Starting Point
Daw Kay Thi works at the Lairawn Baptist Association (LBA-MST) in Myanmar. Since the days of her seniors, the association has been assisting children and mothers. It provides vocational training to women, supporting their livelihoods. During the 2021 takeover of power, she participated in a peaceful demonstration and prayed for the situation to improve. She also serves in mitigation.
Peace Journey
As a laywoman of the Christian mission, she performs religious practices. Her organisation performs prayers. She doesn’t know precisely about the peace process, and she has not directly participated in one. However, she learns about it through the news and newspapers. She hopes that Myanmar will achieve nationwide peace. However, devising strategies for achieving peace is challenging, as meetings are often held in cities, making it difficult for the results to be implemented in areas facing conflict. Therefore, she thinks such actions have not yet succeeded.
In her capacity, she provided vocational training for young women annually. Furthermore, she attended a training session on peace studies via a Zoom meeting in Myanmar. She also assists displaced people from her native land who have fled conflict areas. She wished to take part in any endeavour that is in need and of use. She is also interested in research and women’s empowerment.
Success Stories
She argued that her organisation has mastered the needed crisis management to deal with the current situation. Therefore, they will continue to assist the survivors of the conflicts as much as possible. Although challenged by the inability to provide financial assistance, what matters most to her organisation is to keep going rather than being discouraged from helping others.
The organisation undertakes several initiatives specifically designed for women. But not all resulted in the expected way. For example, vocational training courses, such as dress-making courses, are not appealing to women due to their low income. It would be appropriate for women to participate in specific sectors that are suitable and lucrative for them. There should be opportunities for women to stand tall on their own feet.