Sithu (a very prestigious award for bravery and gallantry) Colonel Raymond Campagnac was born in August 1921 and passed away in November, 1989.  He was Anglo Burmese as were both his parents.
His daughter Sandra Campagnac - Carney has written a biography of his life entitled Burma's Son (published in 2020 by Blue Mist Publication and available in several ebook shops).  I was made aware of his remarkable life by another of my podcast subjects, Sithu Captain Kyaw Thein Lwin - see Episodes 31 to 34.  He believes the enormous contribution of the Anglo Burmese to Burma in general and specifically to the success of the Allied Forces in Burma during WW2 and in fighting for Burma's independence have largely been overlooked or forgotten.  Sandra's biography of her father goes some way in remedying that.

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Please feel free to contact me with suggested interviewees at [email protected].

Thank you for listening .

Peter Church

With significant assistance from Professor John Ingleson and Dr Ian Black (then both at the University of New South Wales) I published the first edition of A Short History of South East Asia in the late 1990s.   The current 6th edition was published in 2017 by Wiley and, if you are interested, is available for purchase on all the major ebook sites.

The catalyst for writing the book was a 1980 speech by the late Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew of Singapore to the People's Action Party (the political party he founded) and in which he said "to understand the present and anticipate the future, one must know enough of the past, enough to have a sense of the history of a people".  In my opinion these few words are profound and apply to every country in the world, including Myanmar.

I propose to read the Myanmar chapter from the book over a few podcasts and hope by the end we will know enough of Myanmar's history to "understand the present and anticipate the future"?

This reading covers the period from the early 2000s to the publication of the 6th edition of the book in 2017.

My conclusion as to why Myanmar is where it is today is a combination of a number of factors:

• The abolition of the monarchy in 1885 (including the physical removal of King Thibaw to Calcutta) leaving the Burmese without a social and religious structure and then being subject to direct rule by the British.  This compared to the ethnic minorities whose social and leadership structures were left in place with them being subject to indirect rule by the British.
• The entering into of the Panglong Agreement on 12  February 1947 by the Burmese, Shan, Chin and Kachin (but not the Karen) and which provided for a Federal Government following independence which took place on 4 January, 1948. There were provisions for the ethnic groups to be able to withdraw from the Federation after 10 years if they were not satisfied with the situation.  
• General Aung San was instrumental in persuading the ethnic groups to sign the Panglong Agreement.   He had their trust. Sadly he and some of his key colleagues were assassinated in April 1947 and there was no one of his stature or influence to ensure the terms of the Agreement were followed.
• General Ne Win was concerned that the ethnic groups were going to withdraw from the Union pursuant to the Panglong Agreement and launched a coup on 2 March 1962.  Not only did he effectively "tear up" the Agreement but he ordered the killing and jailing of many hereditary ethnic leaders.
• Needless to say, since the 1962 coup, most ethnic groups have not trusted the military and some like the Karen have never trusted them.  The 1 February 2021 coup reinforces their multi decade lack of trust in the military.
• A key difference between the 1962 and 2021 coups is that the Burmese population by and large went along submissively with the 1962 as they hoped it would bring stability and improve the economy - although General Ne Win failed spectacularly with the economy- whereas most Burmese (and particularly young Burmese) having tasted quasi democracy, have solidly rejected the 2021 coup.

Those listening to my podcast may well have other reasons as to why Myanmar is where it is today.  However, looking forward, the most important question to answer is how we get from where the country is today to a bright, prosperous and peaceful future for the country and its diverse ethnicities.

Send us a text

Please feel free to contact me with suggested interviewees at [email protected].

Thank you for listening .

Peter Church

With significant assistance from Professor John Ingleson and Dr Ian Black (then both at the University of New South Wales) I published the first edition of A Short History of South East Asia in the late 1990s.   The current 6th edition was published in 2017 by Wiley and, if you are interested, is available for purchase on all the major ebook sites.

The catalyst for writing the book was a 1980 speech by the late Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew of Singapore to the People's Action Party (the political party he founded) and in which he said "to understand the present and anticipate the future, one must know enough of the past, enough to have a sense of the history of a people".  In my opinion these few words are profound and apply to every country in the world, including Myanmar.

