Mi Eain Na Roi
Program Director at NRFF, a Youth-led Community Organization based in Myanmar.
Reaching Across a Closing Space
This article is part of the DDI at DRAPAC 2026 series.
Attending DRAPAC 2026 was one of the most valuable experiences of my career and of my organization’s journey so far. I came away with new knowledge and, just as important, a network I did not have before. Early in the event, though, I felt a quiet sadness. I kept thinking of colleagues on our local media team who do not have the proper documents to travel, who will likely never get the chance I was given.
In Myanmar, digital repression has become an everyday reality since the military coup. The junta uses surveillance technology, online monitoring, and internet restrictions to identify, intimidate, and arrest activists, journalists, and human rights defenders. In many resistance-controlled and remote areas, internet access is unreliable or simply absent, making it even harder for communities to get information or communicate during emergencies like airstrikes and displacement.
What encouraged me most was seeing how many international organizations back a bottom-up approach, one that strengthens local civil society organizations and community-led initiatives.
What the networks made possible
The connections I built at DRAPAC 2026 turned out to be one of the most valuable parts of the whole experience. I met both international and local organizations, and those relationships are already opening doors for future collaboration. Hearing from participants across different countries gave me a clearer sense of how international organizations approach digital rights challenges in contexts very different from ours. What encouraged me most was seeing how many international organizations back a bottom-up approach, one that strengthens local civil society organizations and community-led initiatives. That reinforced something I already believed. Empowering local actors is one of the most sustainable, context-sensitive ways to support communities, because they carry the knowledge, trust, and long-term commitment needed to respond when things go wrong.
Sessions that reframed how I think about our work
The sessions I joined covered a wide range of ground, from the intersection of digital rights and humanitarian action to the everyday challenges facing local CSOs, to ASEAN’s role in regional human rights issues, to how international organizations think about supporting digital rights and civic space. Listening to participants from other countries broadened my perspective, and I learned as much from their successes as from their ongoing struggles. These conversations pushed me to think more strategically about how NRFF can strengthen its partnerships, sharpen our digital security practices, and work more closely with regional and international networks to support conflict-affected communities in southeastern Myanmar.
Bringing it back to NRFF
At NRFF, I support research, humanitarian response, and local media work in southeastern Myanmar. Our media team documents human rights violations and reaches conflict-affected communities through printed bulletins and digital security training for marginalized Mon youth on the ground, while our humanitarian team depends on secure communication to coordinate emergency assistance for internally displaced people. The networks I built at DRAPAC 2026 have already started bearing fruit. I connected with humanitarian donors and with organizations interested in building joint initiatives, and we have already agreed to organize a dialogue between activists in NRFF’s operational areas and representatives of a Myanmar freedom fighter organization. It is a small but concrete reminder of what regional networking can do for work on the ground.
I am deeply grateful to DDI for making it possible for me to attend DRAPAC26, my first time representing our local organization and local media at an event of this scale. I look forward to bringing these lessons home and continuing to build the partnerships that will carry NRFF’s work on digital security, human rights, and community resilience forward.