Richard works on legal rights

The Karenni Social Development Center offers young refugees an education that will help them build advocacy skills as they work towards a peaceful, democratic society.  Richard earned a coveted position in the basic educational program with courses in Human Rights, Democracy, Rule of Law, Environmental Protection, IT and English.  Richard credits the program with helping him understand the value of an open and transparent society. Prior to attending the school, he had little knowledge of Karenni history, politics and even his own traditional cultural heritage. The truth that the Karenni endured brutal oppression and mustered resistance for more than 70 years was revealed to him for the first time. 

Richard confessed that he had at one time wanted to give up on the idea of a better future for the Karenni. But the program inspired a vision of himself as someone who could lead the charge in restoring a just society.  Upon completion of the basic training at KSDC, Richard enrolled in the Advanced Community Training Course which fine-tuned his understanding of the rule of law. The leadership training showed him ways he could work within the community to educate other refugees about their fundamental human rights and the judicial system. “I have come to understand the importance of constitutional politics in Myanmar and the history of our Karenni state. It’s clear that if we are not engaged in politics, our generation will be unable to reveal the atrocities of the ruling government and the harm done to the people. We have a responsibility to future generations.” 

Richard has applied the insights and knowledge garnered from his course work to valuable field studies that will further the Karenni state’s journey towards a peaceful, democratic government.  Six months of extensive interviews with Karenni people on customary law culminated in the publication of a book through the camp’s Ministry of Justice.  Passionate about empowering others to work for change, Richard is now a proud staff member of the Karenni Legal Support Team. “Asserting our right to self-governance is essential for our state. I hope we can realize our aspirations for a society in which all ethnic groups are unified through a shared empathy.”