Twice, Nyi Nyi Aung was imprisoned, tortured and released for speaking out against the Myanmar government — first as a student in 1988 and then in 2009, on the pretext of having foreign currency.
The recently freed political prisoner described his experiences in prison and advocated for help from the international community in the Kay Spiritual Life Center April 5.
“Physically and mentally [the government] tortured me,” Aung said. “They did not give me food for 14 days. That’s how they interrogate me.”
The previously democratic government of Myanmar — known as Burma to members of the democratic opposition and the U.S. government — was overthrown in a military coup and re-established as a socialist junta in 1962.
Aung said citizen dissent was minimal and quickly silenced until the 1988 uprisings when students tried to organize protests against the government.
In many Myanmar cities demonstrations occurred until they resulted in thousands of arrests, tortures and deaths. Aung, at age 18, was among them.
Aung left the country to avoid being arrested again, but could not stay away for long.
He stayed on the border of Myanmar and Thailand to train other students and activists in peaceful resistance for six years despite food shortages and malaria.
In 1993 he left for the U.S. to study at Purdue University, but said that his duty was “not just to live, but to free Burma,” and he often tried to return home and help other activists.
But the situation for Aung’s family became much worse when his mother was arrested in 2009 causing him to return to Myanmar. However, government authorities arrested him and took him to jail because of his involvement in the resistance.
He was tortured for the seven months, imprisoned and became dangerously ill. His fiancé in the U.S. was eventually able to get him released.
Aung said his mother is still imprisoned for supporting the Burmese students, and many of his family members have been sentenced to 65 years or more in prison.
Help from Western countries can abolish the military junta, he said, but added that some Western countries also benefit from the regime by selling guns to its military. He believes U.S. military pressure and encouraging American student involvement through writing letters to Congress can change the situation.
“If the U.S. government pays attention, a lot can happen,” Aung said.
Aung currently resides in D.C. to do what his fellow Myanmar citizens cannot — spread knowledge of what he called the country’s crimes. He said people in Myanmar will not talk about repressed feelings and he hopes for democracy in fear of the government.
“We know that people want to stand up for their rights, they just do not want to pay the price,” Aung said. “People still have fear.”
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