Myanmar Scouts Association
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The Myanmar Scout Association (''formerly known as the
Union of Burma Boy Scouts The Myanmar Scout Association (''formerly known as the Union of Burma Boy Scouts'') is the national Scouting organization in Myanmar. Scouting in Myanmar was started in 1916 and disbanded in 1964 due to country's political changes; the current ...
'') is the national
Scouting Scouting or the Scout Movement is a youth social movement, movement which became popularly established in the first decade of the twentieth century. It follows the Scout method of informal education with an emphasis on practical outdoor activi ...
organization in
Myanmar Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and has ...
. Scouting in Myanmar was started in 1916 and disbanded in 1964 due to country's political changes; the current organization was formed in 2012 under the direct command of former President
Thein Sein Thein Sein (; IPA: ; born 20 April 1944) is a Burmese politician and retired military general who served as the 9th President of Myanmar from 2011 to 2016. He previously served as prime minister from 2007 to 2010, and was considered by many ...
and supported by the Ministry of Education of Myanmar and became a member of the
World Organization of the Scout Movement The World Organization of the Scout Movement (WOSM ) is the largest and, after the Order of World Scouts (formed in 1911), is the second-oldest international organization in the Scout Movement, having been established in 1922. It has 176 members. ...
on 11 August 2016. It has about 21,007 members.


History

Scouting Scouting or the Scout Movement is a youth social movement, movement which became popularly established in the first decade of the twentieth century. It follows the Scout method of informal education with an emphasis on practical outdoor activi ...
was founded in Burma as part of the
British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance in South Asia. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one form or another ...
n branch of
The Scout Association The Scout Association is the largest organisation in the Scout Movement in the Scouting in the United Kingdom, United Kingdom. Following the rapid development of the Scouting, Scout Movement from 1907, The Scout Association was formed in 1910 ...
during the colonial period, introduced in 1910 for British dependents. By 1913,
Lone Scouts Lone Scouts are members of the Scout movement who undertake scout activities on their own or by distance communication, usually because they live in isolated areas or otherwise do not participate in scout activities with other scouts. A Lone Sco ...
were found in Burma. Later, Scouting was opened to the Burmese. In 1922, Burmese Scouting became a separate branch of the British headquarters in
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
, but shared the same Chief Scout as India, the
Viceroy A viceroy () is an official who reigns over a polity in the name of and as the representative of the monarch of the territory. The term derives from the Latin prefix ''vice-'', meaning "in the place of" and the Anglo-Norman ''roy'' (Old Frenc ...
. In the
Burmese language Burmese (; ) is a Tibeto-Burman languages, Tibeto-Burman language spoken in Myanmar, where it is the official language, lingua franca, and the native language of the Bamar people, Bamar, the country's largest ethnic group. Burmese dialects are a ...
, the Burmese Scouts were known as () while the Girl Guides were known as ().


World War II

In
Hilary Saint George Saunders Hilary Aidan Saint George Saunders CBE MC (14 January 1898 – 16 December 1951) was a British author, born in Clifton near Bristol. Early life He was the son of G.W. St George Saunders of Brighton and was educated at Windlesham House School, ...
' ''The Left Handshake'', written in 1948:


