The head of Burma’s ruling military council, Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, delivered a speech on Armed Forces Day accusing the nation’s youth of being misled into supporting the resistance against army rule. He claimed that ethnic armed groups aligned with the resistance were involved in illegal activities such as drug trafficking and natural resource smuggling. The military has faced a series of unprecedented battlefield defeats that have tarnished their once invincible reputation, while Min Aung Hlaing urged the international community not to support the resistance forces that were disrupting the planned but unscheduled elections. The military took power in 2021 by overthrowing the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi, triggering nationwide armed resistance and displacing over 2 million people.
Many Western nations have imposed sanctions on Burma’s ruling generals due to their seizure of power and brutal suppression of opposition. The military’s offensives have led to the displacement of millions and a crackdown on protests. Thousands of young people have fled to the jungles and mountains in remote border areas to join ethnic guerrilla forces in pursuit of autonomy. As the military has suffered increasing losses and a decline in morale, they have activated a conscription law to strengthen their position. The military and some ethnic minority groups have been accused of involvement in illegal activities such as drug production and protection of illegal gambling operations.
The 79th Armed Forces Day parade took place in Naypyitaw, the capital of Burma, this year at sunset rather than at sunrise, due to unusually hot weather caused by the El Nino phenomenon. The day marks the beginning of the army’s fight against occupying Japanese forces in 1945. However, as international condemnation grows over the military’s brutal crackdown on civilians which includes airstrikes on homes, schools, health care facilities, and places of worship, embassies of countries like Britain and Canada have urged a halt to the sale or transfer of arms and military equipment to Myanmar.
Min Aung Hlaing’s speech on Armed Forces Day accused the youth of being misled by false narrative propaganda into supporting the resistance forces that were disrupting the planned elections. The ethnic armed groups aligned with the resistance were portrayed as a hindrance to forming a democratic and federalist union in the country. The military’s takeover in 2021 led to a nationwide armed resistance and widespread displacement of people, triggering a series of military offensives and protests met with brutal suppression. Despite their once invincible reputation, the military has suffered a series of unprecedented battlefield defeats that have led to a decline in morale and the activation of a conscription law to strengthen their position.
As the military concedes territory in various regions of the country and faces growing attacks, accusations of involvement in illegal activities such as drug production and protection of illegal gambling operations have been leveled against both the military and ethnic minority groups. The increased losses and declining morale have prompted the military to activate a conscription law in a bid to strengthen their position. The international community has imposed sanctions against Burma’s ruling generals, while embassies of countries such as Britain and Canada have condemned the military’s brutal crackdown on civilians and called for a halt to arms sales to Myanmar. The military’s actions have triggered widespread displacement and armed resistance, disrupting the planned elections and leading to a series of unprecedented battlefield defeats.
