The Heart Must Break by James Mawdsley

So I picked up this book randomly before I left Korea because it’s about a British guy who decides he wants to fight for Burma’s freedom by being imprisoned. Hmmm, interesting…. I finished it today after a marathon reading and it raised a lot of questions. I’m sure this book will continue to come up during my stay here. He started out teaching English at a Burmese rebel camp and then decided to go to prison to face the Burma regime.

This sounds very similar to two Americans who were arrested last year in North Korea after illegally entering the country hoping to change the regime and come face to face with Kim Jong Il. I personally get angry at those two men because they chose to enter those countries only to waste the time and attention of our government to get them back out. I mean I’m glad our government did for sure, because if I do something stupid I hope the American government will help me out. But at the same time I guess just looking at it from the outside, I’m just so confused about their motives and what really changed. Part of me really loves that they did that – just ran into a country demanding change. Awesome! But the other part of me is asking, what did you think would happen?

Now James’ book sheds light on his motives, now whether they are similar to the two men who entered North Korea, I don’t know. I’ll have to wait for their books to come out, but its raises some interesting questions. James’ hope is to go to prison to face the junta and bring attention to the situation in Burma. What better way to bring attention to a country then to have some westerner stuck there and the governments scrambling to help them out? Its true of the American journalists and the 2 dudes who went to NK. The American press focused on NK, hopefully causing some interest.

James’ also has an amazing family who he tells all of his plans to as they are to work with the embassies and be the face of his release campaign. He is arrested, not once but twice. The first time he was detained for 3 months and the second for over a year. Throughout the book he wants to focus on the plight of the other prisoners and the citizens of the country not himself. Interesting tactics. Even when he was released, it was bittersweet as he left all his friends there in prison.

Did he change anything? I don’t know. But his family: mom, dad, 1 sister, 2 brothers and uncle all became part of his fight against the Burmese regime. His mom even volunteered on the border while James was imprisoned, just for her own sake. So his family became part of the cause. Lots of people around the world held vigils for his release….did the vigils focus on the true victims of the regime? I don’t know.

So I guess my true question is, whether or not being arrested is really helpful in these regimes….The people James met in prison and the Karen people who are being oppressed thanked him numerous times for his work. So it wasn’t like the natives were rolling their eyes at him. But did much change? In that prison…not really. But maybe those people whom he met with were encouraged by his actions. Something to think about.