Postwar Scouting

Upon independence, the Union of Burma Boy Scouts was recognized in the spring of 1948. It was one of the founding National Scout Organizations of the Far East Regional Scout Conference. Because of the war and its aftermath, Scouting had almost disappeared, but former Scouters and Old Scouts made strenuous efforts to revive it.
J. S. Wilson Colonel John Skinner "Belge" Wilson (1888–1969) was a Scottish scouting luminary and friend and contemporary of Robert Baden-Powell, 1st Baron Baden-Powell, General Baden-Powell, recruited by him to head the World Organization of the Scout M ...
, Director of the
Boy Scouts International Bureau The World Organization of the Scout Movement (WOSM ) is the largest and, after the Order of World Scouts (formed in 1911), is the second-oldest international organization in the Scout Movement, having been established in 1922. It has 176 members. ...
, visited Burma in 1952. Wilson's sole journey outside Rangoon was to fly to
Myaungmya Myaungmya ( ) is the principal town of Myaungmya Township, Ayeyarwady Region, Myanmar. The town is home to the Myanmar Union Adventist Seminary, a Seventh-day Adventist seminary and Myaungmya Education College. As of 2014 the population was ...
in the
Irrawaddy Delta The Irrawaddy Delta or Ayeyarwady Delta lies in the Irrawaddy Division, the lowest expanse of land in Myanmar (Burma) that fans out from the limit of tidal influence at Myan Aung to the Bay of Bengal and Andaman Sea, to the south at the mout ...
. Scouting in that district was due to the enthusiasm of a
Gurkha The Gurkhas or Gorkhas (), with the endonym Gorkhali ( Nepali: गोर्खाली ), are soldiers native to the Indian subcontinent, chiefly residing within Nepal and some parts of North India. The Gurkha units consist of Nepali and ...
Preventive Officer, who formed all the official and influential men in the town into a Local Association. Many of those auxiliary leaders were given preliminary Scout training. Scouters and Guiders received more intensive training, while he apprenticed a successor as District Commissioner. Wilson met Bluebirds and Guides, Cubs and Scouts at a refugee village rapidly becoming a cooperative settlement; Guides and Scouts in their own locale; as well as a little band of Scouts in the compound of a
Buddhist monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer which may ...
across the river. Burma sent a representative to the 1957 Far East Scouters' Regional Pow-Wow held at Sutton Park, England. By 1959 the nation counted 13,889 members, and the
University of Rangoon The University of Yangon (also Yangon University; , ; formerly Rangoon College, University of Rangoon and Rangoon Arts and Sciences University), located in Kamayut, Yangon, is the oldest university in Myanmar's modern education system and the b ...
in 1960 hosted the Second Far East Regional Scout Conference, with the First Far East Professional Scouters Training Conference held at Inyale Camp in Rangoon as an ancillary event.
Tin Tun Tin Tun (, ) (born 20 November 1944 in Rangoon) is a formerly jailed Burmese political dissident, Olympic boxer, and one of the pioneers of the now-extinct Scouting movement in that country, imprisoned under the Publishing and Printing Act in ...
represented UBBS in the five-man Far East Scout Advisory Committee (FESAC). Burma's Ba Htay was elected one of the earliest chairmen of FESAC, which would later become the Asia-Pacific Region, and served from 1958 to 1960. Boy and Girl Scouts in Burma merged in 1962 to form the coeducational Union of Burma Boy Scouts and Girl Guides, which was active until 1964, reaching a membership high-point of 93,562.


Youth program

Aside from the traditional UBBS scheme for training youth in patrols and troops, the visibility of Scouting in the urban and rural communities consisted of citywide ''Cleaning Week'' campaigns, "Safety-on-the-Road" services, and
Cub Scout Cubs or Wolf Cubs are programs associated with some Scout organizations, for young children, usually between 8 and 12, who are too young to be Scouts and make the Scout Promise. A participant in the program is called a Cub and a group of Cubs ...
rallies at Rangoon's Inyale Training Center.
Scouts' Day Scouts' Day or Guides' Day is a generic term for special days observed by members of the Scouting movement throughout the year. Some of these days have religious significance, while others may be a simple celebration of Scouting. Typically, it is ...
was celebrated every January 1 in Rangoon. In 1958, UBBS published the ''Handbook for Patrol Leaders'' in the
Burmese language Burmese (; ) is a Tibeto-Burman languages, Tibeto-Burman language spoken in Myanmar, where it is the official language, lingua franca, and the native language of the Bamar people, Bamar, the country's largest ethnic group. Burmese dialects are a ...
.


Adult training

The UBBS conducted a series of intensive training in the five regions of the country. In addition to the Cub Scout and Scout leaders' basic training courses, a
Wood Badge Wood Badge is a Scout leader training program, first implemented by The Scout Association, The Boy Scouts Association in the United Kingdom in 1919 and subsequently adopted, with variations, by some other Scout organizations. Wood Badge Course ...
course was conducted by John Thurman, Camp Chief of
Gilwell Park Gilwell Park is The Scout Association's principal camp site and Scout Activity Centre, activity centre in the United Kingdom. It is a site, located in Essex in the Sewardstonebury area of Waltham Abbey within Epping Forest near the border with ...
in 1962.


