Top 15 Burmese Human Rights Songs
Burma/Myanmar
Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, is home to diverse ethnic groups and abundant natural resources in Southeast Asia. The country gained independence in 1948. Despite the national anthem’s assurance of basic human rights for its citizens, Myanmar has endured the world’s longest civil war and frequent military coups, with the most recent occurring in 2021. Music has emerged as a powerful voice for the people, calling for democracy, peace, and public participation in revolutions. As a result, songs advocating for human rights have proliferated.
Link to Spotify playlist- https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1DqWH4WL1UsrdFvYkdj1Lz?si=o9vfGHViT5yqlIgII2jSGA
1.“Thway Thitsar”(Blood Oath)
a. Theme: anti-military rule and pro-democracy marches
b.The well-respected singer-songwriter Htoo Eain Thin wrote the song while in hiding
after the 1988 uprising. It was subsequently recorded in a studio in Bangkok. Since
then,it has been used in public street protests.
c. Lyrics:
“It’s a crucial time, brothers,
Let’s unite and march together.
We wrote our new history with our blood,
Here we keep blood oath.”
“We give our lives for the nation,
We will march together with the peacock’s blood,
For our freedom and peace,
We must fight the last battle.”
d. ‘Thway Thit Sar’ ‘သွေးသစ္စာ’ (Orchestra Version)
2. “Kabar Makyay Bu” (Till the End of the World)
a. Theme: Democracy heroes
b. The melody of the 1977 hit song “Dust in the Wind” by the American rock band
Kansas served as inspiration for the song “Till the End of the World.” The composer
Naing Myanmar wrote this piece to honor the unsung heroes who lost their lives in
pro-democracy movements.
c. Lyrics:
“We will not forget the history written by our blood
Till the end of the world.
Oh our fallen heroes, you gave your lives for the revolution.
This is the country of the martyrs and brave people.”
d. ကမ္ဘာမကြေဘူး (with English lyrics)
3. “Khun Arr Phyae Meenge”(Don’t Give Up, Little One)- Khin Maung Toe
a. Theme: Resilience
b. Composed by Ko Ne Win, this uplifting song is a popular anthem at rallies, inspiring
participants to motivate one another and remind the public to stay resilient. It has
been reported that political prisoners also offered encouragement to one another by
singing it while incarcerated.
c. Lyrics:
“After passing through the night after the sunset,
The new day will come with the sunrise.
If we endeavor with commitment,
we will succeed and escape one day.
As the road of ‘samsara’ is not smooth,
Please keep your spirit alive to face hardship, Meenge.”
d . ခွန်အားဖြည့်မိငယ် ~ ခင်မောင်တိုး (Lyrics Video) [ Khin Maung Toe – Kun Arr Phyae Mi Nge ]
4. “ Arnarshin Sanit Asone That Ya Myee” (The Dictatorship Must Come to an End)
a. Theme: anti-dictatorship
b. Just a few days after the military coup on February 1, 2021, this new revolution song
was created by Generation Z MM. It calls for national unity in the face of
power-hungry dictators.
c. Lyrics:
“Our bones and blood are to defeat the dictator.
We can’t be tied up by fear.
We are ready for the revolution.
They are power-crazy people.
We all have to stand up to end the dictatorship.
We must end the dictatorship.
d. Revolution အာဏာရှင်စနစ်အဆုံးသတ်ရမည် (အာဏာရူး)
5. “ Alo Mashi” (We don’t Want it)
a. Theme: Freedom of Expression
b. This lively song became a sensation among Myanmar’s youth during the early days
of the Spring Revolution in 2021. It encourages the public to express their opposition
to the military junta by banging pots and pans, symbolizing the expulsion of evil.
c. Lyrics:
“Let’s drive away the junta.
We don’t want it!
We don’t want it!
Let’s reject the dictatorship.
We don’t want it!
We don’t want it!
Let’s bang pots and pans together
To show our brave hearts for truth.
Let’s express our desire
We’ll stand for truth forever”
d. အလိုမရှိ – ALo Mashi Music Video
6. “ We are the World”covered by Chinlung Chuak Artists
a. Theme: Highlights on human rights violations and atrocities, call for unity
b. “‘We Are the World,’ composed by Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie, was covered
by Chin ethnic artists, gaining international recognition during the Spring
Revolution. In addition to the original lyrics, these vocalists incorporated their own
verses, highlighting human rights violations and atrocities committed by the military
junta in Myanmar.”
c. Lyrics:
“Help! Help!
Calling for help to the world
Hope! Hope!
Hoping for their voice to be heard”
d. We Are The World | Cover By CHINLUNG CHUAK ARTIST
7. “Dictators must Die”
a. Theme: Rap against Junta
b. This song was created by Floke Rose and Cori Rey from Myanmar, in collaboration
with artists from Indonesia, India, Taiwan, Thailand, and Hong Kong. This
movement united artists from around the world to spread an important message,
significantly contributing to social change.
c. Lyrics:
““Myanmar people struggle to survive in hell,
Day by day, comrades fall, can’t you see?
Junta forces unleash their fire at home,
Morning and night, we’re never alone.
