My Article on Myanmar Posted on “JAPAN Forward” English Site

As I posted on this blog on April 30 and May 1, I visited the remote island of Bhasan Char in Bangladesh for the first time on April 6 to look firsthand at the situation of the Myanmar refugee community there and how the humanitarian assistance The Nippon Foundation has provided is helping them.

I also wrote an article on this visit and my years of activities as Special Envoy of the Government of Japan for National Reconciliation in Myanmar and chairman of The Nippon Foundation, for the Seiron (Sound Opinion) column of the April 26 issue of the Sankei Shimbun, a vernacular national daily.

For more than 70 years, Myanmar has been mired in a civil war between the national military and some 20 ethnic armed organizations (EAO). Then, with the military takeover in February 2021 leading pro-democracy civilian groups to join the fray, the county has fallen into even deeper chaos.

Differences in ethnicity, culture, religion, and language, as well as the intentions of surrounding countries, have become intertwined in complex ways. As a result, every day I acutely feel how difficult it will be to achieve peace.

My efforts have been going on for more than a decade. Admittedly, they have been marked by bitter experiences and repeated failures. With that in mind, I have tried as much as possible to control what I say and maintain a posture of "silent diplomacy."

Now, for the first time, I wanted to report on some of my activities for the Seiron column to help readers comprehend just how difficult realizing peace will be.

This article was translated into English and posted on the English news opinion site “JAPAN Forward” supported by Sankei.

This article can be seen here.