Ethnic Chin activist seeks to inspire with new book
A UN Human Rights Council announcement to end international protection for Myanmar's ethnic Chin refugees had sparked international concern including from their community residing here in Malaysia.
With a dream of empowering his people, Alliance of Chin Refugees (ACR) coordinator James Bawi Thang Bik decided to document his struggles in a book titled Rising Up - The Fight for Chin Refugees.
A UN Human Rights Council announcement to end international protection for Myanmar's ethnic Chin refugees had sparked international concern including from their community residing here in Malaysia.
With a dream of empowering his people, Alliance of Chin Refugees (ACR) coordinator James Bawi Thang Bik decided to document his struggles in a book titled Rising Up - The Fight for Chin Refugees.
"I started working on the book last year and it took about six months," he told Malaysiakini when met at the book's launch in Petaling Jaya today.
James said his initial plan was only to respond to the UNHCR's announcement last June by highlighting policies that affected his people - an ethnic Christian minority - living in the Chin State, western Myanmar.
"The biggest challenge for me was that my past was so painful [...] I didn't want to write it down.
"When I sat at the computer, I was crying. I didn't want to remember these memories," James said, adding that he was, however, encouraged during the revision process to include a more personal touch to the book.
James shared his story with thousands of Chin refugees across the globe, arriving in Malaysia in 2010 to escape persecution by Myanmar’s Buddhist-majority government.
In January 2012, the Chin National Front, an ethnic political party that was established to fight for self-determination, reportedly signed a ceasefire agreement with the new Myanmar federal government under President Thein Sein.
After years of struggling for their community, James said he hoped that his book would inspire more young ethnic Chins to realise their full potential amidst trying circumstances.
"For me I am just a refugee but I still can write a book. I'm a refugee but I never give up.
"I hope that the young people will be encouraged and continue to rise up," he said.
Present during the launch were ethnic Chin refugee students and other community leaders based in Malaysia.
It was reported that there are currently over 15,000 ethnic Chin refugees living in Malaysia, a vast majority from the estimated 18,000 Chin refugees registered with the UNHCR.
The UNHCR's announcement on the cessation of refugee protection for the Chins was initially made based on "positive developments" in the Chin State after years of internal strife.
The UNHCR in March, however, announced that ethnic Chin refugees still required international protection based on "a number of new reports and assessments which did not support the original conclusion of fundamental and durable changes in the Chin State and Sagaing Region".
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