When we asked residents of the IDP camps for prayer requests, the question was met with shy smiles and blank expressions. A camp administrator in Mai Hkon, explained, “Maybe they are facing difficulties in getting their basic needs met, and that is the reason they could not come up with any prayer requests.” The administrator explained that, though they pray at worship services, a prayer request is different. He said that they feel that “they have to tell something they hope for.” They are not able to conceive of a better life because they have been living in squalor for so long.
The 21st Century Panglong Peace Conference will soon be taking place in Myanmar. Many individuals want to end the civil war and restore peace. While encouraging, the negotiations do not ensure immediate stability because IDPs will likely not be receiving proper representation at the meeting. IDPs could be represented by the Kachin Independent Army (KIA), Kachin Independent Organization (KIO), or the Tamadaw – the army in power, yet none of these groups have a vested interest in the IDPs’ welfare. Perhaps the best solution would be to have an intermediary who is committed to advocating for suffering people. Unfortunately, as it currently stands, there does not seem to be space for this kind of representation at the Panlong Peace Conference.
The main city in Kachin State is called Myitkyinar, which means “near by the big river” in Burmese. In Psalm 1:3, the writer mentions that he who is blessed is “like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers.” The city Myitkyinar doesn’t quite exemplify the blessing as that tree portrayed in the Bible. Residents of Myanmar are left with many questions: how will this conflict come to an end, or will it ever end? The region is clogged with uncertainty and complicated grey areas in the country’s peace process.
The Kachin land and the Kachin people do not deserve this situation. They have so much to offer the nation, but they urgently need prayer to lift up the dreams of their new generation. This year’s Myanmar Council of Churches (MCC) theme stated that this country clearly needs “a call for fervent prayer in nation building. 1 Thessalonians 5:17, Luke 22:40-46.” MCC intends for these prayers to represent the vision that is held for Christian citizens, that the nation would be built up and the people’s suffering would be acknowledged. Hope remains that suffering Christians will prevail in Myanmar. The Lord is with them and they need our prayers more than ever, in the same way that Jesus needed his disciples to pray before he endured the cross.
For interviews with Gina Goh, Regional Manager, please contact Olivia Miller, Communications Coordinator: press@persecution.org