This Civilian Resistance Needs the West’s Help, Not Its Silence
Myanmar’s military is busy importing arms and committing atrocities. The pro-democracy groups fighting back urgently require the same assistance that Syria and Ukraine received.
Members of ethnic rebel group Ta'ang National Liberation Army patrol near Namhsan Township in Myanmar's northern Shan State.
Source: AFP/Getty Images
Winning the hearts and minds of fellow citizens is a key pillar of any armed resistance.
The 95,000 civilians thought to have joined Myanmar’s grassroots insurgency since the 2021 coup have done that, harnessing people’s fury at the military for overthrowing the democratically elected government, imprisoning leader Aung San Suu Kyi and bringing to an end a period of relative freedom. Waging a surprisingly effective and enduring guerrilla war, the People’s Defense Forces have taken on an experienced army that has shown no limits to its brutality.