Scout Motto

The
Scout Motto The Scout Motto of the Scout movement is, in English, "Be Prepared", with most international branches of the group using a close translation of that phrase. These mottoes have been used by millions of Scouts around the world since 1907. Most of t ...
was ''asin athint'', translated "Always Prepared".


Disbandment

Democratic rule ended in 1962 when
General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...
Ne Win Ne Win (; ; 24 May 1911 – 5 December 2002), born Shu Maung (; ), was a Burmese army general, politician and Prime Minister of Burma from 1958 to 1960 and 1962 to 1974, and also President of Burma from 1962 to 1981. Ne Win was Burma's mili ...
led a military
coup d'état A coup d'état (; ; ), or simply a coup , is typically an illegal and overt attempt by a military organization or other government elites to unseat an incumbent leadership. A self-coup is said to take place when a leader, having come to powe ...
. Almost all aspects of society (business, media, production) were nationalized or brought under government control (including the Boy Scouts). On 1 March 1964, the Union of Burma Revolutionary Council (the ruling military junta at the time) dissolved the UBBS, Lieutenant
Ye Htoon Ye Htoon, (; ) also known as Roland Chan Htoon , (1937 – 7 May 2010) was a prominent Burmese lawyer, sometime-jailed political dissident, and a successful entrepreneur, and one of the notables of the now-extinct Scouting movement in Burma. ...
, the Director General of UBBSGG reported. The assets of the association were turned over to the
Ministry of Education An education ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for education. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of Education, Department of Education, and Ministry of Pub ...
, which was authorized to form its Lansin Lu-nge Aphwe (Programme Youth Organization), the youth wing of the
Burma Socialist Programme Party The Burma Socialist Programme Party (BSPP) was the ruling party of Burma (now Myanmar) from 1962 to 1988 and the country's sole legal party from 1964 to 1988. Party chairman Ne Win overthrew the country's democratically elected government i ...
.
Girl Guiding A Girl Guide or Girl Scout is a member of a section of some Guiding organisations who is between the ages of 10 and 14. Age limits are different in each organisation. Girl Scouts and Girl Scout organizations already existed in Britain and ...
was not immediately outlawed, and the standalone Union of Burma Girl Guides Association remained a member of the
World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts The World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts (WAGGGS ) is a global association that supports Girl Guides, female-oriented and female-only Guiding and Scouting organizations in 153 countries. It was established in the year 1928 in Parád, H ...
, and was last mentioned by WAGGGS in 1969. In the decades following, Scouting units existed underground and the firm believers of the Principles of Scouting continued the programme. This was evident when the regional team met old Scouts who continued the same Scouting methods. This is further manifested by the existence of their Scouting manuals, records and, uniform.


Re-establishment

During
Thein Sein Thein Sein (; IPA: ; born 20 April 1944) is a Burmese politician and retired military general who served as the 9th President of Myanmar from 2011 to 2016. He previously served as prime minister from 2007 to 2010, and was considered by many ...
's administration, The Union Government of the
Republic of the Union of Myanmar Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and has ...
directed the
Ministry of Education An education ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for education. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of Education, Department of Education, and Ministry of Pub ...
to reorganize Scouting Movement in 2012, and Scouting was restarted in 20 schools as of December 2012. In April 2013, the Union Government formed an ad-hoc Central Committee of Myanmar Scouts, being appointed Dr. Tin Nyo (former Director-General of the Ministry of Education) as a Chairperson.


Post-Pandemic Movement

Scouting in Myanmar, like in many other countries, faced significant challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic. In post-COVID-19, the movement is gradually recovering from pandemic, but it still faces several challenges: Challenges: Membership Decline: During the pandemic, many scouting activities were put on hold, leading to a decline in membership. Re-engaging former members and attracting new ones is a key focus area. Financial Constraints: The pandemic strained the financial resources of many scouting organizations. This has impacted the ability to organize events, training, and other activities. Political Instability: The ongoing political situation and humanitarian crisis in Myanmar adds an extra layer of difficulty in organizing and conducting scouting activities. This instability affects the safety and accessibility of scouting programs. Suspension of Scouting Activities: Due to restriction on civil society especially upon uniformed youth movement in Myanmar, the potential risks of being associated with any form of dissent, scouting activities were effectively informally suspended. The environment made it difficult for the scouts to continue their work without risking the safety of their members. Although the National Scout Organization of Myanmar remains in touch with its global body the
World Organization of the Scout Movement The World Organization of the Scout Movement (WOSM ) is the largest and, after the Order of World Scouts (formed in 1911), is the second-oldest international organization in the Scout Movement, having been established in 1922. It has 176 members. ...
, the physical movement were unable to organize within the country. However, the WOSM acknowledged Myanmar Scout Association as a full-fledge member and regularly guiding and assessing the situation of the NSO Myanmar.


