Burma Link Annual Report 2015

Summary

Burma Link is a growing non-profit organisation that was set up in August 2012 to address vital unmet needs affecting Burma’s ethnic nationalities and displaced people. Although the ethnic plight plays a central role in the lack of freedom, peace, and democracy in Burma, ethnic voices have been increasingly silenced since 2011 as the world has turned its attention towards central Burma. Burma Link works to ensure that the voices of Burma’s ethnic nationalities and displaced people as well as the diverse Community Based Organizations (CBOs) and groups that represent them are heard in Burma’s reform process. We work in cooperation with numerous ethnic, capacity building, human rights, media, as well as armed and political organisations that represent various ethnicities from Burma.

 

Message from the Founder      

Burma Link started in humble surroundings in Mae La refugee camp with nothing but a determination and passion to help the people of Burma have their voices heard. Despite challenging conditions and extremely limited resources, we have managed to build a non-profit organisation that is now widely known among local and international organisations involved in Burma issues. We have come a long way, and I am excited to review our successes, challenges, and achievements for the year 2015, our second full year of operation.

In 2015, we continued collecting and publishing stories and interviews of ethnic leaders, freedom fighters, former political prisoners, refugees, and women activists, to name but a few. The top story on Burma Link’s website received 837 Facebook recommendations/shares, and we also published interviews and opinion pieces in Burmese news media, including The Irrawaddy, Karen News, and Mizzima. Burma Link’s website and social media platforms have steadily increased their reach, the website having an average of more than 400 visits per day for the year 2015.

Throughout the year, we worked on publishing a book of life stories, “Lives on the Line: Voices for Change from the Thailand-Burma Border,” after successfully raising the funds for the project through an online crowdfunding platform. The book is the first of its kind, bringing stories of Burma’s ethnic nationalities from the border area to local and international audiences in Burmese and English. We held a soft launch for the English book on December 16th in Mae Sot, where we sold out our limited edition of 100 books. Many of the storytellers also attended the occasion as special guests to show their support for the project.

In 2015, Burma Link also collaborated with Burma Partnership on a briefing paper “Voices of Refugees – Situation of Burma’s Refugees Along the Thailand-Burma Border,” which was published online in English on April 27, and in Burmese on June 20. All the 20 interviews for the paper were conducted by Burma Link members in different Thai border refugee camps. Burma Link was also one of the organisations to produce the 2015 Submission to the United Nations Universal Periodic Review (UPR) on Refugees and Displaced Persons (Burma/Myanmar).

We are particularly proud of our achievements considering that Burma Link is still run by non-paid volunteers who are driven by sheer passion and determination. From the bottom of my heart, I want to thank everyone who has been involved in making the year 2015 a success. We are now focusing our efforts on securing funding that will allow us to hire full time salaried staff members and take our organisational activities to the next level.

April 22, 2016

Ariana Zarleen, Program Director

Download Burma Link Annual Report 2015 (PDF)

 Support Burma Link

 Get involved with Burma Link