INTERVIEW - "We cannot make peace with the military regime": David Lai

Q: How do you feel after this concert?

A: Well, I felt awkwardly at the beginning of the show but felt enjoyable when the show drew to an end. I am not quite sure about the reason, maybe because of the audience's support. But at the start, I felt a bit sorry and tired.

Q:It has been two shows, how do you find the difference between Sydney and Melbourne?

A: It is different from place to place. Here in Melbourne, the Chin population outnumbers Sydney. But in Sydney, there were more Burmese-speaking populations than Chin and Karen. There were some Kachin. I think we succeeded in the objective of this music concert. The number of attendees is not as important as the objective of this charity event, which is to unite all ethnic people in diversity and raise funding together to support people in Myanmar.

Q: I understood that you have arrived in Australia (from India) for a month. Are there any other activities you are planning other than the charity music tour?

A: It is only for music tours. I have to go back to India after this.

Q: I have noticed that the cover song of Chin singers, 'We are the world', attracts more than five million views on YouTube. Can you tell me the idea behind it?

A: The main organizers of that song were the U.S.-based 'Chin Tube' group. They organized the Chin singers in Aizawl (the capital of Mizoram) to join in the group song. The objective was to make people in the outside world aware and hear about our situations. Chin singers from different parts of the world came together to make this song, including Chin musicians from Australia, New Zealand, Europe, the U.S., Mizoram (a state of India), India, and even from Myanmar.

Q: Where were you when this 'Spring Revolution' began?

A: I was in Yangon (the capital of Myanmar). I think I was there for about two months. I was along with my friends in street protests for one month. After that, my uncle warned me to go somewhere for my safety. At first, I didn't want to hide because I thought it was unnecessary. In other words, I thought the violence (against peaceful protesters) would not happen in our capital city. I was wrong. Such kind of violence was a small thing for the military. They did it in the past, they are familiar with it. But at my age and with my experiences, I hadn't seen it yet. When I saw it with my own eyes, it was unbelievable.

Q: And then where did you go? To Chin state?

A: I was born and raised in Yangon and started my music career there. When he time came to hide, I went to India by crossing from Rakhine state.

Q: So now in India?

A: Yes, in Aizawl.

Q: Did you stay in a refugee camp there? Or have you been there?

A: I did not stay in a refugee camp. But I have been there often, along with the 'Guys from Chin' music group, or individually, or with other organizations, for donation or moral support activities such as music events.

Q: Do you have any experience to remember meeting with refugees?

A: I see they have lost basic human rights even though they are temporarily safe in a place of others. When they are sheltering not in their own land, not in our country, there are issues on health, education, and safety support. These are the consequences of the military coup and the suffering of our Chin people after the coup.

Q: And what about yourself, any impact you have in your own life?

A: Absolutely, there have been many. It has changed a lot in music creation. Before the coup, I wanted to walk my own way of life in personal freedom. But in these circumstances, I feel like I have no future. I am not talking about myself, but for all young people. They do not have a future. We cannot think of our own personal development. In battlefields, our friends and young brothers have no chance to feel the softness of artistic things. No one to blame for that.

Q: As you know, Chin state or Myanmar as a whole is diverse in ethnicity. What is your thought on what music can do with these diverse societies?

A: One of my friends told me that music has soft power. There were some points in history where music brought unity. As this is a revolution, we cannot make peace with the military regime. At the same time, unity among all ethnicities in our country and within our Chin community is very important.

A: Are you satisfied with what you are doing now?

Q: Absolutely not. I will never be satisfied with what I can do to help people. Because at the beginning of the revolution, we organized many fundraising activities with friends. I could collect a large amount of money at that time, but now the funding has declined. This trend causes suffering for the refugees and IDPs.