About adhikāra
Adhikāra (meaning “rights,” “authority,” or “prerogative” in the Sanskrit language) is an independent human rights repository devoted to reducing the barriers to human rights discourses and knowledge for the people of Burma regarding different domains — medium, language, and comprehension during the Spring Revolution.
Adhikāra was established as an in-depth human rights podcast by a group of three people in Mae Sot in June 2023. The establishment followed the consideration of an organisation that would necessarily fill the gap in the human rights field in the post-coup revolution by surviving the digital coup, innovating human rights knowledge platforms and enhancing conceptual understanding of human rights. At the beginning of 2024, Adhikāra transformed from a podcast team into a larger human rights repository comprising eight staff members with diverse gender, ethnic, linguistic, religious identities as well as areas of expertise that include human rights education, law, data analysis, desk research and field research, curriculum development. Adhikāra’s membership also represents the participation of former civil servants and civilians who joined the civil disobedience movement (CDM) in the revolution.
Adhikāra produced 28 rights-related podcast episodes under two seasons and seven legal podcast episodes under a standalone series. Furthermore, Adhikāra has published nine briefings on the human rights situation in Burma monthly since April 2024. Adhikāra signed a MoU with Ah Nyar Institute for exchanging academic materials between the two organisations. Adhikāra also built partnerships with two media organisations: Myanmar Labour News and Federal Journal Myanmar (MFJ). Adhikāra is one of the member organisations of the FoRB Network Myanmar, a strategic network established after the coup to conduct research on FoRB issues and international advocacy for Burma.
Vision
Adhikāra envisages a society for the people of Burma, where no one is structurally or based on his, her or their identity, including but not limited to race, ethnicity, residence or origin of country, colour, disability, language, religion or belief, gender, sexual orientation, and age, subject to discrimination in access to human rights knowledge while each member of the society is motivated and encouraged to acquire critical thinking, intellectual discourse, and philosophy.
Mission(s)
Adhikāra has three missions.
Its primary mission is to expand the boundary of human rights knowledge space against limitations significantly affected by the political situations and oppressions following the 2021 February coup d’état.
The second mission is to innovate new platforms for human rights awareness both online and offline, instill an in-depth human rights discourse and human rights culture, and strengthen the public’s crucial intellectual understanding of human rights philosophy.
The final mission for the long term is to provide human rights resources available in respective languages, not excluding marginalised and undocumented ethnic and linguistic groups in Burma or those originating from Burma.
Programs
One and a half years after its establishment, Adhikāra expanded from a podcast production team into a research-based human rights organisation. Adhikāra organised the first strategic meeting in Chiang Mai in August 2024, with some new members despite lack of core funds for the organisation.
In the end days of 2024, Adhikāra developed three main programs for the organisation with long-term strategies and goals, expecting the bigger picture beyond podcasts. The programs are Enhancing Human Rights Comprehension Program, Rights-based Research Program, and Organisational Strengthening Program. Each program contains multiple activities with a common objective.
Core Values
Human Rights
Intellectuality
Inclusiveness
Integrity
Solidarity and Recognition of Autonomy
Humility
Diversity
Anti nepotism