• Burmese
Tuesday, June 24, 2025
No Result
View All Result
NEWSLETTER
The Irrawaddy
25 °c
Ashburn
  • Home
  • News
    • Burma
    • Politics
    • World
    • Asia
    • Myanmar’s Crisis & the World
    • Ethnic Issues
    • War Against the Junta
    • Junta Cronies
    • Conflicts In Numbers
    • Junta Watch
    • Fact Check
    • Investigation
    • Myanmar-China Watch
    • Obituaries
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Opinion
    • Commentary
    • Guest Column
    • Analysis
    • Editorial
    • Stories That Shaped Us
    • Letters
  • Junta Watch
  • Ethnic Issues
  • War Against the Junta
  • In Person
    • Interview
    • Profile
  • Books
  • Donation
  • Home
  • News
    • Burma
    • Politics
    • World
    • Asia
    • Myanmar’s Crisis & the World
    • Ethnic Issues
    • War Against the Junta
    • Junta Cronies
    • Conflicts In Numbers
    • Junta Watch
    • Fact Check
    • Investigation
    • Myanmar-China Watch
    • Obituaries
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Opinion
    • Commentary
    • Guest Column
    • Analysis
    • Editorial
    • Stories That Shaped Us
    • Letters
  • Junta Watch
  • Ethnic Issues
  • War Against the Junta
  • In Person
    • Interview
    • Profile
  • Books
  • Donation
No Result
View All Result
The Irrawaddy
No Result
View All Result
Home In Person

UN Award Winner Fights for Myanmar’s Women

Nyein Nyein by Nyein Nyein
January 12, 2018
in In Person
Reading Time: 4 mins read
0 0
A A
UN N-Peace Award winner Cheery Zahau. / The Irrawaddy

UN N-Peace Award winner Cheery Zahau. / The Irrawaddy

15.4k
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

Human rights advocate Cheery Zahau was honored with the UN Development Program’s N-Peace Award for 2017 in the Untold Stories category. An ethnic Chin and secretary of the Chin Progressive Party, she has been a longtime advocate for human rights and gender equality and for women taking leadership roles in politics. Cheery spoke with The Irrawaddy’s Nyein Nyein about her experiences and perspectives on women’s rights and gender equality.

Why do you think you were honored with the N-Peace Award?

I was honored in the Untold Stories category. In 2016 I was contacted by the UNDP and they asked for my CV. There were about six or seven other women leaders as well as other nominees for [the category] Campaign for Action. There were about 10 people from Myanmar. I did not know that I was being awarded. I completely forgot about it. And in late 2017 my friends and colleagues shared with me the good news that they saw my profile and that I had won the award. When I checked, I was labeled as a reporter and it was corrected after I explained to them that I have never worked with any news agency. I am just a researcher and human rights activist. I have done research and documented it in about seven books. I can be referred to as an author, not a reporter.

RelatedPosts

Female factory workers in the Hlaing Thar Yar Industrial Zone are seen on April 2, 2020. / Myo Min Soe / The Irrawaddy

EU Pledges Support for Women Garment Factory Workers in Myanmar

April 9, 2020
9.7k
Women representatives from the Tatmadaw’s delegation register their attendance during the second session of the 21st Century Panglong/Union Peace Conference in May. / Myo Min Soe / The Irrawaddy

Gender Alliance Reports 20 Percent Women’s Participation in Peace Conference

May 30, 2017
5.2k

How does the award help you with your current work?

This award acknowledged my previous contributions to the Women’s League of Chinland [WLC], because the WLC is an umbrella organization of Chin women’s groups. Now I am working at a political institution. Although it is not directly related to my current work, it is recognition for the research I have done on women in conflict areas. It shows that those who keep up their activism or movement for gender equality or social transformation won’t be forgotten. They will be acknowledged at some point. Whichever field we choose, journalism or activism, if their efforts bring changes to the community, other people will recognize them for what they’ve done.

As a mother and as an activist, how do you manage the work-life balance? What are the challenges?

There are many challenges. As a mother, it becomes harder to work in this field. People might think it would be easy for mothers to work in the fields of human rights, democracy and politics. It is totally different. I didn’t want to leave my child for work. I keep telling myself I must make it work even though I have a child because I worry about the perception that one can have a child but cannot work with a young baby.

How much legal or community support is there for working mothers?

On creating an environment that is convenient for working mothers, we do not have any push factors in Myanmar. In Myanmar, if you have a child, you leave your work until the child grows up. So after marriage we have to choose…. Either we have a baby and stay with them or we continue working. We do not have the space for women to work and take care of a baby at the same time. To achieve that we need much more campaigning and advocacy.

There are some who do both, taking care of a baby and working. But some cannot take a break, depending on the family and its economic status. For instance, I could not take a rest from work because I did not want to stop working. For people like me there is no support. Support is needed. So we are proving that there needs to be support, like childcare for working mothers. The companies, institutions and government departments that employ working mothers should understand these needs even if we don’t have formal legislation.

How much change have you seen in the mindset of those who cannot accept the concept of women’s rights?

If we talk about women’s rights, of course there are misunderstandings. But what we are talking about is gender equality. Gender equality is not about only women, who would take all the advantages from men. It is about encouraging women to be on equal terms with men, to have the same job status. It is the same for men; if they are being left out, the men must get equal terms.

