Fondation Hirondelle and Frontier Myanmar have been collaborating since 2017 to produce and broadcast Doh Athan (“Our Voices”), a podcast focused on human rights issues. Frontier Myanmar is a multi-award-winning online news magazine covering the country’s current events. It was one of the first media outlets to develop a paid membership model and audience community as a strategy for economic viability.
Doh Athan is also the first podcast to be produced in Burmese. Since the 2021 coup, most podcast team members have been working in exile and relying on a network of reporters and media partners from different states, regions and ethnic groups in the country.
Key Figures 2024
50 podcasts in Burmese and
47 in English
16 hours of broadcasts
+ 132,700 social media followers
10 media professionals trained
3 media partners
Financial Volume 2024
329,048 CHF
Sources of Funding
• Switzerland (SDC Core Contribution)
• Fondation Büchi
• Fondation Temperatio
HUMAN RIGHTS IN MYANMAR: PROVIDING A VOICE TO ALL
Myanmar’s fragile experiment in democracy was brought to an abrupt end by a military coup in February 2021. Since then, more than 27,000 civilians have been arrested by the junta and more than 6,000 people have been killed. Armed resistance has spread throughout the country, leading to the displacement of over 3 million people. Journalists run heavy risks within the borders of Myanmar, which is considered to be the country that imprisons the most journalists per capita. In 2024, against this troubled backdrop, Doh Athan produced podcasts about human rights in Burmese and English. The podcast has highlighted the impact of the conflict in the wake of the 2021 coup on the lives of Myanmar’s citizens, addressing topics such as their means of survival, health, employment and education. It has documented the obstacles faced by these citizens as well as by marginalised groups experiencing discrimination and human rights violations. The podcast has also followed the experiences of Burmese migrants and refugees abroad. Doh Athan Doh Talk, a discussion programme launched in 2023 that gives a voice to experts, academics and activists, continued to be produced. In 2024, Doh Athan worked with 3 local media partners and freelance journalists, who were all remunerated for their work. These partnerships provided support to Myanmar’s media players while improving their skills and providing audiences with reporting from different regions in the country. This collaboration received support in the form of coaching by a Fondation Hirondelle editorial consultant.
Doh Athan motivates me to take on different points of view. The interview with the deserter, who felt he was acting for the good, was especially revealing. It’s a perspective that I’d never seen in other media.
Feedback from a human rights activist in Myanmar
Fondation Hirondelle continues its commitment in 2025, assisting Frontier Myanmar with the development of a sustainable economic model and the production of high-quality content with relevance to its audience. Regarding this assistance, our collaboration will undergo some changes in 2025. The podcast will now be 100% produced by the Frontier Myanmar team and its media partners. This change comes at a time when Doh than has found its place in the Burmese news landscape, as shown by the growth of its audience and Human Rights Press Award it received in Taipei in 2024, recognising its editorial quality. In addition, the programme Doh Athan Doh Talk has been replaced by a new, longer-length programme, What’s Happening in Myanmar, in a renewal of the podcast’s format.