Work at rebirth

According to Eric Khoo Heng-Pheng of the
World Organization of the Scout Movement The World Organization of the Scout Movement (WOSM ) is the largest and, after the Order of World Scouts (formed in 1911), is the second-oldest international organization in the Scout Movement, having been established in 1922. It has 176 members. ...
, "We hope to work on (
Laos Laos, officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic (LPDR), is the only landlocked country in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by Myanmar and China to the northwest, Vietnam to the east, Cambodia to the southeast, and Thailand to the west and ...
and Burma) again... Laos is the closest, as we have got
Cambodia Cambodia, officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. It is bordered by Thailand to the northwest, Laos to the north, and Vietnam to the east, and has a coastline ...
in already... Just like
Vietnam Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...
... we are working with them through
ASEAN The Association of Southeast Asian Nations, commonly abbreviated as ASEAN, is a regional grouping of 10 states in Southeast Asia "that aims to promote economic and security cooperation among its ten members." Together, its member states r ...
Scouting. We hope to enroll all the countries including
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
in ( the Asia-Pacific Scout Region)." Approval was given to restart December 25, 2012. Since the first visit of APR in 2012, the membership of Myanmar Scout had grown from 2,000 to approximately 25,000. The Myanmar government approved the legal registration and Constitution of Myanmar Scout. The Constitutions Committee, on behalf of the World Scout Committee, confirmed that all requirements of WOSM membership under Chapter III, Article V have been fulfilled.


Motto and slogan

The motto of Myanmar scouts and girl guides is (''Always prepared'') and their slogan is (''Do a good thing everyday'').


See also

*
The Bharat Scouts and Guides The Bharat Scouts and Guides (BSG) is the national Scouting and Girl Guides, Guiding association of India. The national headquarters of BSG is recognised by the Government of India. Scouting was founded in India in 1909 as an overseas branch of ...
*
Bangladesh Scouts The Bangladesh Scouts () is the national Scouting organization of Bangladesh. Now The Chief Scout of Bangladesh is Mohammed Shahabuddin ( President of Bangladesh). Scouting was founded in 1914 in East Bengal, now Bangladesh, as part of the Bri ...
*
Pakistan Boy Scouts Association The Pakistan Boy Scouts Association (PBSA) () is the national Scouting organization of Pakistan and has 526,626 members (as of 2011). Scouting was founded in Pakistan as part of the British Indian branch of The Scout Association. The PBSA was off ...
*
Edward Michael Law-Yone Edward Michael Law-Yone (, nicknamed Ed Law-Yone; February 5, 1911 – June 27, 1980) was a Burmese journalist and official of Burma and then of the Burmese government-in-exile, as well as an author. He was born in Kamaing, Myitkyina Distri ...


References

*''Scouting 'Round the World'', John S. Wilson, first edition, Blandford Press 1959 *Facts on World Scouting, Boy Scouts International Bureau, Ottawa, Canada, 1961 *''The Left Handshake'', Hilary Saint George Saunders, 1948 *''Forty Years and Beyond'' published by the Asia-Pacific Regional Scout Office, 1997, provided by Ms. Arjay C. Francisco, Secretary, Youth Program and IT and Adult Resources and Research, WOSM Asia-Pacific Region * World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts, World Bureau (1997), Trefoil Round the World. Eleventh Edition 1997. {{WOSM, asia Youth organisations based in Myanmar World Organization of the Scout Movement member organizations Scouting and Guiding in Myanmar Organizations established in 2012 2012 establishments in Myanmar