World News

On February 1, 2021, the Myanmar military arrested de facto head of state Aung San Suu Kyi and other elected politicians and declared a national emergency, giving absolute power to commander-in-chief Min Aung Hlaing.

The coup marked a dramatic political backslide in a country that had been moving toward democracy for the past decade, and triggered widespread unrest. Peaceful protests erupted nationally, government workers launched a civil disobedience movement, and millions of students boycotted school.

Over the following months, soldiers and police fatally shot hundreds of protesters and jailed thousands of dissidents. In response, young people began heading to the forests and mountains by the thousands, seeking training in combat warfare.

One of them was Rupa, a recent high school graduate. She had been living with her parents in the central city of Pyin Oo Lwin at the time of the coup, waiting for schools to reopen after a year of COVID-19-related closures so she could start university. But after witnessing the mobilization of the Myanmar public via social media, she decided to put her education on hold and join the anti-junta uprising.

Known as the Spring Revolution, the uprising seeks to remove the military from power and establish a federal democracy; many but not all of its supporters advocate for an armed as well as a nonviolent response. The movement advocates not only for an end to military rule but also for a more inclusive and just society, and a decentralized political system that addresses the long-standing grievances of ethnic minorities across the country.

When we spoke with Rupa in October 2024, she said that she was initially inspired to action by the diversity and energy of the movement, even though her political awareness at the time was limited. “I didn’t fully understand politics, revolution, or armed resistance,” she said. Still, she felt it was the “right time for me to participate and take responsibility for my country.” (To reduce the risk of retaliation against her or her family, she has been given a pseudonym.)