By Ash T

“The Spring Revolution is coming closer than ever!”

It’s not hard to see why so many comrades have completely lost hope in the state of the world. As we see ongoing genocides in Rojava and Palestine, many watch in horror as American bombs and money fund genocidal wars of conquest by the Turkish government and Israeli state. At the ballot box, we see the horrors of both the Biden government’s treatment of the Palestinian people and the possible future horrors that will await under a Trump presidency. The Palestinian struggle is something that is ongoing and our solidarity with the Palestinian people should be central in the coming days. 

However, this is not a call to pessimism. In fact it’s quite the opposite. One struggle goes unnoticed amongst fellow comrades that I’ve seen, and learning about it can give your average socialist something that seems too far gone on the left: hope. And you know which revolutionary struggle gives me hope? Myanmar. Myanmar, in my view, is a beacon of hope and in need of our solidarity. Their revolution against fascism and a repressive military junta is shocking the world as we speak. A group of ragtag militias, ethnic minorities, and even college students have taken up arms and are now making solid ground in the country. 

History

For some short context, Myanmar as a nation emerged out of conflict with the Japanese Empire, British, and later from themselves. In 1948, groups like the Karenni National Union and the Communist Party of Burma gained support from the country’s non-Bamar peoples. Since then, the Burmese state was ruled by various military governments, but this flared up after the 2021 Myanmar coup d’etat. After a short period of democracy under Aung San Suu Kyi, the Sit-Tat (commonly known as Tatmadaw) took power in the country. Win Myint and Aung San Suu Kyi were arrested and small elements of civil disobedience occurred with minority groups, who were most at threat when the military junta decided to oppose their existence.

The Burmese population appeared at protests across the nation in opposition to the junta, only to be gunned down on the streets. The Sit-Tat’s grip on the country is not a new sight, however, since the nation was wrecked previous to  the existence of the Tatmadaw by fascist, ultranationalist elements of the military. The problem of “Buddhist nationalism” with the Sit-Tat became a cause of  the Rohingya genocide. This is not to say that the existing government wasn’t complicit in this genocide. Aung San Syu Kyi was noted to have allowed the whole process to happen, not doing anything about the Sit-Tat’s brutal massacres. Buddhist monks in the 969 movement fanned the flames of Islamophobia, and the government used this to mandate a Buddhist nationalism and a Bamar-centric system that left minorities in the dust.

This is where the revolutionaries come in. The Burmese Revolution or the People’s Defensive War began shortly after the repression. One interesting thing as a result is the shift in politics at play in the region. After the military went on the offensive on its own people, the people of Myanmar themselves decided enough is enough and the minorities and oppressed people of Myanmar decided to take matters into their own hands.

The War

One of the enshrining unified ideologies of most people in the rebellion is the idea of federalism and democracy. Their political ideology seems to be a very big tent style organization with disgruntled minorities like the Chin and the Karenni in under one large flag. 

After scrolling and wandering and talking to various people on the Burmese side of the Internet, you see a wide array of opinions of what to do when the fascist junta is obliterated, but most agree on a democracy for all people in the nation. Looking at the military side of things, the NUG rebels are made up of various people in Burmese society. Ethnic minorities, college students, deserted soldiers, and almost every sector of Burmese society has decided to fight against the junta and strive for something better.

And they’re doing quite well at it. One video shows PDF revolutionaries being able to take a police station with AK-47s while wearing flip flops. NUG leader, Duwa Lashi La, has said that the PDF forces have made “stunning gains” in the past 3 years. A large portion of the country has decided to take up arms and fight the Sit-Tat. The fascist military junta is now overworked and dying by the hand of revolution.

It’s easy to look at the state of affairs in the world and feel depressed. But people in Myanmar are fighting an objectively good fight. The Burmese struggle needs our solidarity.