Generally speaking, people understand the concept, because if we have gender equality it helps create a happy family life and spreads happiness all around. In terms of the economy, the state could also benefit from having both men and women working. One good thing about gender equality is that both women and men can earn an income because they can both have jobs. It helps the economic development of the family because having both the husband and wife working obviously helps the family, as well as the state.

As an ethnic Chin, what is your take on government and civil society support for indigenous women? What are the needs?

In the Chin community, we have small Chin women’s groups and they are providing community awareness training all the time. When we include gender equality topics at those trainings, we see less resistance [from the male participants]. People become more aware of the importance of having equality, and that is a good sign.

As for economic status and community development, our Chin State sill needs a lot more infrastructure including roads, schools, hospitals and access to water and electricity. Unless we have these basic infrastructure needs fulfilled, it will remain hard to provide women with jobs and economic development. People live by farming and they survive on the crops they harvest from the farms. It is not an economy yet. For that to change, the government has more work to do to fulfill basic needs. So we have been pushing more for that.

Your Thoughts …
Tags: Women & Gender
Nyein Nyein

Nyein Nyein

The Irrawaddy

Similar Picks:

Female factory workers in the Hlaing Thar Yar Industrial Zone are seen on April 2, 2020. / Myo Min Soe / The Irrawaddy
Myanmar & COVID-19

EU Pledges Support for Women Garment Factory Workers in Myanmar

by Nyein Nyein
April 9, 2020
9.7k

The EU has pledged to distribute 5 million euros in emergency funds to 100,000 or more women factory workers in...

Read moreDetails
Women representatives from the Tatmadaw’s delegation register their attendance during the second session of the 21st Century Panglong/Union Peace Conference in May. / Myo Min Soe / The Irrawaddy
Burma

Gender Alliance Reports 20 Percent Women’s Participation in Peace Conference

by Nyein Nyein
May 30, 2017
5.2k

Although the target of 30 percent has not been reached, an evaluation reports that 126 out of 740 delegates at...

Read moreDetails
Load More
Next Post
NLD central committee member U Win Htein / The Irrawaddy

Has the NLD Delivered a Knockout Blow to U Win Htein’s Power?

2018 - High Hopes

2018 - High Hopes, Low Expectations

No Result
View All Result

Recommended

China is Systematically Dismantling Tibetan Monastic Traditions

China is Systematically Dismantling Tibetan Monastic Traditions

1 week ago
1.9k
The Lady Myanmar’s Generals Can’t Defeat

The Lady Myanmar’s Generals Can’t Defeat

5 days ago
831

Most Read

  • Myanmar Junta Scrambles for Chinese Energy Investment as Lights Go Out

    Myanmar Junta Scrambles for Chinese Energy Investment as Lights Go Out

    shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • New Law on Civil Servants by Myanmar’s Parallel Gov’t Troubles Observers

    shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Myanmar Junta Moves to Seize Sagaing Roads

    shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Myanmar Junta Changes Election Law Ahead of Polls

    shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Certifying a Chinese Security Invasion; Boosting Ties With Nuclear North Korea; and More

    shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0

Newsletter

Get The Irrawaddy’s latest news, analyses and opinion pieces on Myanmar in your inbox.

Subscribe here for daily updates.

Contents

  • News
  • Politics
  • War Against the Junta
  • Myanmar’s Crisis & the World
  • Conflicts In Numbers
  • Junta Crony
  • Ethnic Issues
  • Asia
  • World
  • Business
  • Economy
  • Election 2020
  • Elections in History
  • Cartoons
  • Features
  • Opinion
  • Editorial
  • Commentary
  • Guest Column
  • Analysis
  • Letters
  • In Person
  • Interview
  • Profile
  • Dateline
  • Specials
  • Myanmar Diary
  • Women & Gender
  • Places in History
  • On This Day
  • From the Archive
  • Myanmar & COVID-19
  • Intelligence
  • Myanmar-China Watch
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Food
  • Fashion & Design
  • Videos
  • Photos
  • Photo Essay
  • Donation

About The Irrawaddy

Founded in 1993 by a group of Myanmar journalists living in exile in Thailand, The Irrawaddy is a leading source of reliable news, information, and analysis on Burma/Myanmar and the Southeast Asian region. From its inception, The Irrawaddy has been an independent news media group, unaffiliated with any political party, organization or government. We believe that media must be free and independent and we strive to preserve press freedom.

  • Copyright
  • Code of Ethics
  • Privacy Policy
  • Team
  • About Us
  • Careers
  • Contact
  • Burmese

© 2023 Irrawaddy Publishing Group. All Rights Reserved

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • News
    • Burma
    • Politics
    • World
    • Asia
    • Myanmar’s Crisis & the World
    • Ethnic Issues
    • War Against the Junta
    • Junta Cronies
    • Conflicts In Numbers
    • Junta Watch
    • Fact Check
    • Investigation
    • Myanmar-China Watch
    • Obituaries
  • Politics
  • Opinion
    • Commentary
    • Guest Column
    • Analysis
    • Editorial
    • Stories That Shaped Us
    • Letters
  • Ethnic Issues
  • War Against the Junta
  • In Person
    • Interview
    • Profile
  • Business
    • Economy
    • Business Roundup
  • Books
  • Donation

© 2023 Irrawaddy Publishing Group. All Rights Reserved

This website uses cookies. By continuing to use this website you are giving consent to cookies being used. Visit our Privacy and Cookie Policy.