Courtesy EYESTEELFILM
Working out of a makeshift clinic in Rakhine state of Western Myanmar, a dedicated midwife and her apprentice provide maternity healthcare to local women amidst the conflict that continues to affect the region. In 2012 inter-communal violence between the Rakhine Buddhists and Rohingya erupted in the region, but the latter – a minority Muslim community – have faced decades of discrimination and persecution. Despite having lived in Myanmar for generations, the Rohingya are now deemed illegal immigrants having been denied citizenship by the government under the 1982 Citizenship Law. According to Human Rights Watch, thousands have fled their homes since 2017 to escape the violence and the estimated 600,000 Rohingya who remain, find themselves stateless, barred from travel and cut off from food supplies, healthcare and education.
Hla, a Buddhist crosses the ethnic divide each day as she treats patients – including Rohingya women – in her clinic with the help of her young Muslim apprentice Nyo Nyo who serves as trainee and translator. Filmed over five years, Snow Hnin Hlaing’s captivating debut feature Midwives follows the lives of…