Thread by @thinink

First off - preamble. I don’t get into twitter arguments because they are a waste of my precious time. We aren’t changing each other's minds by slinging 140-word sentences to each other. But I’ve been dragged into something & feel I must respond. (Thread) #WhatsHappeninglnMyanmar

https://twitter.com/SoupNotCoup/status/1366418195243032582

Personally, as a Bamar Buddhist, I don’t give a crap about someone’s nationality or religion as long as what they say makes sense. How narrow-minded does one have to be to discard what someone’s saying because they’re not the "right" nationality or race? (1)

If you think all people in Myanmar have suffered equally under military then you've failed to appreciate the lived experience of minority ethnic groups in our country. They. Had. It. So. Much. Worse. Than. Us. Say sorry, promise to do better, and then do better. (2)

"Unity is strength" but real unity needs understanding & humility. Bamars also oppressed? Sure. But did you have your language, religion or culture taken away from you/denigrated? Shown in myriad of ways yours is lesser culture & group? Endured conflicts, land grabs & rape? (3)

You & your family didn’t participate in these discriminatory practices? Did you benefit -even if innocuous- from being in "right" race & religion, which, to 99% of us, is something we didn’t earn but was born into? Yeah? Then say sorry, promise to do better, & do better (4)

Having said all of that @SoupNotCoup makes perfect sense to me. For what it’s worth, I believe when they told me they’re “100% Myanmar original recipe” & I find it utterly insulting this insinuation that talking abt. sufferings endured by Rohingya & other minority groups is (5)

somehow non-Myanmar (not the same as non-Bamar). Caring about human rights & basic democratic values isn’t a western liberal issue. f you are a true Buddhist you’d know metta (မေတ္တာ), karuna (ကရုဏာ) and mudita (မုဒိတာ) are three of the four virtues central to being a Buddhist(6)

But I know the haters, the naysayers, the genocide deniers, are no longer winning. I have been so touched by people who liked, shared, & commented on The Kite Tales’ stories from ethnic protesters, including the latest one of the Rohingya student. (7)

When I’m feeling optimistic, I like to think the junta has done the country a favour because the coup has brought out a very broad spectrum people on the streets, forging new alliances and understanding and empathetic behaviour. (8)

It is the birth of a new country. It is heartbreaking that lives have been lost at the hands of cowards who hide behind their weapons. Let’s honour the fallen by building a better nation. Now I’m going to practice ဉပေက္ခာ to all the trolling, mentions & trash-talking. (ENDs)