Going Home - MEMO 3

Workshops and Teaching Courses

We had a successful week-long workshop with the camp-based groups in Karenni camp 1, kindly coordinated by the Karenni Students Union (KSU). We consider it a success not only because we were well received by the participants, but also we had some of the most active participants and non-traditional discussants in the workshop. Their contributions to the discussions had enabled us to better understand where we are at this point in terms of preparedness. Though we do not envision every individual in our respective communities to become politician, we learned that there should be systematic programs – through curriculums, for example – to give quality political education, among others, to various levels of our peoples. We believe that their improved political awareness would serve as a great asset to our revolutions as a whole.

After the Karenni camps, we had a one-day meeting in Weh Gyi with the local and regional leaders from 5^th and 3^rd brigades. The 5^th Brigade was our host for this meeting. The meeting was tense as issues discussed were ranged from defending our people who continue to live in the active war-zones, countering systematic and destructive projects such as dam constructions along the Salween River to population movements especially through our people departing for third countries, etc. We spent three days in Weh Gyi. Those who came to the meeting included battalion commanders, district level officials including departments’ heads, and other officers from the brigades including the two brigadier generals. During our stay, we went to visit the new arrivals in Eithoohta refugee camp. They came mainly from brigade 2, fleeing non-stop attacks by the SPDC against their villages, and they arrived on the same day that we got to Weh Gyi.