No one dreams of this waking nightmare.”
d. Rap Against Junta – Dictators Must Die [Official Music Video]
8. “ Naut Sone Pwe” (End Game)
a. Theme: Revolution
b. This became a rallying cry among the youth during the 2021 revolution. It
emphasizes that the Spring Revolution must be the final step in overthrowing the
military dictatorship, ensuring that the people endure such suffering for the last
Time.
c. Lyrics:
“The end game!
This is the end game!
We, the public, must win!
The truth must win!
We must uproot the military dictatorship!”
d.. END GAME ( Yair Yint Aung, NAY, Adjustor, Yung Hugo, GRACEe, D-Vision, EilliE )
9. “ Kyal (Star)”
a. Theme: Fight for democracy
b. This song, crafted by a group of young artists, pays tribute to the fallen heroes who
sacrificed their lives in the struggle for democracy. It also challenges those who
ignore the country’s plight, asking if they can truly have a clear conscience about it.
c. Lyrics:
“Some can never return home
Some can never be reunited
Some are lost in the dark
On the day of victory
With the light of dawn
Are you sure you will have a clear conscience?”
d. Kyal (Lyrics Video) – Various Artists
10. “ Yaung Ni (Dawn)”
a. Theme: Hope
b. Lynn Lynn, a celebrated artist in exile, conveys a message of hope in this song,
asserting that there is always a glimmer of brightness at the end of the darkest night.
c. Lyrics:
“Towards the dawn
Towards the mornings with light
We are heading
Towards the world without dark”
d. လင်းလင်း – ရောင်နီ (Lynn Lynn Authentic Live Concert Ver.)
`11. “Thuma (Her)”- Phyu Phyu Kyaw Thein
a. Theme: Political prisoner
b. One of the artists in exile composed and performed this song in honor of Daw
Aung San Suu Kyi, a political prisoner, Nobel Peace Prize laureate, and symbol of
democracy in Myanmar. It was released on her 79th birthday, which is celebrated
on June 19th.
c. Lyrics:
“They are cruel
And they’ve done such a thing
She never says these words
She just gives a smile behind the bars
You must be united
And strong-minded
You must go on without me
Don’t take me into consideration
She says these words from the prison.”
d. ဖြူဖြူကျော်သိန်း – သူမ ~ Her (Official Music Video)
12. “ Ma Lo Chin Bu Sit” (I don’t want war at all)- Ni Ni Khin Zaw
a. Theme: Anti-war
b. Due to the ongoing local conflicts, towns were engulfed in flames and increasing
numbers of people were displaced across Myanmar. Wai La and Ko Htet composed
this song with heartfelt wishes for peace, not war.
c. Lyrics:
“War, I don’t want you at all
The terrible days you have left behind
And the dark nights without my dears near me
I go on with all the might though.
War, I don’t want to see you at all
The towns on fire
And the lifeless homes
Who will stop the hatred?
I just wish for peace!”
d. မလိုချင်ဘူးစစ် – နီနီခင်ဇော်| Ma Lo Chin Bu Sit – Ni Ni Khin Zaw (Official Music Video)
13. “Lu Nyi Mya Chin Lu” (Human = Human)- Saw Pho Kwar
a. Anti-racism
b. Saw Pho Kwar, one of the few reggae artists in Myanmar, performed this song to
express that all human beings are equal, regardless of their race. He also conveys
his heartfelt wishes for peace and joy to children and the world.
c. Lyrics:
“Hey! Don’t say what groups you belong to:
Chinese, Indian, Karen, Bhama, Rakhine, Kachin or whatever!
We all are human!
Humans are equal to humans!”
d. လူညီမျှခြင်းလူ – စောဖိုးခွား (Reggae)
14 “ Lu Go Lu Lo Myin Pay Par”(Freedom)- Kaung Sitt Min (composed by Water)
a. LGBTQI+, Anti-discrimination
b. The song portrays the social, employment, and attitudinal discrimination faced by
the LGBTQI+ community in Myanmar. It also advocates for equality, urging society
to recognize them simply as fellow human beings.
c. Lyrics:
“In our lives with restrictions
We long for freedom
Oh freedom!
Come to us quickly!
See us just as fellow human
May these sufferings end with us!
No more discrimination among humans!”
d. Freedom – Kaung Sitt Min (Official Music Video)
15. “Kabarmyay Atwet Thachin” (Song for the World)
a. Theme: Diversity
b. This group song explores a variety of individuals and their diverse attitudes. It also
acknowledges that, despite these differences, everyone shares a common
humanity.
c. Lyrics:
“Some try their best for themselves
Some focus on the common good
Some still feel inferior
No matter what, they all are human!
Some prioritize their ego
Some value sharing
Some ignore right and wrong
No matter what, they all are human!”
d. ကမ္ဘာမြေအတွက်သီချင်း – ဘိုဖြူ၊ ဟန်ထွန်း၊ အယ်နောင်း၊ ကိုအောင်၊ လှိုင်ဦးမော်၊ အစိုင်း၊ သအို၊ ပူစူး
Reference:
In Myanmar, Music is the Voice of Protest
From classical musicians to breakdancers: Myanmar youth sound off against military coup
Link to Spotify playlist- https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3LWPYBumMCdQzzGYMFdGUz?si=xIoidr1sQOie8rwApJIfUA
