India calls for ‘inclusive’ elections in Myanmar
India’s Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said that India wants the elections in Burma to be “inclusive and fair” with the “participation of all stakeholders” during a press conference in New Delhi on Friday. The first two rounds of voting in the military’s 2025-26 elections were held on Dec. 28 and Jan. 11. A third and final round of voting will take place on Jan. 25.
“We stand for a democratic transition in the country. India stands for peace, stability and a return to normalcy [in Burma],” Jaiswal told the media. He added that citizens of India who attended the military-run elections in Burma on Dec. 28 did so “in their private capacity.” The regime in Naypyidaw claimed it had received election observers from nine countries, including India, China and Russia.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi met with regime leader Min Aung Hlaing in Tianjin, China, on Aug. 31. Modi said he hoped for “fair and inclusive” elections in Burma. The U.N. and several Western countries, including international human rights experts, have rejected the military-run elections in Burma calling them a “sham” aimed at legitimizing military rule via proxy political parties.
Naypyidaw advises passport conversion for overseas workers
The regime’s Department of Labor advised holders of Overseas Worker Identification Cards (OWIC), through its social media channel on the Telegram app called “Safe Migration,” on Saturday to convert their passports for jobs (PJ) to passports for visitors (PV) if they don’t currently have working visas.
A freelance service provider, who assists migrant workers in Myanmar to apply for passports, told DVB on the condition of anonymity that the conversion from PJ to PV for males under age 35 has been paused since the Labor Department issued a new rule restricting OWIC holders from leaving the country on Jan. 14.
Under the new rule OWIC holders must submit an application form requesting permission at least five working days before the date of departure from the Labor Department in Naypyidaw. Previously, they only had to notify the department via email and present the email to immigration officials at the airport to be allowed to depart. Read more
NUG checkpoint in Sagaing Region ‘raided’ by rival group
An anti-military armed group called the Burma National Revolutionary Army reportedly detained a member of the National Unity Government (NUG) People’s Administration Team (PAT) in Sagaing Region during a “raid” on a checkpoint in Pale Township’s Pann village on Saturday.
Bo Nagar, the BNRA leader, refuted claims that his forces “raided” the PAT checkpoint, adding that the incident was just a “quarrel” between the two resistance groups. The BNRA was established on Sept. 9, 2023 after changing its name from Myanmar Royal Dragon Army, which was founded by Bo Nagar in January 2022.
Bo Nagar claimed the BRNA is composed of 18 battalions, consisting of resistance groups from Sagaing, Magway and Mandalay regions. It is not under NUG command, but Bo Nagar was a founding member of the People’s Defence Force (PDF) in Pale, which is located 39 miles (62 km) southwest of the Sagaing Region capital Monywa, following the 2021 military coup. Read more
News by Region
SAGAING—Sources close to the PDF told DVB that pro-regime forces, including the Shanni Nationalities Army (SNA), entered Banmauk Township last week during a counteroffensive which reached the town in December. Banmauk is located 235 miles (378 km) north of the region’s capital Monywa.
A PDF member told DVB on the condition of anonymity that its forces pulled back but did not make “a major retreat” during airstrikes carried out by the Burma Air Force and aerial attacks by Unmanned Aerial Vehicles, or drones, carried out by regime forces. The PDF seized Banmauk on Sept. 20.
SHAN—The Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA) released 86 regime troops it captured during an offensive it launched in northern Shan State on Oct. 27, 2023, sources told DVB. The MNDAA controls the Kokang Self-Administered Zone. Its capital Laukkai is located 117 miles (188 km) northeast of the regional capital Lashio.
A source close to the military told DVB that the MNDAA will release 217 more regime troops on Jan. 20 due to an agreement reached with Naypyidaw on Jan. 11. The MNDAA reportedly detained over 3,000 regime troops during the seizure of Lashio in Aug. 2024. It handed the town over to the regime in April.
KARENNI—The Ministry of Home Affairs under the Karenni Interim Executive Council (IEC) stated that around 80 regime troops broke out of a prison in Mese Township on Sunday. Mese, located 109 miles (175 km) south of the state capital Loikaw, was seized by the Karenni resistance in November 2023.
Banyar Aung, the IEC secretary 2, told DVB that the jailed regime troops overwhelmed the prison guards and took two of them captive, along with nine weapons, during their escape. No casualties were reported. Banyar Aung added that the Karenni State Police Force are searching for the 80 regime troops.
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