Aung San Suu Kyi – Tom Vater

Burma, a Country United by Hatred and Murder?

September 16, 2017September 17, 2017tom2 Comments

Burmese army soldier in the hills above Myauk-U, Rakhine State, looking for Muslim ‘terrorists’ 400000 Rohingya Muslims have fled Burma in the past couple of weeks. Overwhelming evidence suggests that the Burmese military, along with civilian militias, is engaging in ethnic cleansing, driving people from their homes, torching their villages, raping their children and murdering […]

Burma’s election fever grips Yangon and its foreign observers

November 10, 2015November 12, 2015tomLeave a Comment

I feel incredibly humbled to have witnessed the first semi fair and almost free election in Burma in decades. I was at the NLD’s headquarters tonight where an exuberant and chaotic party atmosphere prevailed throughout. But as one Burmese told me, ‘the military are like chess players and they are planning their next move.’ That […]

Hell in our Time – The Rohingya of Sittwe

June 3, 2015June 4, 2015tomLeave a Comment

Here’s an account of my visit to Sittwe, home of many Rohingya, in August 2012. This is not a particularly hands-on story, nor did it involve any courage on my part. Better reportages on the same subject have surfaced in the media in recent days. But as Sittwe is now sealed off and as no […]

Aung San Suu Kyi and Burmese Light

February 17, 2014February 17, 2014tomLeave a Comment

Burmese politician and global human rights icon Aung San Suu Kyi with a copy of Burmese Light, flanked by the book’s two authors in Mandalay during the Irrawaddy Literary Festival. She kept flicking to the end papers and went, “Hm, nice….” That’s what I thought as well.

The Irrawaddy Literary Festival – A Mirror to Burma’s Continuing Uncertainties

February 16, 2014tomLeave a Comment

I am at the second Irrawaddy Literary Festival in Mandalay, organized by Jane Heyn, the wife of the former British ambassador to Myanmar. This second festival is held in Mandalay and has been in preparation for almost a year. Top writers appearing this time around include Jung Chang, Louis de Bernieres, and Thant Myint U. […]

Pictures of Sittwe – Home of the Rohingya

September 13, 2012September 13, 2012tomLeave a Comment

I was in Sittwe, Rakhine State in Burma recently, the site of serious communal riots between Rakhine people and Muslim Rohingya who have been living in the state for generations and are currently the victims of a hate campaign instigated by politicians, ordinary people, Buddhist monks and government officials. I spent three weeks in Burma […]

Freiheit in Burma – Marc Eberles neuer Kurzfilm fuer die ARD

January 17, 2012tomLeave a Comment

Marc Eberle hat gerade einen neuen Kurzfilmbeitrag fuer die ARD in Rangoon gedreht. Vom 31. Dezember 2011 bis zum 4. Januar 2012 fand in der ehemaligen burmesischen Hauptstadt das erste Filmfest der Freiheit statt. Komiker Zaganar und Nobelpreisträgerin Aung Sang Suu Kyi haben diese erste von der burmesischen Regierung nicht zensierte Festival organisiert. Hier ist […]

Let’s Visit Burma – Tom Vater on the pros and cons of tourism in Burma

November 7, 2010September 15, 2012tomLeave a Comment

As the Burmese generals celebrate another well-deserved victory today – no, not the election results which are a foregone conclusion, but the staunch support the regime receives from China, India and Thailand, while European and American businesses are doing their best to get around sanctions so that, they say, Myanmar does not become a province […]