I propose to read the Myanmar chapter from the book over a few podcasts and hope by the end we will know enough of Myanmar's history to "understand the present and anticipate the future"?

This reading covers the period from the 1970s to the early 2000s.

Send us a text

Please feel free to contact me with suggested interviewees at [email protected].

Thank you for listening .

Peter Church

With significant assistance from Professor John Ingleson and Dr Ian Black (then both at the University of New South Wales) I published the first edition of A Short History of South East Asia in the late 1990s.   The current 6th edition was published in 2017 by Wiley and, if you are interested, is available for purchase on all the major ebook sites.

The catalyst for writing the book was a 1980 speech by the late Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew of Singapore to the People's Action Party (the political party he founded) and in which he said "to understand the present and anticipate the future, one must know enough of the past, enough to have a sense of the history of a people".  In my opinion these few words are profound and apply to every country in the world, including Myanmar.

I propose to read the Myanmar chapter from the book over a few podcasts and hope by the end we will know enough of Myanmar's history to "understand the present and anticipate the future"?

This reading covers the period of Japanese occupation during WW2 and the early years of independence to the late 1960s.

Send us a text

Please feel free to contact me with suggested interviewees at [email protected].

Thank you for listening .

Peter Church

With significant assistance from Professor John Ingleson and Dr Ian Black (then both at the University of New South Wales) I published the first edition of A Short History of South East Asia in the late 1990s.   The current 6th edition was published in 2017 by Wiley and, if you are interested, is available for purchase on all the major ebook sites.

The catalyst for writing the book was a 1980 speech by the late Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew of Singapore to the People's Action Party (the political party he founded) and in which he said "to understand the present and anticipate the future, one must know enough of the past, enough to have a sense of the history of a people".  In my opinion these few words are profound and apply to every country in the world, including Myanmar.

I propose to read the Myanmar chapter from the book over a few podcasts and hope by the end we will know enough of Myanmar's history to "understand the present and anticipate the future"?

This reading covers the period of English colonisation up to WW2.

Send us a text

Please feel free to contact me with suggested interviewees at [email protected].

Thank you for listening .

Peter Church

With significant assistance from Professor John Ingleson and Dr Ian Black (then both at the University of New South Wales) I published the first edition of A Short History of South East Asia in the late 1990s.   The current 6th edition was published in 2017 by Wiley and, if you are interested, is available for purchase on all the major ebook sites.

The catalyst for writing the book was a 1980 speech by the late Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew of Singapore to the People's Action Party (the political party he founded) and in which he said "to understand the present and anticipate the future, one must know enough of the past, enough to have a sense of the history of a people".  In my opinion these few words are profound and apply to every country in the world, including Myanmar.

I propose to read the Myanmar chapter from the book over a few podcasts and hope by the end we will know enough of Myanmar's history to "understand the present and anticipate the future"?

This reading covers the period from the area's early history up to English colonisation.

Send us a text

Please feel free to contact me with suggested interviewees at [email protected].

Thank you for listening .

Peter Church

Maurice Collis was born in Dublin in 1889, the son of an Irish solicitor, and went to Rugby in 1903 and then in 1907 to Oxford.  He was posted to Burma  in 1912. He had postings at Sagaing  and elsewhere in Burma. In 1917, the British army raised a Burmese brigade with which Collis went to Palestine. In 1919, he went on leave and travelled in Europe. In the 1920s he was district commissioner in Arakan State.  In 1929–1930, a period when relations between Burmese, Indians and British became particularly difficult, he was district magistrate in Rangoon and much of the book deals with that period  and three particular cases;  the political trial of J.M Sen Gupta, the mayor Calcutta and two criminal trials.   My particular interest however is in the sections dealing with the Peasants' Rebellion in 1930 and Collis' deep understanding of the Burmese and the failings on the British Government.  He left Burma in 1931 and wrote a number of books on the country and died in 1973.

