‘Can’t live without fighting’: Myanmar youth find solace in bareknuckle lethwei
Young people in Myanmar are turning to the traditional martial art of lethwei as a form of self-defense and personal discipline amidst the country's ongoing civil war. While some view the brutal sport as a necessary survival skill, others see it as a path toward Zen and self-improvement.
Why it matters
It highlights how cultural traditions and sports serve as coping mechanisms and identity markers for youth living in conflict-ridden regions.
In a country consumed by conflict, a sport defined by brutality dominates: Myanmar’s lethwei martial art, where headbutts are encouraged and knockout blows are the aim of the game.
“I can’t live without fighting,” said 19-year-old Su Luck, who enters the ring under the paradoxical pseudonym “Peace Prize”.
“I have never once considered giving up this passion,” she said.
Lethwei is traditional Burmese boxing, distinct from Thai kickboxing because head blows are permitted and fighters compete bareknuckle, fists protected only with wraps of thin gauze.
It is known as the “Art of Nine Limbs” because each contender’s two fists, elbows, knees, feet and head are considered viable weapons to take down opponents.
In a country where many have been dragged into the five-year-old civil war, the popularity of a tooth-and-nail national sport is obvious to some.
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