Myanmar Civil Government Insists On Defensive War Against Coup

On Tuesday, Myanmar’s National Unity Government (NUG) insisted on "defensive warfare" as the only solution to defeat the military junta that took power on February 1, 2021.

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The NUG, made up of politicians and activists loyal to the ousted Burmese leader Aung San Suu Kyi, accused the military of "repressing, torturing, killing and committing crimes against their own population" and of holding the country hostage.

"Right now, the people have only one option. Launch a defensive war, a war where all people can participate in different ways," said NUG President Duwa Lashi La, in a video released on the occasion of the 74th anniversary of the Burma independence.

In May 2021, the NUG formed the Force for the Defense of the People (PDF), a civil militia that in some parts of the country acts alongside ethnic guerrillas which have been fighting for decades against the Army. Since September, this irregular force has staged numerous skirmishes and caused significant casualties in the military ranks.

After the February coup, the Movement for Civil Disobedience, which was started by doctors and nurses, called for an indefinite strike and boycott of businesses linked to the military, including Myanmar Brewery.  The NUG also asked citizens to use forms of peaceful resistance such as not buying the public lottery and not paying taxes and electricity and water bills.

Eleven months after the coup, the Military Junta still does not have complete control of the country despite the brutal violence used against dissent, which has left 1,400 dead and more than 11,200 detained, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP).

Among the latest acts of State terrorism is the murder of 32 adults and 3 minors that took place in the Hpruso municipality on Dec. 24, 2021. On Thursday, the authorities of the Karenni minority confirmed that the victims, who had their hands tied behind their back and their mouths taped shut, were burned alive inside their vehicles by Burmese soldiers.