“It’s a long story,” says Than Htike Aung when asked how he came to be in the Tri-Cities. Than sat down with us at B5 and shared his journey. He is softspoken and has his glasses pushed high on his forehead as he sits with his son in the B5 office. We are so privileged to walk alongside Than and his family as they create a new life here and wanted to share his story with you, one of many stories that we are honored to be part of at B5.
Than campaigned and won a seat in the Yangon Region Hluttaw, the legislature of the Yangon Region in Burma, in the 2018 election. He described his job as a parliamentarian to take care of the civilians of his jurisdiction, to create jobs for the community and care for their health, and foster development opportunities for the community. While a member of parliament, he sat on the Utilities Committee and the Oversight Committee, he was responsible for creating the budgets for both committees. He was part of two committees that addressed specific issues of the salt and fishing industries as well and brought their concerns before the larger parliament so they could create and edit laws that managed the industries.
Than joined the party of Aung San Suu Kyi, she served as State Counsellor of Myanmar and leader of the National League for Democracy, and when a candidate who was running for a seat suddenly died, Than decided to campaign for the seat. He had a desire to help the citizens in his area and to help develop new opportunities for his region.
When Than was young he attended a technical high school and studied filters for ships and learned to weld. Later he attended college to study law but dropped out in his second year when he got married. He took a class hosted by the American Republican Party in Burma that taught campaign management, and he used those skills manage campaigns for three candidates. They all won their elections. Those skills also allowed him to run his own campaign and secure a victory.
However, in 2021 a military coup cut Than’s time in parliament short. On February 1 democratically elected members of the National League for Democracy were deposed by the Tatmadaw, Myanmar’s military, which then placed a military junta in power. Citizens protested in the streets, but the military opened fire and threw tear gas and suppressed the protestors . The new government passed a law that civilians could not be in the streets after 8pm. By the end of February, the military started arresting parliament members in their homes. Than’s friends and colleagues were being arrested and he heard rumors of their deaths. Than and his family, his wife and three sons, hid in his sister’s house outside of town. The military arrested family members of parliament members in an effort to make them come out of hiding, so Than chose to keep his family with him in hiding.
As the situation continued to get worse, the family chose to leave Yangon. A friend of Than’s lived in an area near the Thai border that weas under the control of the Karen Army. Than and his family joined him and lived there for three weeks. The Burmese military knew parliament members were hiding in the area and incrased their attacks, so the family chose to cross the Moei River into Thailand. While crossing the river they navigated between the Burmese army on one bank and the Thai army on the other. They waited until the changing of the guard and then made their way into Thailand. At one point they thought they had been caught because a fisherman shined his spotlight on them, but they made it safely to the other bank and ran to a safe house.
They lived in the city of Mae Sot for five and a half months. While there Than and his wife were arrested, and they had to bribe the police to let them go free. They lived in constant fear that they would be arrested and sent back to Burma. Than had friends who had left Burma nearly fifteen years prior and they lived in the Tri-Cities. They had maintained a connection despite time and distance, and he was able to reach out to them for guidance. They advised him on how to apply to the United Nations as refugees. After applying Than was given the choice between Australia and the United States, and he chose the US because his friends were here. They were resettled in the Tri-Cities on January 19, 2022.
Than currently works at Tyson and attends English classes twice a week at B5. His wife works at Fred Meyer and is learning how to make sushi. Their boys are 18, 14, and 6 now and are thriving in their schools.
Though Than is physically here, he helps raise money and sends it to people who are trying to escape or need medicine back in Burma. He has many friends who are helping in Burma still and he supports them as best he can. Than’s heart is heavy because the military continues to bomb civilian spaces like schools and hospitals and he is concerned for the people he left in Burma. He longs for democracy to return to his country.
When asked if he would go back to Burma if it was safe he said, “My sons have an education here but if democracy returned and the new government needed me, I might go back.” His hopes and dreams for his country and family are that Burma has peace and justice and for his family to have their own home and his sons to be educated and have good jobs in the future.
