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Bobo — not his real name — knows all too well what it means to live dangerously. The 23-year-old is a rights activist from Burma, a country ruled by a repressive military junta. He cannot use his real name in public, nor can he have his photo taken.

Bobo became an activist after finishing high school. Moving around for security reasons is the norm for him.

The Burmese government has been relentlessly pursuing him for years now and wants him detained.

“They tried to get me at my parents’ house twice and once at my grandmother’s,” he said.

“Every time I hear of a friend getting arrested, I have to move to a new place because by that time, [the government] has gotten some information about me.”

He is currently living in a safe house at an undisclosed location in Thailand. “ ‘Safe house’ means a place where you go into hiding when something happens,” he said.

Since 1962, Burma has been ruled by the Burma Socialist Program Party as a one-party state. The regime uses Soviet-style governance to control its people.

In 1988, the country was racked by large demonstrations resulting in violent, often fatal, government crackdowns.

Bobo is a member of Generation Wave, an opposition youth organization dedicated to overthrowing the junta by encouraging all Burmese citizens, mainly its youth, to fight for democracy.

Part of the group’s activities include scattering leaflets in public places from moving buses, splashing red paint on bridges and roads, spraying graffiti on walls demanding the release of pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi and protesting against the upcoming election in November.

Generation Wave is also known for using music in its advocacy. Members write lyrics mainly about democracy and human rights, which they put to hip-hop, slow rock and R&B beats.

Comprised of members from various ethnic groups, Generation Wave was officially formed on Oct. 9, 2007, shortly after the Saffron Revolution — where thousands of Burmese monks in their saffron-colored robes marched in the streets to protest the ruling junta.

Bobo and another organization member were in Jakarta this week in a bid to drum up support from Indonesia.

They participated in a forum, “Good Neighbors? The Role of Asian Countries in Bringing Positive Change to Burma,” organized by the KBR68H radio network’s regional current affairs program, “Asia Calling.”

Other speakers at the forum included political scholar Rizal Sukma, who is executive director of the Centre for Strategic and International Studies, and Harn Yawnghwe, the youngest son of Sao Shwe Thaike, the first president of the Socialist Republic of the Union of Burma.

Sao, along with Aung San, the father of Suu Kyi, were credited for the 1947 Panglong Agreement, which was the basis for the modern nation of Burma.

Bobo said that while many Burmese don’t like the government, they have no idea what to do about the situation. “Many don’t even know what their rights are,” he said.

“Just like us, before we became activists, we didn’t know what our rights were. But at the time, we also felt that we didn’t like the government, the ruling regime. Then I realized I had to do something.”

In three years, Generation Wave has managed to achieve some of its goals, Bobo said.

“There are more people, especially the young generation, [who are] now aware of what is happening in their country. Many are also active in politics,” he said, a smile on his tired-looking face.

Bobo said the Burmese government viewed his group as troublemakers.

“There are similar activist organizations [like Generation Wave] in Burma, but we have done a lot in the past two years,” he said.

“And we are happy that our methods of sharing information with the people are being followed by other groups. The government is scared of us.”

Generation Wave has also been actively building networks with other groups in Southeast Asia to help put pressure on Burma.

“I know they are concerned about the Burma issue and they condemn our government. But that’s all. No action, only talking,” Bobo said.

“How can you see another country stay poor and in war while you live in a developed country?

“Indonesia, I’d openly say, is a little weaker if compared to Thailand in giving support to Burma,” he added.

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations, including Burma, has fruitlessly called on the Burmese junta to move toward democracy.

Asean, however, has refrained from exerting stronger pressure on the junta, which has earned criticism from many rights groups.

As an activist, Bobo has learned to always be alert. “There are many spies around you. They can be only meters away,” he said.

“You’ll never know because it isn’t written on their forehead, ‘We are spies.’ ”

Despite some victories, the organization has seen 23 of its members arrested and detained. One person was released after he was granted “amnesty,” Bobo said.

“The government said it’s because of ‘amnesty,’ but [it’s a game for them]. They want to show to the international community, ‘We are releasing a political prisoner.’ 

“Our friend told us about what happened to him in the prison. He lived in a very small room, about 10 square feet, where they tortured him physically and mentally.

"They only allowed him to go out of the room for one hour each day. They made him drink chemical liquid, beat him on his head, his legs, something like that.”

When the man was released, Bobo said that he not only suffered from physical problems, but mental problems as well.

“He just doesn’t look normal, like he’s thinks a lot about something. He doesn’t go out anymore. He is depressed.

“It’s not the torture [that we are scared of], because they won’t kill you as they need information from you. It’s the fact that I won’t be able to do anything that scares me the most,” Bobo said.

In Burma, Bobo said that a murderer can be given a seven-year prison sentence.

But the consequences for activists can be much harsher.

“One of the guys who was a student distributed leaflets about human rights. He was arrested and sentenced to jail for 104 years,” he said.

“Some student leaders were arrested and got 65-year sentences, some 95 years.”

Bobo said that to avoid more arrests, one key safety element is group communication. Members have to be reachable by phone. “If I cannot contact [a member], that means he has been arrested,” Bobo said.

Good communication is also required in the recruitment of new members. “We don’t start by saying something like, ‘We have to fight like this.’

Instead, we start by asking them how they are doing, how is it going with their job. They will usually say, ‘Oh, it’s difficult because of the government.’

You have to find the entrance point to convince them,” he said. “But what makes it easier for us is most of our members are friends, or friends of our friends, so we can trust them.”

Bobo has chosen a difficult life. Does he ever tire of it? “Kind of,” he said.

“Being an activist means you won’t be able to sleep much and you lose your personal life. When I feel depressed, I just want to be like ordinary people who can go out with their friends or girlfriends. They can go freely, although they have no future in Burma.

“Before I was an activist, I used to go around with my friends. I only had a small amount of money, but I was happy.”

At the same time, Bobo said that he knew this was a fight someone had to take up.

“If we don’t fight the current situation, the next generation will only get poorer and poorer.”