Ah Bu

Ah Bu was born in a small village in Kachin State. Fighting occurred near the village all the time. Being the oldest girl of seven children, Ah Bu had to help her mother to carry water from the stream for cooking and washing. She enjoyed life on the farm especially when new piglets were born.

Because her village only had a school for Grade 2, Ah Bu and her sister went to live with their aunt in a village that was a day’s travel away. Although she missed her parents, she was happy to learn. Fighting got worse and Ah Bu’s father was killed. The Myanmar Army set fire to the village, and Ah Bu’s family was forced to move to another town. Ah Bu attended a new school and made new friends, including a Gorkha (Nepali origin) girl.

Married at 21, Ah Bu had six children and enjoyed a happy family life. With the resumption of fighting following the breakdown of the ceasefire in 2011, Ah Bu and her family moved to an IDP camp. In 2015, her daughter was shot and killed along with another young woman teacher. It is not clear who shot her daughter, but the incident took place near a Myanmar army base. The body was returned to Ah Bu, and she was able to give her daughter a proper burial.

Ah Bu’s body carries the scars of ordinary childhood injuries and pregnancy and the memories of her losses.

“I am a tree because I provide support to others.”

Ah Bu works with a local support group and finds encouragement in helping others. Her hope is to secure justice for her daughter and to unify and improve the lives of other female survivors. She wants to see justice and peace in her country.