Another chapter of the “STORIES OF THE OTHER WORLD.”
Today we tell you about Y. A., a 17-year-old boy who, in order to study, tried to reach the border, but due to a misunderstanding ended up in the Yangon reformatory where we work. Here, however, he was able to continue his studies and found himself with many peers with whom he shares the same dreams.
“My name is Y. A., I am 17 years old and I come from a small village in the western part of Myanmar, Rakhine State. I have a beautiful family with a brother and sister. My dad is a carpenter and my mom is a homemaker. Thanks to my dad’s salary and my enthusiasm for study, I completed my education up to seventh grade in Rakhine, I am a native speaker of my ethnic group, and I am fluent in English and Burmese. However, the village is far from the city and at this time I can’t access higher education because of conflicts. One of my ambitions is to continue studying so that I can then work in a decent and fulfilling way and support my family. I have always shared with my parents the dream of leaving home, away from my native place in order to continue my education.
In May 2022, I left for my journey in search of a complete education, said goodbye to my family and took a boat to Thailand together with other friends. Although we had prepared food rations for the trip, they ran out before we reached our destination. Due to hunger and other unfortunate vicissitudes, we docked in Ayeyarwaddy Division. Having no food or shelter, we sought help from houses in nearby villages, but as soon as some of the villagers saw us, because of the language barrier we did not understand each other and they called the police, although we tried to explain our good intentions. I was taken to Nghat Aw San Juvenile Reformatory (NAS) along with other boys who had left with me.
It has been almost six months since I arrived at NAS, I am happy that I had the opportunity to study through the informal educational program held by the staff of New Humanity. I passed the entrance test well and was able to attend level 2 from October to December 2022 to now I have moved to level 3 which will run from January to March. I am very stimulated to learn in different ways than what I was used to, since there are different teaching methods and we had the opportunity to take part in outdoor activities (playtime with classmates, sports activities, drawing lessons, etc.). The teachers are kind and caring, we had the opportunity to improve Burmese, English and math as school subjects, but also to study culture and communication and learn how to behave.
Before taking part in the educational program, we were locked in the dorms and could not go out except for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Thanks to the program, not only were we able to take part in many activities, but we also had the opportunity to talk to a teacher during counseling interviews about our stories, emotions and feelings. At first I was afraid to tell about the journey that had brought me here. Now I have learned to process these traumas and have realized that my classmates and I are not so different; we share the same roof. Although I miss my family, I have found many brothers and fellow students here.”
We thank the staff who are struggling to bring education and hope to Yangon Reformatory, thanks to them and all who support us kids like Y. A. can continue to study to achieve their dream of a better life.
Recent Comments