Category: Community

Articles on Burmese community with the following sub sections – Letters, Memory, Portrait, Talks, Experience, Travelogue, Others, Burmese Overseas

Hundreds of Burmese in Malaysia detained

  Hundreds of Burmese in Malaysia detained July 27th, 2009 The photos were taken on last Thursday showing hundreds of Burmese workers detained at prison camp in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. One high ranking Malaysian immigration official was arrested for selling…

Burmese in Fort Wayne published local Burmese monthly for the community

Burmese in Fort Wayne published local Burmese monthly for the community

July 27th, 2009

                Burmese community living in Fort Wayne, Indiana, USA, published community monthly newsletter in Burmese language on 26th July 2009. It was given with the name – “Phoo Pwint Wai”, meaning “Budding Flowers”. It was the first ever newsletter published by Burmese community in Fort Wayne voluntarily.

Letters from Reader – Forced Labor Yay Kyi Township

Letters from Reader – Forced Labor Yay Kyi Township

Dated – April 21st 2009

            It was announced that there would be Donation Ceremony for 100 Monks at Yay Kyi Township in Delta Region on 23rd April 2009. The donor was to be U Zaw Zaw from Myanmar Soccer Association.

            However, U Maung Maung Tin (General Secretary of local Pyi Khai Phyoe aka Kyant Phont, a Burmese military regime’s instrument organization), U Htay Naing (local official from Township’s municipal office) and other local authorities issued an order to all the local residences in the area which encompassed of 99 villages to setup tents and stages in the designated football field.

Ngwe Zin Yaw – The Sign of Thingyan

The Sign of Thingyan

Ngwe Zin Yaw

April 13, 2009

          Burmese Thingyan, the traditional festival for Burmese New Year – Water Throwing was coming near. One of the tradition of Thingyan, having “Thingyan Vase”, a pot full of flowers and branches of plants representing 7 days of a week was still embraced among our Burmese. This year said by the Astrologers that “Thursday-Born” were to be the ritual object of this year Thingyan so we had to buy two “Thingyan Vases” if we had Thursday-born in the family. It cost 500 Kyats each but in reality, the actual price was only 300. Some were selling collection of flowers and braches representing 7 days of a week without a Thingyan Vase only asking around 200 Kyats. And it was selling fast and popular too. There was no sign of season flower of Thingyan called “Paduak” even though there were some rains.

KHIN MYO CHIT (1915-1999)

KHIN MYO CHIT (1915-1999)
La Grande Dame de la Burmese Writing

by
Dr.Khin Mauug Win

Very few people know that her real name is Ma Khin Mya. Her close relatives and friends call her by her real name. Young people call her Ma Ma Mya or Aunty Mya. Older people call her Ma Khin Mya. But to most people she was known under her pen name, “Khin Myo Chit”.

She was born at the time when people generally had low expectations of woman, when no parent would hear of a young respectable lady entering  a profession, and a humanatarian education may be permitted, but only to be able to write B.A under one’s name and make impressions on people. “What a pity she’s a girl.” that’s what she always heard people saying all the time.

Her grandmother had been a maid of honour at the court of King Mindon. Many times, she recounted to her the events leading to the mass execution of King Thibaw’s royal relatives by the Queen Suphayalait. “It’s a blot on our history”, she used to say. She then related to her how the great warrior princes like the Prince Kanaung, the Thonsaire Minthagyi (literally translated the great Prince Thirty, so named because he could climb up a wall of thirty yards in height using his bare hands and feet) and many others were executed during an internal intrigue.” We lost all the great warrior princes, so that when the British marched to the capital city of Upper Burma, there was not even one person to throw a stone at the invaders.”

My Academy Sein – Burmese Academy Award, not for the “Lady”

 

 

Burmese Academy Award, not for the “Lady”

My Academy Sein

February 9, 2009

At the Burmese motion picture academy award ceremony, all the Burmese audience was interested. They were eagerly locking on the live TV broadcast to see who would win according to the rumors outside and also enjoying the sight of dresses and fashions of the stars. Some were even speculating on the screen that who might have the chance according to the way they dressed.

 

It was hosted in “Nay Pyi Daw”, a very remote far place, a said-capitol of Burma. Some pitied the stars for their trouble to go there. It was hard to say “No” for that kind of great ceremony.  Our audience knew that the stars behind their head, they might be wishing for the Academy Award ceremony to take place in Rangoon.