Myanmar’s Civil War

Until last summer, U Sein Lin, a retired history teacher in Myanmar, had never played a video game in his life. Then, while scrolling through Facebook, he stumbled on War of Heroes. He’s been playing it nearly nonstop ever since.

The game allows Sein Lin, 72, to do virtually what he can’t do in real life: fight members of Myanmar’s military, who have killed thousands and implemented a brutal crackdown on this Southeast Asian country since seizing power in a coup two years ago.

U Sein Lin is a retired history teacher in Myanmar. He had never played a video game in his life until last summer. Then he stumbled on War of Heroes on Facebook. He’s been playing it nearly nonstop ever since.

The game allows Sein Lin, 72, to do virtually what he can’t do in real life—fight members of Myanmar’s military. Since seizing power in a coup, the military have killed thousands and implemented a brutal crackdown on this Southeast Asian country.

Since its debut last March, War of Heroes has been downloaded more than 800,000 times. Many players say they’re motivated by the creators’ pledge to donate proceeds to help finance resistance forces in Myanmar and aid those displaced by the fighting.

“One way or another, playing the game and clicking until I die will help the revolution,” Sein Lin says.

Myanmar’s military, known as the Tatmadaw, previously ruled the country for half a century and has long been at war with its own citizens. In the days after the military once again seized control in February 2021, millions of people took to the streets to oppose the coup, walking off their jobs to join a nationwide civil disobedience movement. The regime has arrested opposition leaders, gunned down unarmed protesters, bombed guerrilla encampments, and burned thousands of homes. The Tatmadaw has killed at least 3,200 civilians and arrested more than 21,000, according to human rights groups.

War of Heroes has been downloaded more than 800,000 times since its debut last March. Many players say they’re motivated by the creators’ pledge to donate proceeds to help finance resistance forces in Myanmar. Proceeds also go to aid those displaced by the fighting.

“One way or another, playing the game and clicking until I die will help the revolution,” Sein Lin says.

Myanmar’s military, known as the Tatmadaw, previously ruled the country for half a century. It has long been at war with its own citizens. After the military once again seized control in February 2021, millions of people took to the streets to oppose the coup. They walked off their jobs to join a nationwide civil disobedience movement. The regime has arrested opposition leaders and gunned down unarmed protesters. They have bombed guerrilla encampments and burned thousands of homes. The Tatmadaw has killed at least 3,200 civilians and arrested more than 21,000, according to human rights groups.

The massive street protests have subsided, but two years later, the Southeast Asian nation remains mired in conflict. The economy is crippled, public institutions are in a state of collapse, and warfare has spread to every region.

“The situation in Myanmar is an unending nightmare for the people and a threat to peace and security across the region,” United Nations Secretary General António Guterres said in November.

Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, gained independence from British colonial rule in 1948 and became a parliamentary democracy. But that didn’t last long. In 1962, the army grabbed power in a coup. The military regime crushed all dissent and nationalized industry to bring the economy under state control. It also cut the country off from the outside world.

The massive street protests have subsided, but two years later, the Southeast Asian nation remains mired in conflict. The economy is crippled and public institutions are in a state of collapse. The warfare has spread to every region.

“The situation in Myanmar is an unending nightmare for the people
and a threat to peace and security across the region,” United Nations Secretary General António Guterres said in November.

Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, gained independence from British colonial rule in 1948. It became a parliamentary democracy, but that didn’t last long. In 1962, the army grabbed power in a coup. The military regime crushed all dissent. It nationalized industry to bring the economy under state control. It also cut the country off from the outside world.

In 1988, widespread corruption, a collapse of the country’s currency, and a severe food shortage prompted huge protests. Protest leaders approached Aung San Suu Kyi, the daughter of the country’s independence hero, Aung San, about joining a movement to press for democracy. She quickly became the face of the country’s democracy movement. The regime detained her in 1989 and kept her in prison or under house arrest until 2010.

