Campaign awareness in schools on use of the internet

Some argue that privacy is dead in an age of the internet. It's more or less true. Day by day our lives are taken over by the ever advancing electronic communication devices. The growth is going at unprecedented rate and we are in an unknown territory for there was no wide spread use of internet before the 90's. The convenience to share and consume information has a profound effect on everyone alive today, especially the youth who are born in an age of technology.

Internet brings an age of free flow of information. It's anarchistic by nature. When I mention " Anarchy " I mean as in without rules. Not chaos and destruction. It's basically free. Stored in the tens of thousands of servers across the world are all types of information which can either be used for good or bad. It gives people so much power and responsibility as well. The latter, many don't like to think much about due to the convenience.

Today, sites like YouTube and Facebook are bombarded with trillion Gigabytes worth of data on daily basis. Smart phones and mobile devices capable of Wifi or 3G functions are also the cause of people sharing tons of thousands of videos and pictures on the internet. These are devices which is very common among the youth who doesn't care much about privacy or internet footprints. So, it's not surprising to see questionable content being posted on the internet. Some do regret later and pull it down but the nature of digital information is that it is basically permanent so long as there is electricity.

To raise awareness about dangers and consequences on using the internet, I would begin from the very place the issues are originated. The social media.

Using social media is the only way to bring awareness because it's not very likely that the young people are going to reduce their usage time. Social media functions can be used to the full advantage to bring young people in about the responsibility and accountability for being online.

The influential YouTubers who make viral videos can talk about online issues on their viral videos through their subscribers who are basically the youth using the internet. Their reach is far wider than the teachers in the class room. They should also be persuaded to make specific videos about online issues for their audiences.

Sites which host viral contents like 9gag.com can raise awareness about the dangers of sharing information. Everyday, thousands of students and everyday people a like visit such sites to find jokes and funny materials.

There should also be a Facebook page and a discussion forum where the youth can freely discuss and seek help.

Last of all, there should be a seminar on online privacy and safety issues hosted by social media experts. Teachers and technical experts can make significant impact on the youth by encouraging discussion and debate about social media in classes as well.

The main theme of awareness should be " responsibility " and " accountability ". This is what social networking should be about. Internet is a free place and everyone shouldn't forget the bad that also comes with the good.

Last weekend was filled with the recent mid term election happened in Myanmar. My facebook feed was exploded with all the updates from what is happening back in Myanmar. All the celebrities and friends a like posting minute by minute, hour by hour posting the updates of the process. It was exciting and questionable at the same time.

So, when I found this article in " The weekend west ", I wasn't surprised much how much the international attention was on Aung San Suu Kyi and Myanmar. What is more interesting is, it's the article about her personal love life. It's titled " Suu Kyi's untold love story ". My logical assumption tells me that the editors chose the topic so that it's more relatable by the general public in Australia. It's a love story about a Burmese girl who happens to be the daughter of the father of Burmese independence, General Aung San. Her choice to be with a man from different racial background was a subject of political controversy back in the country as well.  It's really tragic.

Her personal relationship commitments were used against her political goals but it didn't stop the general public from Myanmar to stop loving her. Her personal sacrifices and a spot light place in the international community made her more popular in Myanmar.

So, it was a landmark in the political history of Myanmar when she was elected again into the parliament in the recent elections. She was under house arrest for more than a decade. Survived an attempt to assassinate at Depaeyin and made it through the other political controversies surrounding her house arrest. It represented a triumph and national reconciliation in a country turmoiled by plenty of internal and external issues.

Aung San Suu Kyi is a virtuous woman. There is no doubt about it. Her recent campaign showed that it's unstoppable when the public is totally behind her. Myanmar is not a technologically advanced country. It is astonishing to see the social media exploding with support for her political party, NLD. All my friends, a few of them are celebrities, posted hour by house updates of the election process despite the slow speed conditions of internet. They were posting pictures, videos and news updates as if it's happening right in front of my eyes. It made me think of one of the rules in public relations. What happened in Myanmar is the explosive potential of influential celebrities and people a like supporting the highly influential person. The result is the victory in the elections by a big margin.

Now, the question arises. Such kind of power is a dangerous one. She and her party representatives won almost every ballot on the seat. Mainly due to the fact that the public supports the idealist leader. No one knows much about the representatives of her party until now. Perhaps they will do a fine job. Perhaps they will not. Only time can tell. Sometimes, it's good to view with skeptical eyes from the outside away from the euphoria and romanticism. Are the Myanmar public in love with the election process and victory of Aung San Suu Kyi or the virtues of the party itself ? Where I'm standing at, it's not so clear.