#SaveMyanmar Part (2)

February 2, 2021

The people of Myanmar held a campaign on 8:00 PM local time as an act of defiance against the military tyranny. During this time, the people struck the tin and metal buckets, making loud noises all over the neighborhood. The campaign was largely organized on Facebook, the most popular social media within the country.

Starting from 5 minutes before the agreed time, the sound of metal cans and buckets filled the air and all around the neighborhoods, spreading from streets to streets, towns to towns, all the way to the cities. In the video below, a person was seen holding a tin can and striking it with his bare hands while all of the neighborhood joined in, striking metal objects of their own fashion. Near the middle of the video, even the passing cars were honking their horns in honor of the campaign.

This is also part of the #CivilDisobedience movement that Myanmar people are practicing to show their dissent towards the military occupation. Many of the civil servants, especially doctors, are disregarding their duties, hoping to dismantle the military regime through peaceful protests. 

To everyone watching, Myanmar may not be perfect but it is our home. For many decades, our people have been oppressed and cut off from the world by the military government. We were getting a faint ray of hope that is the democracy, until the power-hungry military officials smeared it and spat on us with their coup.

The mainstream media have portrayed us as committing genocide. However, the true story runs deep in the events of the history and the military's grip on the politics. Before the military coup, there were many attempts by the military to seize power. One of them being the Rohingya situation. The civilian government never had any power over the military which had no intention of giving the people of Myanmar a true democracy. Their smear campaign was a huge success. Our beacon of hope, Aung San Su Kyi was stripped from her awards while our people were seen as genocidal. 

While there is no denying that there are many local conservatives and extreme religious beliefs, there are also educated and civil people, much like the ones participating in this campaign. We persevere in the face of the military persecution, believing that our rights and our wills are stronger than the military might.