Declan Stokle is no ordinary A-level student. This 17 year old from Newcastle Upon Tyne has been visiting refugee camps on the Thai-Burma border in his school holidays since he was 10 years old.

Upon meeting this polite and unassuming young man, nothing betrays his deeply thoughtful, spiritually philosophical, human rights activist persona. Over a cup of tea, Declan reflected on his unorthodox teenage upbringing and the traumatic and tragic realities in Burma that he has witnessed first hand.

'... the lives lost during the 2007 Buddhist monk protests, to the recent natural disaster, cyclone Nargis, which killed more than 100,000 people in 2008, have left many thousands of Burmese children orphaned'

The Burmese socio-political landscape is fraught with complexities, not least because acquiring accurate information about lived experiences for ordinary Burmese people is difficult; but for Declan, the question of life and death was straightforward: “For me as a child going into that situation and hearing the stories, it became very simple… the Burmese government was killing it’s own people… it was just wrong!”

This year’s elections in October will take place three years after the Buddhist monks’ protests were also brought to a brutal end. 

Such tragic events, from the lives lost during the 2007 Buddhist monk protests, to the recent natural disaster, cyclone Nargis, which killed more than 100,000 people in 2008, have left many thousands of Burmese children orphaned.

“The thing that hurt me the most was sitting next to somebody my own age and seeing that their life had been so different from my own… seeing this person in flesh and blood, seeing that he has the same eyes, nose and two ears that I have…  I saw him as a human being and not just another statistic. This person deserved everything that I had, but he wasn’t even receiving his basic needs, his basic rights! Food, water, dignity, respect… This changed me. I couldn’t stand by any longer.”

Meeting young people his own age and hearing about the monumental challenges they have been forced to face, has inspired Declan to dedicate his life to the Burmese cause.

“Following the protests in 2007 and the cyclone in 2008, it was no longer good enough for me to just go there, witness so much suffering and then try and return to normality… it really did have to take over my life and I really had to do everything I could to campaign for their human rights!”

Declan is currently working with his parents who have set up a charity.  Their stated objectives are to advance the education within refugee camps and to provide relief from sickness and the preservation of health for displaced Burmese people.  Declan’s work includes football coaching, spending time with young people and finding out what’s happening. He campaigns in the UK to raise awareness about these issues wanting above all else, to help young Burmese people voice their experiences, their lives, their suffering and their aspirations.

“I have to be their mouths; I’ve got to tell everybody about their lives…”

“I have to let people know or else the situation will remain the same!”

Declan has come a long way in furthering this cause. He was invited to address 80,000 people in Hyde Park at the pope’s prayer vigil last Saturday (September 18, 2010). Thanks to Declan, the lives of Burmese children took centre stage.

Words: Josh Strauss

Photos: Declan Stokle

For more information on Christian Aid's work in Burma following Cyclone Nargis, please click here.