INTERNATIONAL: Myanmar is on the verge of a new civil war. A spokesperson for the country’s parallel government has warned as communities increasingly take up arms to protect themselves from a relentless campaign of military violence.
Conflict has raged for decades in Myanmar’s borderlands, where myriad ethnic armed groups are fighting with the military for greater autonomy. Since February’s coup, however, dozens of new, grassroots people’s defence forces have emerged to oppose the junta, with battles occurring in areas of the country that were previously peaceful.
The spokesperson for Myanmar’s National Unity Government, Dr. Sasa, which was set up by pro-democracy politicians, people of Myanmar have been left with no other choice. They just have no other option. The constant threat of military raids, arrests, torture and killings had pushed communities to take up arms.
At a secret jungle camp in Myanmar's eastern Karen state, a fitness coach and other civilians are training with armed ethnic guerrillas to fight back against the country's military takeover. Huddled under makeshift tents in remote hills near the Thai border, these new recruits learn how to load rifles and set detonators for homemade bombs as they prepare to battle the army behind the February 1 coup.
A footage shows young men and women who said they left jobs in the city to become guerrilla fighters, swapping branded t-shirts and colourful dresses for army fatigues.
An activist says, "In my camp, there are over 100 youths here. More people are coming to us. In the village near our camp, there are also many youths staying there. Because they are insecure about living in urban areas or they want to join the army training camp or for any other reason, they fled to the jungle and shelter in nearby villages."
He has added that there are so many youths related to the PDF (People's Defence Force) at those camps.
He says, “They are taking military training in those remote areas. So,I can say that there are so many PDF troops, youth and training courses in the southern part where I currently am also. Getting food is especially difficult because some camps are very tough to get to. Some camps take two days of trekking where vehicles cannot drive. Everyone came here with their resentment and revolutionary spirit. So that is why they can only focus on fighting for revolution."
Anti-coup defence forces face an infamously brutal military that has estimated 400,000-armed personnel, making it the second largest in south-east Asia after Vietnam’s.
It is supplied primarily by China and Russia, drawing on generous state funding as well as its lucrative business networks – which campaigners are trying to weaken by placing pressure on international companies. Some recruits said they took up arms because mass demonstrations in the wake of the coup failed to deter their new rulers, who waged a violent crackdown on protests.
A 34-year-old former fitness trainer Taking up arms is the only option for us. Tattooed across his back were the words "Freedom to Lead" and the face of Myanmar's ousted civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi, detained during the coup and convicted this month of incitement and breaching coronavirus restrictions.
The ruling drew international condemnation. The junta said it showed that no one was above the law and that the judicial system "has no partiality". Training the civilians is the Karen National Union, one of the country's largest ethnic armed groups who expressed solidarity with the protesters and allowed thousands to seek shelter in their territories. Hundreds of similar resistance groups have popped up across the country, a loose coalition of anti-coup armed rebels calling themselves People's Defence Forces.
In the evenings would-be fighters sit around campfires playing guitars and violins - remnants of past lives. The former trainer, shorn of the ponytail he wore when he arrived at the camp, said he feared combat with a 300,000-strong military. But, he added, fighting back was the only way. He says he wants to be proud of his death protecting their people.
