the crooked line

This week 7 protestors were released from custody after a week of detention for participating in an anti-government protest. 25 people took part in the protest which called on the Burmese regime to lower commodity prices, provide better healthcare and education and give 24-hour electricity.

Anti-government protests are rare in Burma, or perhaps just rarely reported. We are often guilty of presuming a sense of lethargy inside Burma, a passive acceptance of the current oppressive conditions. However this is far from true, the protest at the beginning of March is one example but so are a plethora of others, from liteary events to performance artists, the protest is alive and kicking in Burma’s streets. And those participating do so with courage, for they rarely walk away free from such visibly confronting behaviour.

Continue reading ‘The grand old tradition of a protest’

There are some great proverbs the Karen and the Burmese have, the one’s I’m about to share with you are pretty explicit in their political undertones. Actually let me rephrase that, once the proverb has been explained to you it’s message is explicit, the proverb itself is often an abstract what the?

Continue reading ‘“The dog wants to eat the elephants penis” - a burmese proverb’

The River Moei is no more than 10 metres wide under the bridge. You could wade it. Many people do. On one side you have Myawaddy, the other side Mae Sot. One side Burma, the other side Thailand. Such difference is divided by only a 10 metre piece of water. Once you’ve crossed the water, and before you reach the official Thai border there is a vast piece of land, no-man’s land. There was once talk of building a casino on it but for the most part it remains over-grown, dirt and tall grass.

Continue reading ‘No Man’s Land’

the crooked line could be a statement, “well that’s a crooked line!”
It could be a noun, as in the name given to this blog: the crooked line.
Or maybe a description, “left, right, then follow the crooked line.”
But for me, and for this blog, the crooked line must be the verb: the art of doing, the act of making. It is the journey down the crooked line.

It is a process by which groups and individuals create artistic expression and in doing so begin a dialogue. An admirable feat in itself. But this crooked line is about the act of making art by displaced peoples and thus has pertinent messages often achieved via what a friend calls, “the crooked line”, the indirect route of veiled messages and hidden stories. In this case I talk of the displaced from Burma, the Karen, the Burmese, but also the Chin, the Karenni, the Shan and many more. Political activists, human rights defenders, farmers, shop owners, mothers, daughters and elders. This is the strength of art; there need be no distinctions and no exclusions. And they create their art despite the threats to their lives, the lack of resources and the absence of any training. In fact you could say they create their art because of it. They are mostly ordinary people bought together by their common desire to tell their story, whether it be through a poem, a song, an artwork, a cultural performance or the theatre.

But I don’t wish to romanticize art or its purposes, or even those who create it. Art can just as easily be construed towards negative purposes, used as propaganda and to reinforce specific agendas. In many cases the dissemination and distribution of art is subject to such complex relationships that it can never be singularly ‘art for the good’ or ‘art for the bad’. Art does not come without influences and attachments that are not always instantly recognized or understood. And this is never more pertinent then in politically unstable situations such as the one you will find in Burma.

The people I have met from Burma, and specifically the Karen, deserve my admiration; however they are also people from whom I have learnt a great deal. About the effects of displacement, about self-identity and cultural identity, about preserving and maintaining culture. They have taught me about humanity and about ‘home’, about survival and about commitment to the struggle for a just society. Messages which are woven through their art, and issues I hope to discuss through this blog.

I would hope that this blog will be a celebration of the individuals’ creation and courage in challenging situations. I hope it will show that displacement and trauma do not create passive victims but rather individuals and communities with active, vocal and insightful stories. I hope it will show that from these voices we can learn much about the people speaking from the margins. I hope this discussion finds no end. And I hope that many of you will participate in it, whether through your comments or if you have your own story to contribute.

Welcome.