Irrawaddy: The Young Maiden of Histories

The Irrawaddy River that flows from north to south through Myanmar is the largest river and most important commercial waterway of Myanmar. It arises by the confluence of the N'mai and Mali Rivers in Kachin State. The Irrawaddy river flows through three well-marked defiles and has been used for trade and transport since the Sixth century. The Irrawaddy Delta, rice is produced by irrigated the water from the river. One of the most important goods transported in Myanmar is rice and the Irrawaddy Delta is one of the world's major rice-growing areas. There are a lot of fish species in the river. Many people live nearby the river can survive by fishery alone. The logs from the forests are one of the world's top exporters and float down the Irrawaddy River as large rafts. Therefore, Irrawaddy can be regarded as a main blood line as a metaphor to Myanmar’s economy.

As the Irrawaddy exists in the country for so many years, it knows all the events of histories such as kingdoms, wars, glorious moments, good and bad times of Myanmar history. I learn these from the song of “Young Maiden of Histories (Yar Za Win Myar Yet Tha Toh Tha Mie)”, composed and sang by late singer Htoo Eain Thin. Irrawaddy - she is a necklace; a right arm of Myanmar, a living legendary book of Myanmar.

Since 2005, the Myanmar government agreed with the China Company backed by the Chinese Government to build seven dams in the upriver of the Irrawaddy River. The power generated by the dams will be sold mainly to China and some other countries in the South-East Asian region. Among the seven dams, Myitsone dam is the largest one. If completed, they may cause irreversible damage to the river system. The dam would also disrupt transportation of nutrients to the Irrawaddy’s delta, which provides nearly 60 percent of Burma’s rice. Due to this dam project, negative ecological impacts are much anticipated - flood in the surrounding regions; force relocation of people who stay near these dams; deforestration;; shortage of water produce; change in the river direction; change in the quality of soil. All Myanmar people suffer all these consequences. The Young Maiden of Histories, Irrawaddy will be perished due to these dams. Ending Irrawaddy is the end of Myanmar people too. Myanmar will be vanished too.

Therefore, we are obliged as a citizen of Myanmar to speak up our voice to call off this Damn Project. We have civil duties and responsibilities to remind the adamant Myanmar government to save Irrawaddy.

Myo

20.07.2011

Horror

In this first week journal of our E4E, let me talk about the “horror” that I feel from a painting called Scream_ it was painted by Edvard Munch, a Norwegian artist.

In that painting, there is a bridge over a river. The expanse of water looks like a little eddy and the boats with people come and go there. So the people in the boats are standing and they seem to be scary. A couple is walking on the getting fresh air and talking intimately. They turn back towards the boats and river. They don’t heed the surrounding what is happening. Another person on the bridge is shouting and crying loudly with covering his ears by his hands because he saw suddenly a dusty storm in the sky over the river. It likes very severe as it is colored in bloody red. He looks very scared and terrified on what he saw. This picture represents our daily life in the world.

There are happiness, sadness, unsteadiness, horrors, diseases, troubles, deaths- etc in our daily life. Most of people want only to fulfill in their lives. They do care themselves and try be wealthy, happy and prosperous. They pretend not to see other’s trouble and problems of poverty as if they have nothing to do with it. They behave as if they live forever. These type of people in the real world can be reflected as a couple walking on the bridge in the painting. Some people face troubles in their lives. But they are confident that can easily overcome the troubles and they will live happily ever after. They look like the people in the boats. Only a few people see that the life is trouble with death. Nobody wants to die. People are afraid of suffering before death. It will be full of pain, beyond endurance and be miserable. If we know we will die in anyway, we will cry or scream as a person in the painting. We all will be horrified greatly.

So we should take note the troubles of life and learn how to stay when we face troubles/ difficulties in our lives.

Myo

05/07/2011