From Policy to Practice: Peacebuilding, Education, and Displacement in Myanmar and the Region

Keynote Address by Dr. Abdul Razak Ahmad

In this keynote address delivered for the "From Policy to Practice: Peacebuilding, Education, and Displacement in Myanmar and the Region" workshop held at Taylor's University on 5 May 2026, our Founding Director, Dr. Abdul Razak Ahmad posits the crisis in Myanmar as a human tragedy that challenges the values of the ASEAN Charter. He highlights that while political reconciliation is the long-term goal, the region has an immediate moral responsibility to provide education for displaced children to prevent a 'lost generation'.

FROM POLICY TO PRACTICE: PEACEBUILDING, EDUCATION,

AND DISPLACEMENT IN MYANMAR AND THE REGION

TAYLOR’S UNIVERSITY

5 MAY 2026

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Excellencies, distinguished guests, colleagues, and friends,

I am deeply honoured to be here with all of you today to address an issue of profound consequence to our region: the continuing crisis in Myanmar, and the urgent moral responsibility we share toward its people, especially its children.

This is not merely a political issue. It is not simply a diplomatic challenge. It is not only a question of governance or security.

It is, above all, a human tragedy.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

What has transpired in Myanmar over the past years has been deeply distressing.

It has inflicted immense suffering. It has torn apart communities. It has displaced millions. It has claimed lives, shattered livelihoods, and denied countless families the certainty, dignity, and peace that every human being deserves.

For ASEAN, this crisis has also been deeply sobering.

Myanmar is not a distant problem. Myanmar is a member of our regional family. Its pain reverberates across Southeast Asia. Its instability touches our collective peace, our regional credibility, and our common future. The events that have unfolded are not compatible with the principles we uphold: respect for peace, dialogue, coexistence, and stability. They are not in harmony with the values that underpin our region. They challenge the spirit of the ASEAN Charter, the Five-Point Consensus, and the very notion of ASEAN Centrality.

And yet, we must also be candid with ourselves. Myanmar is not a simple crisis. It is far more intricate than many anticipated. It cannot be reduced to slogans. It cannot be resolved through simplistic assumptions. It involves historical grievances, ethnic tensions, armed conflict, institutional fracture, geopolitical interests, and profound mistrust among many actors. That is why any serious response requires both principle and realism. We must remain steadfast in our support for peace, for human rights, and for an inclusive political future for Myanmar.

But we must also recognize that if existing approaches have not yielded sufficient progress, then we must be prepared to think creatively, act pragmatically, and explore new avenues of engagement. Diplomacy must never become stagnant. Policy must never become ritual. And regional leadership must never become passive in the face of suffering.

Distinguished Guests,

Recent developments, while limited, suggest that there may still be openings that should not be ignored. The former President, U Win Myint, has reportedly been released. Aung San Suu Kyi has reportedly been moved from prison to house arrest following reductions to parts of her sentence. There have also been renewed discussions surrounding future electoral processes.

These developments do not by themselves resolve the crisis. They do not erase years of violence. They do not automatically restore legitimacy or trust. But they may indicate that political space, however narrow, still exists and should be carefully tested through constructive engagement.

It may therefore be time for ASEAN, together with regional and international partners, to consider how best to encourage a new phase of inclusive dialogue. This dialogue must be broad-based. It cannot exclude key stakeholders. It must involve political actors, ethnic communities, civil society voices, humanitarian organizations, and those with real influence on the ground. It should be supported by neighbouring states and major regional partners, including China and India, whose roles are indispensable in any sustainable settlement.

The objective must be clear: reconciliation, de-escalation, and a pathway toward a stable and representative future determined by the people of Myanmar themselves. Many in Myanmar have long aspired to a democratic federal arrangement that reflects the country’s diversity and complex social fabric. That aspiration did not emerge from outside powers. It emerged from Myanmar’s own peoples and communities. Any credible long-term settlement must take seriously the political identities, autonomy concerns, and historical experiences of those communities.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

But while political solutions are necessary, humanitarian urgency cannot wait for perfect politics. This is where the conscience of our region must speak most clearly. Today, millions of Myanmar citizens remain internally displaced or have sought refuge beyond their borders. Large numbers are in Thailand, Bangladesh, India, Malaysia, and other countries.

Many live in uncertain legal circumstances. Many lack stable access to healthcare, livelihoods, and education. Many are vulnerable to trafficking, exploitation, malnutrition, and long-term trauma.

And among them are children.

Children who did not choose conflict. Children who did not choose displacement. Children who should never have to inherit war. When a child loses access to school for one year, the damage is grave. When that loss stretches across several years, the consequences can become generational.

We risk creating a lost generation: young people denied literacy, denied belonging, and denied hope.

That would be a tragedy not only for Myanmar, but for the entire region. Because children who are neglected today become societies in crisis tomorrow. Children who are empowered today become the architects of peace tomorrow. This is why humanitarian assistance, though essential, is no longer sufficient on its own.

Food aid matters. Shelter matters. Medical support matters. But beyond survival, people need a future. And the most powerful bridge to that future is education.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

We must therefore begin thinking beyond emergency relief toward resilience and recovery. We should explore regional mechanisms to ensure displaced Myanmar children can continue learning wherever they are. We should work with host governments, local communities, international agencies, universities, and technology partners to expand access to schooling, language training, online learning, teacher support, and vocational skills.

Whether these children are in camps, informal settlements, urban centres, or border communities, they must not be abandoned. Whether they are Rohingya, Bamar, Karen, Kachin, Shan, Chin, Mon, Rakhine, or from any other background, they are all part of Myanmar’s future.

And the future deserves preparation. ASEAN has always emphasized people-centred development. This is the moment to prove that commitment in practical terms. We should consider scholarship pathways, digital classrooms, community learning centres, child protection frameworks, and partnerships with NGOs already working on the ground.

Technology can also play a transformative role. Mobile learning platforms, low-bandwidth educational tools, multilingual digital content, and remote teacher networks can reach children whom traditional systems cannot. If conflict disrupts classrooms, innovation can preserve learning.

We should not underestimate what coordinated action can achieve. ASEAN has navigated financial crises, strategic rivalries, pandemics, and natural disasters. It has succeeded not because it was always loud, but because it remained steady, cooperative, and purposeful. That same spirit is needed now.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

At the same time, responsibility must be shared.

Host countries should not carry these burdens alone.

International institutions, donor countries, development agencies, and philanthropic actors must all contribute more substantially.

Burden-sharing is not charity. It is an enlightened responsibility.

For if Myanmar’s crisis festers indefinitely, the costs will spread through irregular migration, organized crime, trafficking networks, public health pressures, economic disruption, and deeper regional insecurity.

Helping now is wiser than reacting later. History often judges leaders not only by the crises they inherit, but by the children they refuse to forget during those crises. Myanmar needs peace, reconciliation, and an inclusive political future.

But Myanmar’s children need something even more immediate. They need safety. They need dignity. They need education. They need hope.

Let us therefore act with wisdom, with patience, and with urgency.

Let us pursue diplomacy where diplomacy is possible. Let us support humanitarian relief where suffering is greatest. Let us invest in education where futures are most fragile.

And let us remember that when we protect the next generation, we do more than solve a crisis. We help rebuild a nation.

Thank you.