The Thamaga Factor The word for ‘union’ continues to carry great historical weight By MIN ZIN
“
T
hamaga,” a Myanmar word adopted from the Pali language, carries incredible political and moral weight in Myanmar. Literally, it means union; association; and society. In the context of the country's modern history, it unambiguously signifies the student union, its spirit and its long-standing symbol of the fighting peacock flag. From the independence movement in the early twentieth century to the democracy movement of the late 1980s, student unions, or Thamaga, have not only challenged autocrats in Myanmar but also given birth to new leadership in national politics. It is little wonder, then, that when police staged a violent crackdown on unarmed student protesters and their supporters on March 10 in Letpadan town, 90 miles north of Yangon, they targeted flag-waving demonstrators first and vengefully stamped on their fighting peacock flags. The protests had intensified since January when thousands of students, including high schoolers, began to march—in some cases for hundreds of miles—from major provincial cities towards Yangon. They did so in protest over the new National Education Law, passed in September 2014, which they believe is explicitly designed to inhibit the formation of student Thamaga and curb academic freedom. After a series of talks with student
28
TheIrrawaddy
representatives, the government agreed to amend the controversial law and a special parliamentary committee began debating the proposed changes. But the students pulled out of the discussions in the first week of March, in response to a police blockade of their main protest group in Letpadan, Bago Region. On March 5, in Yangon, police and pro-government plainclothes thugs violently dispersed a protest held in support of the students blockaded in the north. Five days later, at Letpadan, after negotiations about a continued march broke down, police beat students and their supporters, injuring dozens. At least 127 people were arrested. Political Fallout In the past, the regime has successfully combined harsh crackdowns with political ploys to weaken the opposition, confuse the public, and defuse international pressure. Perhaps Naypyitaw is now reading from this same familiar playbook. If so, we can expect several rounds of talks between President U Thein Sein or Commander-inChief Snr.-Gen. Min Aung Hlaing and National League for Democracy (NLD) leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi. Though these talks are not likely to facilitate a political breakthrough, they will eclipse the earlier headlines about students being beaten and April 2015