Child Gazes at Sky, Unsure if Light is a Guiding Star or an Airstrike. 

Today marks four years since the military coup in Myanmar, a tragic milestone for a nation facing ongoing violence and displacement. Over 3.5 million people have been displaced, including one-third who are children. Since February 2021, the military has carried out nearly 200 airstrikes on schools, with almost 3,700 civilian attacks recorded.

Myanmar’s children and youth have lost their education and future in this crisis. Forced recruitment, extortion, abductions, torture, and killings paint a grim picture of a nation in turmoil, where families are threatened, and young people have no choice but to flee. “Education, once our key to a better future, is now a distant dream for many. Although some of us may get access to education, we still have challenges applying and contributing to our condition. Although maintaining optimism is difficult, we remind one another that today’s struggle is a step closer to the freedom we all deserve,” says a youth human rights defender from Myanmar.

The ongoing violence has created a ripple effect across the region. Men, women, and children are forced to flee and seek refuge in neighbouring countries – Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Australia – exposing themselves to life-threatening journeys and pushbacks. By the end of 2024 there were over 1.3 million Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh, and 22,500 in India. Many risk exploitation along the borders by criminal gangs who take advantage of the chaos to set up scam centres based on forced labour, fuelling drug trafficking and human trafficking.

Places of worship are attacked, and the innocent suffer in a land where hope is diminished by violence.

A priest present in the region shares that, “in the Bible, the Psalmist tells us that ‘The Lord hears the cry of the poor’. For the suffering people of Myanmar, the majority of whom are not just affected by the brutality and trauma of war, but also by crushing absolute poverty, this is a message of hope. For those who fight for the dignity of their fellow human beings, and for a world where peace and justice reign, they can discover the reality of the Lord’s presence and consolation. This message of hope and the ultimate power of light triumphing over darkness can be carried by each of us in our daily activities and in acts of joint solidarity with those who are opposing genocide, war crimes, targeting of civilians and children, child soldiers, destruction of community and health centres and places of worship, all of which seem to be part of State Administrative Council (SAC) policy.”

JRS stands with the people of Myanmar and asks for:

• All countries must uphold the principle of nonrefoulement.
• Humanitarian aid must have free, immediate, and safe passage to reach those most in need within Myanmar. There must also be humanitarian assistance to forcibly displaced entering neighbouring countries.
• Access to education must be maintained for forcibly displaced Myanmar children both within and outside the country.
• Efforts should be coordinated with existing international justice mechanisms to hold the Myanmar military accountable for genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity.
• To work towards transitional justice in a future Myanmar, collaboration with locally led civil society and community-based organizations is essential.

The international community must act decisively to support the people of Myanmar in their fight for democracy, human rights, and lasting peace. The world has failed to provide protection, accountability, and reparations for the atrocities committed. Now is the time for ASEAN, the UN, and global leaders to take bold and immediate steps toward justice, stability and durable peace in Myanmar and the region.

“The future of Myanmar must be peace, based on respect for the dignity and rights of all, on respect for a democratic order that allows each person to contribute to the common good,” said Pope Francis during his visit to Asia Pacific in September 2024.