Background

On 2 February 2025 at 5.00 pm – 6.30pm SEA Junction launched the exhibition titled “A Myanmar Odyssey: 4 Years of Fight and Displacement on display from 28 January – 9 February 2025, on the 4th Floor, Curved Wall, Bangkok Art and Culture Centre (BACC). The exhibition, featuring the work of Myanmar artist Shwe Wutt Hmon, is born out of solidarity with the people of Myanmar that has been fighting for democracy since the coup d’état led by General Min Aung Hlaing on 1 February 2021. The focus of the exhibition is on the coup’s aftermath as an “odyssey”, to signify with three sets of artworks, the long and perilous journey in challenging the dictatorship as well as the patriarchal norms at its core, and also the displacement of people from Myanmar within and outside the country (see further here).

The opening event highlighted one of these three sets. Entitled Permission to Stay (2022-2024), this mixed-media self-portrait series explores the themes of migration and displacement. Printed and manually intervened, outlined and colour filled on Saa paper, a traditional Northern Thailand material, the series narrates the artist’s journey with a mix of chaos, humour, and self-sarcasm to reflect on the burdens of displacement and the resilience needed to sail life as a migrant. The artworks, offer a deeply personal yet collectively resonant perspective of contemporary experiences of the many who had to leave the country as a result of the coup. The number of displaced people in the country and across borders is over 4 million and growing as young people leave the country to escape from forced conscription in the army. Most migrate to Thailand, with a recent Thailand Migration Report by the United Nations Migration Network documenting the significant increase in the number of people crossing the borders from Myanmar into Thailand since 2021 and their legal and economic precariousness (click here).

The panel discussion explored the experiences and conditions of those who are now seeking the “permission” to stay and make a life of their own abroad, especially in Thailand. Pannika Wanich, Executive Committee of Progressive Movement and Debbie Stothard, Founder of ALTSEAN, spoke in person on the current trends, while Kyar Pauk shared online his experience and the book he has recently written, coincidentally also entitled “The Odyssey”. The panel presentation and follow-up Q & A was moderated by our SEA Junction Director, Rosalia Sciortino before closing the event with a reception.

At the launch, few copies of the book “The Odyssey” were available. We also take this occasion to launch SEA Junction’s book “Living the Coup: A Collective Diary of Daily Life in Myanmar” based on our special initiative with the same title (see here)

Speakers Bios and Moderator

Pannika Wanich is currently an Executive Committee of Progressive Movement. Prior to this, she was a member of Thailand’s House of Representatives. She was also a Vice Chair for the Commission of Foreign Affairs and the Commission of Laws, Justice, and Human Rights. Pannika joined the Future Forward Party as a Spokesperson and Director of Communications in late May 2018. She obtained MSc in Global Politics from the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE). Prior to entering a political career, Pannika worked with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Voice TV. She is known for her TV commentary on International Affairs and political analyses.

Kyar Pauk is a Burmese record producer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, painter, and cartoonist. Over the course of his career, he has created hundreds of hit songs for both Myanmar and international artists, as well as for his own projects. Following the Burma military coup in 2021, Kyar Pauk became an outspoken critic of the junta, leading to his exile. Fleeing Myanmar with his two daughters, he spent two years in hiding in Thailand before being rescued by the French embassy. In exile, Kyar Pauk has channelled his creativity into activism. He has organized numerous fundraisers using his artworks to support the National Unity Government (NUG) and aid in the rehabilitation of victims from villages destroyed by the Burmese military. Now based in France, Kyar Pauk continues to make an impact through art exhibitions across the country and recently published his sixth book, The Odyssey, in Burmese, English, and French (see further https://www.facebook.com/kyarpauk.artist).

Debbie Stothard is the coordinator of Alternative Asean Network on Burma (ALTSEAN-Burma), an NGO campaigning for human rights and democracy in the ASEAN region, with a particular focus on Burma, which she founded in 1996. During her 32-year career, she has worked as a journalist, community education consultant, governmental advisor and trainer in Malaysia, Australia and Thailand. She has participated in democracy building in Burma, organizing advocacy meetings and campaigns on human rights, in Burma and other ASEAN countries since 1987. These activities led her to work in collaboration with UN and ASEAN institutions as well as several governments in Asia, North America and Europe. She is also invited by universities, conferences and media outlets to speak on the Burmese situation. ALTSEAN produces a monthly brief on the coup that can be read at https://www.altsean.org/coupwatch-briefer.html.

Rosalia Sciortino Sumaryono is an associate professor at the Institute for Population and Social Research, Mahidol University; Visiting Professor at the Master in International Development Studies (MAIDS), Chulalongkorn University; and Director of SEA Junction (seajunction.org). She has served as IDRC Regional Director for Southeast and East Asia (2010–2014), Senior Adviser to AusAID in Indonesia (2009–2010), and Regional Director for Southeast Asia of the Rockefeller Foundation (2000–2007). Rosalia Sciortino Sumaryono also served as a program officer at the Indonesia and Philippines offices of the Ford Foundation (1993–2000). She received her doctoral degree cum laude from the Vrije Universiteit in Amsterdam and has published widely on development issues in Southeast Asia. In November 2017, she received a medal from the Vietnamese Association of Social Sciences for her contributing to social sciences in Vietnam (see further www.rosaliasciortino.com).

Organizer

SEA Junction, established under the Thai non-profit organization Foundation for Southeast Asia Studies (ForSEA), aims to foster understanding and appreciation of Southeast Asia in all its socio-cultural dimensions, from arts and lifestyles to economy and development. Conveniently located at Room 407-8 of the Bangkok Arts and Culture Center or BACC (across MBK, BTS National Stadium), SEA Junction facilitates public access to knowledge resources and exchanges among students, practitioners and Southeast Asia lovers. More information at http://seajunction.org/.

 

Photo Credit: SEA Junction’s Team