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The Freedom Collection Spotlights Cheery Zahau

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Learn more about Chris Walsh.
Chris Walsh
Director, Global Policy
George W. Bush Institute

In honor of Burmese pro-democracy leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi's historic visit to the United States, we are recognizing Burma’s brave...

In honor of Burmese pro-democracy leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi's historic visit to the United States, we are recognizing Burma’s brave freedom advocates featured in the Freedom Collection. Today we spotlight Cheery Zahau, a human rights activist from Chin State.  As a high school student, Zahau’s teachers warned that her intellectual curiosity would land her in serious trouble with the military junta.  She left Burma so that she could rally international support for protecting human dignity and expanding individual rights in her country.  Cheery has delivered her message to several international bodies, including the United Nations.   She now resides in Thailand where she works with the Human Rights Education Institute of Burma to strengthen support for human rights in Burma. Hear Zahau describe military abuses against the people of Chin State that include forced labor and rape, and the efforts of freedom advocates to push back against the regime’s cruelty: 

This post was written by Christopher Walsh, Program Coordinator of the Freedom Collection.