Ma Thida is a medical doctor, writer and human rights activist. She believes in freedom of expression. In 1993, she was sentenced to 20 years in prison for “endangering public peace, having contact with illegal organisations, and distributing unlawful literature.” She was released in 1999 and was awarded the Reebok Human Rights Award, the PEN/Barbara Goldsmith Freedom to Write Award, Freedom of Speech Award and Disturbing the Peace; Courageous Writer at Risk Award.
She was an International Writers Project Fellow at Brown University and a Fellow of the Radcliffe Institute at Harvard University, the inaugural elected president of PEN Myanmar from 2013 until 2016. She served as a board member of PEN International 2016–21 and has been the chair of the Writers in Prison Committee since 2021. She was a research associate at Yale University for 2021–22. She moved to Germany as a fellow of the Martin Roth Initiative for 2022–23, and is currently a fellow at the Writers-in-Exile program of PEN Germany.
In 1993, Ma Thida was sentenced to 20 years in prison for championing freedom of expression and literature in Myanmar. She was a prisoner of conscience for six years at Insein Prison before being released in 1999. Upon her release, Ma Thida continued her advocacy for the rights of writers and journalists. She co-founded PEN Myanmar in 2013, serving as its inaugural President, and became the Chair of PEN International’s Writers in Prison Committee in 2021. Ma Thida has been a stalwart in Myanmar’s decades-long struggle for democracy, one made more urgent by the country’s recent military coup and ensuing civil conflict.
Conversations with her are not to be missed. She will be appearing in the following events.
Ma Thida in conversation with Victoria Laurie
13JUNE, 5:30-7:30PM (5:30-6:15PM Exhibition and Light refreshments, 6:15-7:30PM Conversation and Discussion)
Location: Murdoch University Art Gallery
Ma Thida will be in conversation with Victoria Laurie. Victoria Laurie is an award-winning journalist. Her career began in ABC radio and TV current affairs, followed by print journalism for The Bulletin, The Australian newspaper, Weekend Magazine and other publications. She has been a Walkley Award finalist three times, is a recipient of an Equal Opportunity Media Award and numerous state awards. She is a board member of the Walkley Foundation, and the founder and co-chair of Women in Media, a national not-for-profit organisation.
Sign up here. Entry is free but registration is required: https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/ma-thida-in-conversation-with-victoria-laurie-tickets-907354671247
A Conversation with Ma Thida: Myanmar and the Road to Freedom
15JUNE, 2 – 3pm
Location: Centre for Stories (100 Aberdeen Street Northbridge, WA 6003)
Ma Thida will be in conversation with Dr Christopher Lin. Chris was born in Yangon, Myanmar, and grew up in Perth, Australia. He is of Karen–Burmese ethnic heritage. He completed his PhD in English at The University of Western Australia, where he spent over 10 years teaching and in various professional roles. After having worked for the UWA Public Policy Institute, Chris joined Teach Well, where he works with school leaders and teachers to improve educational equity in WA and Australia. Beyond his day job, Chris has been a long-serving Burmese and PEN Perth activist, lending attention to Myanmar’s political struggle and the plight of its writers through his writing and local literary events.
Sign up here: https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/a-conversation-with-ma-thida-myanmar-and-the-road-to-freedom-tickets-894910490367
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