Trapped by the Tatmadaw
For those who wish to see an end of violence in Myanmar, while also supporting the democracy movement and the restoration of human rights, there is no greater support you can give than aiding those organizing military defections. No matter how may guns and how advanced the weaponry might be, such military hardware is worthless without human instruments to use them. The following story provides a first hand account of a soldier who is pressured to join the Tatmadaw, and his courageous (and difficult) effort to eventually get out.
The group sharing this story adds this message: “Our fundraising aims to support CDM families in exile (political activists, teachers, doctors, poets, artists, soldiers etc.). They have all given everything they could for the revolution, and face a lot of difficulties to survive in exile - such as this soldiers’ life and story. We are very grateful to anyone who wants to help and contribute to making their lives a little bit easier while waiting for better days ahead. Thank you for your generosity and for your care.”
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“My mother always wanted me to be a soldier. I didn't want to join, but what I desired the most was for her to be happy. I believe, to some extent, she had been caught in the military propaganda; she thought it was good for her to have children joining this institution. I had a difficult childhood - I didn't have my dad anymore, and we had seen many of my siblings pass away. So, when I was 16, I took the medical test to join the military. However, I failed the test. When I came back home and told my mother, she did not believe me, and I think she was highly disappointed. It broke my heart to see her like that, and I decided to do something about it. I went back to the army and explained my situation; eventually, they said I could pay to pass the test. I was 17 years old when I joined the army.
I've been in the military for 28 years. When I defected, I was a "Cobra". It's a high rank in the institution. I've served many different offices, and I also spent some time at the military headquarters in Yangon; this is when I realised how selfish and corrupted the generals are. In 2015, I tried to resign. A program with UNICEF allowed child soldiers to be discharged from military duty. As I was still a kid when I joined, it was a unique chance for me to leave. The process was long and complicated, and I got stuck because I did not have a birth certificate, so I could not prove my age when I first joined.
I realised that the NLD was a good alternative for our country, I saw how our lives could be different, and I felt strongly about it. I believed the NLD government could lead while the generals could not. On the 1st of February 2021, I could not accept what was happening. Already, during the 2020 elections, as part of the military institution, we had been manipulated in many ways, including making sure we would not be able to vote for the NLD. I already had a bad feeling at that time, and it became worse with the news of the coup. In July, I decided I had to leave and defect. I was sent to the frontline that month – when I returned, I got ten days' leave and could visit my family. This is the time when I organised our escape. While on my way back home, I had planned to meet my family in a small town and immediately leave to a liberated area.
I have five children. And the latest one was born here, in exile, 13 days after we crossed the border. My family wasn't living with me in the military compound. Soldiers’ wives become servants of the officers inside the camps, and I didn't want this to happen to her. That's why they stayed outside while I was living in the compound. This made my defection easier.
Life outside Myanmar is not simple, but I do not regret my choice. Even though we are not in Myanmar anymore, we still have many security concerns. If we get caught and deported, they will execute us. So, we live with that threat above our heads. We also do not generate income during these days, so we have to find ways to survive. We are grateful for all the help and support we have got from local networks and sometimes international ones. It is very precious to us. Thank you, your support is helping us survive during these turbulent times.
My wish is for the dictatorship to fail. Dictatorships need pillars to sustain themselves, but the Myanmar military lacks many of them. If the military allowed soldiers to leave, only the buildings would be left in the military compounds. Right now, the military is a slavery system. Soldiers live in fear. Anyone wanting to defect has to think about the security of their families, friends, and extended family. They would try and catch whoever they could to punish us for defecting so, it takes a lot of courage to make a move. It is also necessary to coordinate with our loved ones, and make sure we all can survive and live with the consequences of the decisions to defect.”