The book can be purchased as an ebook from Amazon - https://www.amazon.com.au/Trials-Burma-Maurice-Collis-ebook/dp/B00Z4M9N3E - and possibly other ebook sellers.

The photo of Collis is from the National Portrait Gallery, London

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Please feel free to contact me with suggested interviewees at [email protected].

Thank you for listening .

Peter Church

Sao Noan Oo was born in 1931 in Shan State as a princess, being the daughter of the Sawbwa or Sao Hpa of Lawksawk, a state in the Federated Shan States or Mong Tai.

Sao Noan Oo was studying in England at the time of the 1962 coup and her scholarship was cancelled.   Given what happened to her family and other Shan families after that coup she has never returned to Myanmar but has tirelessly fought for the rights of the Shan people.  She married an Englishman and is now known by most people as Nel Adams.

Nel has written her life story entitled "My Vanished World".  The book is currently out of print but some second hand copies can be found in ebook sites like Amazon - https://www.amazon.com/My-Vanished-World-Story-Princess/dp/189931024X

She has also written a history of the Tai (or Shan) people which is available at Amazon - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Unravelling-History-Tai-Yai-Noan/dp/1527209474.

This chapter deals with the disastrous long term consequences for the Shan people following what has become known as  Martyrs Day when,  on 19 July 1947,  a number leading Burmese and ethnic leaders in pre independent Burma were assassinated.  This included U Aung San (the father of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi) and a Shan leader, Sao Sam Htun, the Sawbwa of Mongpawn.

Send us a text

Please feel free to contact me with suggested interviewees at [email protected].

Thank you for listening .

Peter Church

U Win Htein is an elder politician of the National League for Democracy, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi's right hand man, a former parliamentarian, army captain and businessman.

U Win Htein has spent 20 years of his life in prison for his belief in democracy.

He has written his autobiography entitled "Win Htein's story for posterity: Burma's odyssey from tyranny to quasi-democracy" which can be purchased as a ebook from many online booksellers such as https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/win-hteins-story-for-posterity-win-htein/1140822639.

It is extremely hard to believe that at the age of 79 for speaking out against the coup of 1 February, 2021 U Win Htein was sentenced in late October 2021 for sedition and received a 20 year prison sentence.  He is currently serving this sentence at a jail in Mandalay.

This Episode deals with Martyrs' Day which occurred 75 years ago today on 19 July 1947 when assassins entered a room in the Secretariat where the Governor's Executive Council was meeting and shot dead 9 prominent men, including U Aung San and a number of ethnic leaders, who would all have played a prominent role in an independent Burma.  The modern history of Burma might well have been a very different if these assassinations had not taken place.   19 July has been called "Martyrs' Day" ever since.

Send us a text

Please feel free to contact me with suggested interviewees at [email protected].

Thank you for listening .

Peter Church

Sao Noan Oo was born in 1931 in Shan State as a princess, being the daughter of the Sawbwa or Sao Hpa of Lawksawk, a state in the Federated Shan States or Mong Tai.

Sao Noan Oo was studying in England at the time of the 1962 coup and her scholarship was cancelled.   Given what happened to her family and other Shan families after that coup she has never returned to Myanmar but has tirelessly fought for the rights of the Shan people.  She married an Englishman and is now known by most people as Nel Adams.

Nel has written her life story entitled "My Vanished World".  The book is currently out of print but some second hand copies can be found in ebook sites like Amazon - https://www.amazon.com/My-Vanished-World-Story-Princess/dp/189931024X

She has also written a history of the Tai (or Shan) people which is available at Amazon - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Unravelling-History-Tai-Yai-Noan/dp/1527209474.

Nel firmly believes the fate of the Shan as an independent country was sealed by the signing of the Panglong Agreement on 14 February, 1947.   According to the Agreement the Shan State was bound to be part of the Union of Myanmar but would have the right to secede after 10 years if the Union failed.  This right was also embedded in the 1948 Constitution but which was effectively "torn up"  following the 1962 coup by General Ne Win.

Send us a text

Please feel free to contact me with suggested interviewees at [email protected].

Thank you for listening .

Peter Church