Driven largely by economic desperation, the military began undertaking tentative reforms and agreed to share power with a civilian government in 2011. Things began to improve: The government granted amnesty to some political prisoners, relaxed media censorship, and encouraged foreign investment.

In 2015, Myanmar held its first nationwide, multiparty elections. Suu Kyi’s opposition party won in a landslide, making her the country’s de facto leader even though the constitution prevented her from becoming president because the military had previously convicted her of a crime: violating her house arrest.

In 1988, huge protests started because of widespread corruption, a collapse of the country’s currency, and a severe food shortage. Protest leaders approached Aung San Suu Kyi, the daughter of the country’s independence hero, Aung San. They wanted her to join a movement to press for democracy. She quickly became the face of the country’s democracy movement. The regime detained her in 1989 and kept her in prison or under house arrest until 2010.

Driven largely by economic desperation, the military began undertaking tentative reforms. They agreed to share power with a civilian government in 2011. Things began to improve. The government granted amnesty to some political prisoners, relaxed media censorship, and encouraged foreign investment.

In 2015, Myanmar held its first nationwide, multiparty elections. Suu Kyi’s opposition party won in a landslide. She became the country’s de facto leader even though the constitution prevented her from becoming president because the military had previously convicted her of a crime—violating her house arrest.

In 2017, Myanmar once again made global headlines: The military carried out a systematic campaign of mass murder, rape, and burnings against the Rohingya—a Muslim minority group in Rakhine state. More than 9,000 Rohingya were killed and more than 700,000 fled to escape the violence. Both the United Nations and the U.S. have designated the killings a genocide, but there’s been little accountability for those who carried it out and sanctioned it, including Suu Kyi, who had by then won a Nobel Peace Prize (see “Who Is Aung San Suu Kyi?” below).

Then in 2021, the military once again seized total control, alleging widespread fraud in the 2020 elections, which Suu Kyi’s party won by a huge margin. The military has waged a savage crackdown on all opponents ever since.

In 2017, Myanmar once again made global headlines. The military carried out a systematic campaign of mass murder, rape, and burnings against the Rohingya—a Muslim minority group in Rakhine state. More than 9,000 Rohingya were killed. More than 700,000 fled to escape the violence. Both the United Nations and the U.S. have designated the killings a genocide. But there has been little accountability for those who participated in it, including Suu Kyi, who had by then won a Nobel Peace Prize (see “Who Is Aung San Suu Kyi?” below).

Then in 2021, the military once again seized total control. They alleged widespread fraud in the 2020 elections, which Suu Kyi’s party won by a huge margin. The military has cracked down on all opponents ever since.

Many regime opponents have fled to the jungle, where they’ve formed the People’s Defense Force, or P.D.F. It’s an army with more than 60,000 fighters under the leadership of a civilian shadow government, the National Unity Government, which was formed by a ragtag assortment of ousted lawmakers and activists after the coup. This shadow government says it’s raised more than $30 million for the war effort, mostly from donations from civilians.

Competition for Myanmar’s vast natural resources has long been a major source of conflict between the military and many ethnic groups that have formed their own armies to fight back against the regime. But since 2021, tens of thousands of young city dwellers have gone to the jungle and taken up arms alongside them, trading college courses, cafes, and sparkly nail polish for a life-and-death struggle.

“I am fighting because I don’t accept the military coup, and I don’t accept that they want to take democracy from us,” says a midwife from a city in southern Myanmar, who, like others, did not want her name used in order to protect her family members back home.

Many regime opponents have fled to the jungle. They’ve formed the People’s Defense Force, or P.D.F. It’s an army with more than 60,000 fighters under the leadership of a civilian shadow government, the National Unity Government. It was formed by a ragtag assortment of ousted lawmakers and activists after the coup. This shadow government says it’s raised more than $30 million for the war effort. The funds have mostly come from donations by civilians.

