In this episode Dr Thomas Patton, Assistant Professor at the Department of Asian and International Studies, City University of Hong Kong provides us with an overview of the Burmese weizza, otherwise known as wizards with superpowers. He recently published a book titled The Buddha's Wizards: Magic, Protection, and Healing in Burmese Buddhism.

There are now several groups within Myanmar pushing for women's rights - but this was not always the case. Dr Elisabeth Olivius, Senior Lecturer in Peace & Conflict Studies at Umea University explains her research on diaspora gender activists and issues relating to their return to Myanmar.

How did the Japanese Empire become so strong as to drive the British Empire from Burma in World War II? Dr Ryan Hartley, Associate Professor at Tokyo's Tohoku University, explains the sequence of events leading to this momentous change. In doing so he considers that Burma was a "global blindspot" for the complacent British Empire. Ryan's articles on Japan: 𝗝𝗮𝗽𝗮𝗻'𝘀 𝗘𝗮𝗿𝗹𝘆 𝗧𝘄𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘁𝗵 𝗖𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘂𝗿𝘆 𝗘𝗻𝘁𝗿𝘆 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗼 𝗕𝘂𝗿𝗺𝗮 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗕𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘀𝗵 𝗣𝗲𝗿𝗰𝗲𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 (𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗠𝗶𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗰𝗲𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀) 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗙𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗕𝗲𝗰𝗮𝗺𝗲 𝗮 𝗙𝗼𝗲, 𝟭𝟵𝟬𝟯–𝟭𝟵𝟰𝟯: 𝗔 𝗖𝗮𝘀𝗲 𝗦𝘁𝘂𝗱𝘆 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗚𝗹𝗼𝗯𝗮𝗹 𝗕𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗱𝘀𝗽𝗼𝘁 https://muse.jhu.edu/article/711254 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1353/jbs.2018.0002 𝗝𝗮𝗽𝗮𝗻'𝘀 𝗿𝘂𝘀𝗵 𝘁𝗼 𝗿𝗲𝗷𝘂𝘃𝗲𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗕𝘂𝗿𝗺𝗮 𝗿𝗲𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀: 𝗔 𝗰𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝗳 𝗽𝗼𝘀𝘁-𝟮𝟬𝟭𝟭 𝗲𝗳𝗳𝗼𝗿𝘁𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗲 "𝗻𝗲𝘄 𝗼𝗹𝗱 𝗳𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗱𝘀" https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0967828X18813504 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0967828X18813504

What challenges are Myanmar's journalists facing for the year ahead in 2019 and how has the past year fared for press freedom? Two journalists from Frontier Myanmar, Tom Kean and Ben Dunant, make the case for cautious optimism amid conspicuous ongoing crackdowns and the recent jailing of practitioners Kyaw Soe Oo and Wa Lone.

Dr Carol Ann Boshier, Research Associate at SOAS at the University of London and author of the book Mapping Cultural Nationalism: The Scholars of the Burma Research Society, 1910–1935, discusses the work of the Burma Research Society in the early twentieth century and how hegemonic Bama ideas were prioritised in its output.

Dr Yi Li, Associate Lecturer at Aberystwyth University, discusses her book Chinese in Colonial Burma: A Migrant Community in a Multiethnic State. How did Burma fit into the worldviews of settler Chinese during the British colonial period, especially in the context of the much larger Nanyang migration waves occurring at the time? How did Chinese migrants choose to come to Yangon over other British colonies in Southeast Asia, such as the Straits Settlements? And is it true that the Chinese in colonial Burma were merchants, with a predisposition for vice and a lack of interest in politics?

What is cultural evolution and what can it tell us about religion in Myanmar? Dr Mark Stanford, a postdoctoral researcher in cognitive anthropology at the University of Oxford, discusses his ongoing research into the cognitive and cultural foundations of religion and morality in Myanmar.

Who are the Sino-Burmese of Yangon and how do they live in the city? Dr Jayde Lin Roberts, a US Fulbright Scholar and author of the book "Mapping Chinese Rangoon", discusses this vibrant community and how they continue to make their own place in the wider metropolis.

Kay Mastenbroek, a veteran documentary filmmaker, reflects on using video media stories and testimonials to foster national reconciliation between perpetrators of the military regime and those who have suffered. Kay is part of the 1988-2010 History Project which aims to create a series of films dealing with these issues. You can watch two episodes of the series here: https://youtu.be/1AqtyehPN4o https://youtu.be/eC3rB5ZRP20

What are UN Special Rapporteurs on Human Rights and why have they had such a problematic time of it in Myanmar? In this episode David Mathieson discusses the human rights situation in Burma and outlines the history of rapporteurs to the country, from 1992 to the present.