be able to pay then? They will just be drowning in charges. Filipinos decided to go home, because they are scared, having gone through these experiences already. I do want to go home, but my priority is the other Filipinos here first,” he said.

The situation in Myanmar has prompted Daniel to tell Filipinos to “enjoy their freedom”.

“Enjoy your freedom. Not everybody is privileged to have that. Here, even the poorest are fighting for their desired freedom. In our country, we are too free, and that is taken for granted and abused. Think about what freedom is. The poorest of poor have been woken up by their history with the military. For us, we need to enjoy it, in a good way,” he said.