Competition for Myanmar’s vast natural resources has long been a major source of conflict between the military and many ethnic groups that have formed their own armies. Since 2021, tens of thousands of young city dwellers have gone to the jungle. They have taken up arms, trading college courses, cafes, and sparkly nail polish for a life-and-death struggle.

“I am fighting because I don’t accept the military coup. I don’t accept that they want to take democracy from us,” says a midwife from a city in southern Myanmar, who, like others, did not want her name used in order to protect her family members back home.

She made her way last May to an area controlled by an ethnic armed group that has been fighting for autonomy for decades. Since then, the ethnic rebels and deserters from the army have taught her how to load a rifle, assemble a handmade grenade, and perform battlefield triage.

“Our generation has ideals,” she says. “We believe in freedom.”

Some young people who came of age during Myanmar’s decade of reform saw little point in nonviolent dissent. They wanted to fight back.

“Peaceful protests don’t work if the enemy wants to kill us,” says Naw Htee, a social worker turned militia sergeant. “We have to defend ourselves.”

She made her way last May to an area controlled by an ethnic armed group. They have been fighting for autonomy for decades. Since then, the ethnic rebels and deserters from the army have taught her how to load a rifle, assemble a handmade grenade, and perform battlefield triage.

“Our generation has ideals,” she says. “We believe in freedom.” Some young people who came of age during Myanmar’s decade of reform saw little point in nonviolent dissent. They wanted to fight back.

“Peaceful protests don’t work if the enemy wants to kill us,” says Naw Htee, a social worker turned militia sergeant. “We have to defend ourselves.”

For members of Myanmar’s young generation, the coup was a return to an almost unimaginable past—one without Facebook and foreign investment. Under a former army regime, Myanmar had been one of the most isolated countries on Earth. Since the coup, the military has banned social media, destroyed the economy, and again isolated an entire nation.

“The generals stole our future,” says Ko Arkar, who until the coup worked as a chef at a hotel in Yangon, the largest city in Myanmar.

The fighting has now engulfed the entire nation. The military has used fighter jets to bomb suspected rebel encampments. In September, the regime bombed a school in central Myanmar, killing 11 children. In October, military jets attacked an outdoor concert in Kachin state, killing at least 80 people.

Ma Myat Noe Aye, 28, has experienced the military’s cruelty. She quit her job as a nurse at a government-run hospital to protest the military takeover and became a volunteer paramedic for the People’s Defense Force. Then, last May, soldiers attacked and burned her home village in Sagaing Division, forcing 5,000 people, including her relatives, to flee.

“I lost my job,” she says. “My family lost our farms and house. Now my entire family has to rely on relatives’ help. There are many families like us, so we must win this revolution. If not, we will all die under the regime.”

For members of Myanmar’s young generation, the coup was a return to an almost unimaginable past—one without Facebook and foreign investment. Under a former army regime, Myanmar had been one of the most isolated countries on Earth. Since the coup, the military has banned social media, destroyed the economy, and again isolated an entire nation.

“The generals stole our future,” says Ko Arkar, who used to work as a chef at a hotel in Yangon, the largest city in Myanmar.

The fighting has now engulfed the entire nation. The military has used fighter jets to bomb suspected rebel encampments. In September, the regime bombed a school in central Myanmar. Eleven children were killed. In October, 80 people were killed when military jets attacked an outdoor concert in Kachin state.

Ma Myat Noe Aye, 28, has experienced the military’s cruelty. She quit her job as a nurse at a government-run hospital to protest the military takeover. She became a volunteer paramedic for the People’s Defense Force. Then, last May, soldiers attacked and burned her home village in Sagaing Division, forcing 5,000 people, including her relatives, to flee.

“I lost my job,” she says. “My family lost our farms and house. Now my entire family has to rely on relatives’ help. There are many families like us, so we must win this revolution. If not, we will all die under the regime.”

With reporting by Richard C. Paddock and Hannah Beech of The New York Times.

With reporting by Richard C. Paddock and Hannah Beech of The New York Times.