The penniless taxi driver stopped his car; he said. “no more.” Running, shouting, waving, protestors swarmed the street. The taxi driver pulls over and lets us out. In unfamiliar surroundings, my friends and I were surrounded by police and demonstrators. Police had moved in earlier in the day to disperse a protest. It was evident. The streets were scattered with garbage, civilians in protective gear, and ambulances heard all around. The police had gotten violent with peaceful demonstrations.

 Protests started on February 1st. The military had taken control of a democratically elected government with fair elections. The military heavily disputed that it was fair and claimed that enormous amounts of voter fraud occurred. The military, with it having the most amount of power in the country, staged a coup d'état on the morning of February 1st. They swiftly took control of important government buildings and detained many public officials. The rights of the entire population were effectively revoked and cast out a window.

The Tatmadaw, the Burmese word for ‘military’, has been waging numerous wars against various rebel groups within Myanmar for over 70 years. With the recent takeover, most rebel groups have cast their differences aside and have joined a new unity government and defense forces with remnants of the previous national government. The unification of these rebel groups is historic and has made the military face a rival who will give them serious pain. 

The Civil Disobedience Movement (CDM) has taken the grip of most of the country. Civilians opposed the coup, nearly 95 percent of votes in the last fair election went to the pro-democracy party, which has participated in general strikes and boycotts. This is all in an effort to leverage the military through economic pressure. Unity and strength in the population were unmatched. The coordination, and persistence of the population to achieve their goals were fascinating.

All of this in a country of sixty-five million people. The country was in the top 5 fastest developing countries in the world, now, it has very little potential for growth. The devastation caused is widespread and affects many more than some seem to realize. The problems facing that country reflect the problems the world is facing. Events can be a microcosm of the world.  

Friends I had known for years up to that point were evacuated by their companies or country’s government. My family planned for evacuation. The time between the start and the evacuation was a short period but immense meaning came out of it. The sights of men and women wailing from lost family or friends, their own government descending with their overwhelming power against them. Challenge persisted though. The works of the population made it to be where the enthusiasm and support for the movements had grown even into the diplomatic community where widespread support of the civilians persisted. The military then targeted and threatened diplomats and forced many to evacuate.

The issue in one country causes issues in the next. The issues in one province/state cause issues in their neighboring province/state. The issues across the street in one's neighbor's house can cause issues in one's house. The issues of others are the issues of ourselves. If one person can help then the effort becomes easier.