Youth movements in authoritarian Asia

In this concise work, historian Jeffery Wasserstrom focuses on protests across Hong Kong, Burma and Thailand between 2014 and 2024, a phase of major waves of student and youth protests across the world.

- GUNJAN SINGH

“This book explores the sense of connection across geographical, cultural, and linguistic divides,” he writes.

Though there is no formal “MilkTea Alliance”— the idea is rooted in the notion of the type of tea preferred in these regions, in opposition to the kind of tea common in China — the label buildsa notional connection among students and youth participating in the uprisings. “The Milk Teaalliance is a loose, decentralised network of companions among hundreds or even thousands of activists,” Mr Wasserstrom explains. The alliance is built as groupsacross regions learn from and employ each other’s methods of protest. “They adopt tactics from one another and share tools and songs,” he adds.

‘The book focuses on three major activists: Agnes Chow from Hong Kong, Netiwit Chotiphatphaisal from Thailand and Ye Myint Win (Nickey Diamond) from Burma. Mr Wasserstrom writes that, the experiences of Chow, Netiwit, Diamond encapsulate the challenges faced by countless others within the movement.” All three of them share one major common idea, which is of hope, even after being persecuted and arrested.

For Netiwit, it’s a fight against the “military-capitalist-monarchical establishment” which he sees as an impediment in the development of Thailand and achallenge toa functioning democracy.