Myanmar Country Focus Report

This report provides an analysis of the enabling environment (EE) for civil society in Myanmar/Burma[1] over the past 12 months, set against the backdrop of ongoing political turmoil and armed conflict. On 1 February 2021, the Myanmar military—hereafter referred to as "the junta" or "the regime"—led by Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, launched a coup ‘d’étatfollowing the National League for Democracy’s (NLD) landslide victory in the 2020 general elections. This abrupt seizure of power ended a fragile period of democratic transition and triggered widespread civilian resistance.

In the immediate aftermath of the coup, citizens across Myanmar mobilised in mass, non-violent protests. Civil servants and healthcare professionals initiated the Civil Disobedience Movement (CDM), refusing to work under the illegitimate military regime. The junta responded with brutal repression, including arbitrary arrests, torture, and lethal force against peaceful demonstrators. This escalation led many civilians to take up arms, joining existing Ethnic Resistance Organisations (EROs), forming new resistance groups, and aligning with the People’s Defence Forces (PDFs) under the civilian-led National Unity Government (NUG) formed in exile by a coalition of parliamentarians and other political leaders ousted by the military’s coup. Notably, this wave of resistance extended into central regions of Myanmar that had previously seen little organised dissent. 

Reflecting the scale and spread of the conflict, ACLED has documented the emergence of over 2,600 new non-state armed groups since April 2021. Among the most significant developments was Operation 1027, launched on 27 October 2023 by three ethnic armed organisations, the Arakan Army, the Ta’ang National Liberation Army and the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army, which—with support from People’s Defence Forces—rapidly expanded across the country, capturing towns, strategic infrastructure, and military bases. Operation 1027 fighters have also been accused of abuses, including forced civilian recruitment, extra-judicial killings, torture. Most notably, during the Arakan Army’s capture of Buthidaung on 17 May 2024 and its offensive in Maungdaw Township on 5 August 2024, Rohingya neighborhoods were shelled, looted, and burned, resulting in the deaths of hundreds of Rohingya civilians—many of whom were killed on the banks of the Naf River while attempting to flee to Bangladesh.[2]

The junta invoked the 2010 People’s Military Service Law to conscript men aged 18–35 and women aged 18–27 for up to five years, citing severe troop shortages. At least 14 batches of 5,000 soldiers, an estimated 70,000 in total have been forcibly conscripted.

Atrocities committed by the junta have escalated sharply, with daily reports of detentions, indiscriminate killings, and forced displacements. As of 24 June 2025, 29,316 civilians had been detained, with 22,163 still in custody. Between 1 February 2021 and 31 May 2025, military operations led to the deaths of 14,626 civilians, often through deliberate attacks on schools, hospitals, and camps for internally displaced persons (IDPs). By 16 June 2025, the conflict had displaced over 3.25 million people, underscoring the devastating human toll and the junta’s systematic targeting of civilian populations. These actions reflect a broader pattern of repression against fundamental freedoms, as documented by CIVICUS, Human Rights Watch, and Freedom House.

Over the past year, the situation has further deteriorated. According to a December 2024 BBC investigation, the State Administration Council (SAC)—the official name for Myanmar’s military junta—now controls only about 21% of Myanmar’s territory. The remaining areas are governed by a range of actors, including the NUG, established Ethnic Armed Organisations (EAOs), and newly formed resistance groups. In response to its shrinking territorial control, the junta has intensified its attacks on civilians, employing air and drone strikes, committing widespread atrocity crimes, and using torture—including sexual violence—as a weapon of war. These abuses disproportionately target women, girls, and LGBTQ+ individuals and are carried out with impunity.

The regime’s economic mismanagement has compounded the crisis. The Burmese Kyat has lost 80% of its value, and as of March 2025, the UN estimates that nearly 15 million people—approximately one-third of the population—face acute food insecurity.

Overall, Myanmar’s governance landscape remains deeply fragmented due to decades of armed resistance and the fallout from the 2021 military coup. As a result, there is no single, unified authority governing the entire country. Various entities maintain distinct approaches to governance and civil society in their captured areas, leading to significant variation in the enabling environment across different regions.

Myanmar’s 2008 military-drafted constitution guarantees the military 25% of parliamentary seats and broad autonomy, including veto and oversight power over constitutional amendments and exemption from key checks and balances across all branches of government.

While most civil society organisations do not recognise the junta as the legitimate government of Myanmar, this report seeks to provide a balanced analysis of the six core principles of the enabling environment for civil society. The findings reflect a composite view, incorporating conditions in both junta-controlled and resistance-held areas. However, given the junta’s continued repression and its control over key administrative and economic mechanisms, the assessment necessarily places greater emphasis on the realities within junta-held territories, while acknowledging the more favourable conditions for civic engagement in areas under resistance control.
 

[1] This report uses the names 'Myanmar' and 'Burma' interchangeably. 'Myanmar' is used in alignment with constitutional and international standards, while 'Burma' reflects the preference of civil society groups involved in the report’s production, who use the term as a form of resistance to the junta’s claimed legitimacy amid heinous human rights violations.

[2] The Arakan Army has disputed these accusations, stating that it gave enough early warning for civilians and blaming the atrocities on the junta military and Rohingya militias.