on the other side

Formed only in 2009 – much later than most of Myanmar's other insurgent groups – by young ethnic Rakhine men who had migrated to the Chinese border on the other side of the country in search of work, the AA is part of the Three Brotherhood Alliance which has inflicted most of the defeats suffered by the junta since last year.

As the Watson and Ozy lawyers struggled with unsubmitted evidence that day, I watched on the other side, where it felt as if I saw the all-white prosecution table share a joint eye-roll with the Donald Trump–appointed judge, an unspoken understanding.

“The sky was red and the whole canyon was was lit up on the other side,” he said.

Meanwhile, standing on the other side of the courthouse entrance, Siviona from Tel Aviv told me she saw the veteran leader as "an enemy of the people" who prioritised his political survival above the best interests of the country.

Sharing these stories also helps people on the other side see us as more human, and that’s an important step to move through a divisive election.