Keeping Hope Alive for Myanmar: Shibuya Źarny / Fashion Designer, Full Moon Foundation Founder

"Direct Talk"

Our guest today is fashion designer Shibuya Zarny.

Zarny runs his own fashion brand.

His gorgeous jewelry and clothing designs

have earned him acclaim in Japan and internationally.

He even designed the outfit that Aung San Suu Kyi wore

when she gave her Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech in 2012.

For many years,

he's been working to provide support to his native Myanmar.

Myanmar is in an ongoing civil war following a military coup.

Zarny established a foundation

and sends relief supplies to help those in need.

He's organized sewing classes, Japanese language classes,

and more to empower local children.

(Video has been altered for safety reasons)

Teacher: Good morning.

Teacher: Now repeat after me.

Students: Good morning.

We asked Zarny about the work he does

to support the people of his country of birth.

Keeping Hope Alive for Myanmar

The lack of interest of the human rights of the Burmese people

should not be ignored.

I am not talking about a political issue,

I am talking about human rights,

I am talking about how important human relations are.

So I have a responsibility to report to them what's happening in Myanmar

because Burma, Myanmar, is my motherland.

Myanmar is a country in Southeast Asia

that has been heavily influenced by Buddhist culture.

The people are known for their friendly, welcoming nature.

But the country itself has see-sawed

between military and democratic civilian rule

ever since it gained its independence from Britain in 1948.

Following a military coup in February 2021,

fighting intensified between the junta and pro-democracy forces,

and the country spiraled into civil war.

Many people have lost their homes and family members.

I tried to contact the government in exile of Burma, Myanmar,

with the Japanese government's support the first time.

I spoke to UNHRC, the Human Rights Council,

and I reported to the UNHCR,

the High Commissioner for Refugees.

However, nothing that I expected changed.

This is upsetting and as a response,

I established the Full Moon Foundation

with my fashion industry friends here in Tokyo.

In April 2021, Zarny established the Full Moon Foundation

to support those struggling in Myanmar.

He relies on messaging apps and video calls to stay connected

and get a feel for what's happening on the ground.

On this day, he received a call from a Catholic priest

who's aiding people who have been displaced to the mountains.

How are you holding up?

We used to be able to grow pumpkins and cucumbers and so on.

But we can't plant anything right now because of the fighting.

People in Burma, Myanmar, they send me a message when they're in need.

My direct connections can get news to me faster than the global media.

I need to tell more about what's happening in Myanmar right now.

In order to spread awareness of the situation in Myanmar,

Zarny regularly takes to social media to post updates about the conflict

and share his support efforts.

He's careful not to disclose sensitive information.

I am careful to blur their faces and edit the patterns on their clothes

before I'd publish anything in the media

in the hope that this saves lives.

His efforts to communicate the plight of people on the ground

have helped his foundation to collect donations.

These have allowed him to send food aid to those fleeing oppression.

He's also dispatched medical personnel to provide treatment

to people suffering from malnutrition and other problems.

And he's supported the construction of new homes and villages

for those who no longer have one.

That includes digging wells and building other facilities

that are essential to everyday life.

I want to keep on delivering what the people there need.

It's been one and a half years.

Some people have died. Some people were arrested.

And some people still report to me.

So, we are still in contact with each other.

So maybe we can say

that this military coup of terror will never break our friendship.

Zarny was born in the city of Yangon in Myanmar in 1985.

He lived in a large household with his extended family.

I have beautiful childhood memories.

I was raised by my grandparents.

Breakfasts were usually filled with chatter around the table.

But then in 1988, his peaceful life was changed forever.

There was a pro-democracy uprising against the ruling military regime.

Zarny's father took part in the movement.

Zarny himself was just three years old at the time.

I remember my grandmother told me,

"If you hear shooting, you need to get under the bed."

One morning, our home got shot at by soldiers of the military coup.

Of course, I got under the bed and I luckily survived.

His father, fearing for his life, fled to Japan.

When Zarny was eight, he and his mother moved to Japan to join him.

When the family arrived at the airport,

in the then Burmese capital, Rangoon,

today's Yangon,

the tears began to flow.

I felt so scared.

That's when I realized that maybe this was my last day in Burma.

Zarny found himself in a foreign land

where he didn't understand the language.

As he tried to acclimate,

he used fashion to both express and protect himself.

I'd wear fashionable T-shirts and clean sneakers.

I thought that if I'm wearing trendy items,

I would not be bullied.

It was my independent spirit.

That's how I grew up.

My generation created a new wave of street fashion.

It didn't matter where you were from, or who you were.

Our lives were all about enjoying fashion.

Zarny was emboldened by his love of fashion.

He was scouted to become a model when he was a university student.

He appeared in prominent fashion magazines and on billboards.

Meanwhile, he taught himself fashion design

and began working as a designer.

Then in 2007, something happened

that made him rethink his life and priorities.

He saw footage of Myanmar's military regime attacking Buddhist monks

who were leading pro-democracy protests.

Up until that point,

Zarny hadn't made his refugee story a large part of his public persona.

The military were attacking them, killing them.

I was very shocked. That really upset me.

First, I was thinking, what should I do.

It was then I decided to speak up

and include my past as part of who I am.

So I opened up about my background, Burma, Myanmar,

and my refugee history.

Zarny resolved to get back in touch with his roots.

He began working with the UN Refugee Agency

as a public relations member.

He began raising support for refugees,

and opening up about his own story

to spread awareness of refugee issues around the world.

In 2013, he returned to an increasingly democratic Myanmar

for the first time in 20 years.

He was able to pay his respects to his late grandparents.

It was deeply poignant.

This was the land of my blood.

I was dreaming to be back and finally I could.

In 2016, he was invited to a banquet in Japan

that would prove to be another turning point in his life.

I had the honor to be introduced to the legendary Aung San Suu Kyi.

She was kind enough to say that my Burmese was still good,

despite being away for so long.

She also asked me, "Why have not you been active in Burma, Myanmar?"

This most simple question made me think.

Then I decided to work for both countries,

to make the Myanmar and Japan friendship.

Zarny began working to strengthen ties between the two countries.

In 2019, he made arrangements for a member of Japan's imperial family

to make an official visit to Myanmar.

He also wanted to do something to help the people of Myanmar.

He began creating educational opportunities

for disadvantaged local children.

That includes providing sewing classes at a Buddhist temple.

Following the military coup in 2021,

he organized Japanese lessons for children living in evacuation centers.

This Japanese language class begins today.

Teacher: We start classes with a greeting.

Teacher: Good morning.

Teacher: Now repeat after me.

Students: Good morning.

Drawing on his own experiences as a refugee,

Zarny hopes to empower the children with skills

that will help them to succeed in the wider world.

People need skills.

Especially the orphans living in temples.

They need to leave the temple someday.

With the skill, it may be possible that they can find a way to survive.

Half a year after the military coup happened,

they started to dream of the overseas.

This reminded me of the hope I had when I started to learn Japanese.

I decided to start a Japanese class for them.

If I can give them a bright future, the light would be a hope for them.

The ultimate goal of the Full Moon Foundation is to reach the point

when it is no longer necessary.

(Do you have any words to live by?)

"Do everything you want to do and do it now."

When I was a third year college student, uncertain about my future,

my mother told me something very important at that time.

She said, "Do everything you want to do and do it now.

Do not let feelings of inferiority hold you back."

It was a very strong message to me.

I still always hold this message and carry it in my life.

I would like to share these words with the whole young generation.