76 Thet Thet Aung former political prisoner Thet Thet Aung is a highly articulate activist in the labor movement. She is 38 years old, and a mother of three sons. Raised in Yangon, her family ran a successful teashop frequented by students before being forced to close it down. Growing up in a politically active family, Thet Thet Aung witnessed abuses first hand. In
1988, when she was 11 years old, she had to cross the main street in Myaynigone on her way home from school. I saw the bodies of many, many bloodied schoolchildren wearing white shirts and green lower garments. They were covered with tarpaulins but strong winds were blowing them aside, exposing their bodies. It was a very sorry sight and I don’t think I will ever forget it in my life. Then my brothers, aged ten and eleven, were arrested. One of them was kept in isolation for 45 days in darkness. The other was beaten until he was unconscious. When he got home, he had no idea where he was, while my other brother just gazed at the morning sun. Being a young girl, I began to realize what it meant to be terrorized. When I was in 7 th grade, my mother was arrested in front of me. Every night for a month I stayed awake waiting for my mom to come home. I will never forget the sight of my mother’s homecoming. She could no longer walk. We had a hard time nursing her back to health. They had released her because they feared she would die in prison. All through this time, I suffered great pain. After she graduated from high school, Thet Thet Aung created her own successful business selling cloth diapers with her sister-in-law. She remained active in politics. Escaping gunfire during the Saffron Revolution, she and her friends slept in safe houses. Her husband was arrested on October 8th, 2007 and her mother and mother-inlaw on the 10 th . Thet Thet Aung immediately went into hiding. She was told that if she gave herself up, they would release her mother and mother-in-law. Then on October 18 th , Thet Thet Aung was arrested with her aunt, her younger sister, and two comrades. Her mother-in law was released the same day, but her mother had to endure ten more days of interrogation in custody. In 2008, Thet Thet Aung was sentenced to 65 years’ imprisonment. Released in 2011, there was nothing left of her business. She was appointed as second in charge of the Labor department at the 88 Generation Peace and Open Society, a prominent former students group. She is also a coordinator at a center working to defend political prisoners, the Future Light Centre. She is determined to restart her life in Yangon but worries that there will never be peace. She wants to call attention to the fact there are still many political prisoners behind bars. I felt so sorry for my mother, my motherin-law, and my boys. The youngest was only a year old then. Who would look after them? It was truly a difficult time for me. I considered giving myself up, but that would have encouraged the authorities to try the same strategy with other comrades. I fled to the countryside and knew that just one small slip and I would fall into their clutches. 77 Women’s <strong>Experiences</strong> of War, Peace, and Impunity in Myanmar
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