Foreign Affairs Training Program
The program was organized by the National
Council of the Union of Burma - a coalition of Burmese organizations
along the Thai-Burmese borders. The main aim of the program was to train
political activists from Burma working in organisations along the
border in human rights, democracy, international politics, and foreign
affairs work so they would be able to effectively promote the Burmese
democracy movement and human rights within their communities and abroad.
In order to increase women's
confidence and skills and to develop more awareness among men of the
importance of promoting women's rights and political participation,
women were strongly encouraged to apply for this programme and finally
made up half of the number of participants.
FAT
ran a ten-month foreign affairs course for sixteen students, followed
by three-month internships with international organizations (such as
People in Need in the Czech Republic, Burma Centre Netherlands in the
Netherlands, Norwegian Burma Committee etc.). The graduates afterwards
returned to the training center for a one-week reunion aiming at
discussing lessons learned from the internships and strategies to ensure
they would be able to use their knowledge and skills after they return
to their organizations.
The
organisation provided classroom-based and practical training through
which Burmese activists gained a broader and more analytical perspective
that better enables them to informed policy-making within their
organizations. During the training, students acquired in-depth knowledge
of human rights, democracy, and federalism - in theory and in practice;
political systems and recent world history and current affairs
pertaining to Asia; and the United Nations system, the European Union
(EU), and Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and their
relevance for Burma. The course also included Burma specific components
such as an introduction to the policies of various actors -- China,
India, EU countries, US, China, Japan, ASEAN -- towards Burma; a study
of countries that have had similar experiences to Burma such as
Indonesia, Sri Lanka, the Philippines, South Africa, and Yugoslavia; an
introduction to economics with a focus on Burma's economic problems; and
a comparative analysis of the experiences and perspectives of the
various ethnic and political groups in Burma.
With
a view to providing the basis for putting the knowledge into practical
work, the training complemented its theoretical part by strengthening
the participants' foreign affairs skills. Trainees learned a basic set
of expertise to research; public speaking; advocacy; including
preparation for meetings with diplomats; media interviews; networking
and coalition work; and other skills that would benefit their approach
towards achieving democracy in Burma.
In
addition, students used the chance to enhance their English and Thai
language skills as well as their computer proficiencies aimed at
providing for the hands-on tools for daily policy work.
From
a networking perspective, the training also sought to build mutual
understanding and more cooperative working relationships between Burmese
and ethnic minority activists by giving them a chance to study and live
together. Numerous guest speakers from NGOs, governments, the media and
Burmese political organizations have also been brought in to speak.
This helped the students to develop a network of contacts among
diplomats, NGOs, activists, and the press and to expose them to the work
of various organizations in the movement.
One of the students has prepared an article about the upcoming elections in Burma which is accessible here.
Read more about a student's experience with the foreign affairs training here.