Pro-democracy song in Myanmar propaganda video?
Singer-songwriter and pro-democracy activist Mun Awng, 66, is accusing the regime in Naypyidaw of exploiting the pro-democracy song “Thway Thitsar [Blood Oath],” also known as “The Time is Critical,” for propaganda after an a new version of the song was broadcast on military-owned Myawaddy TV on May 24, then shared to social media on May 25. The new video drew criticism online from democracy advocates.
The song was renamed “Soldier’s Red Blood March Forward,” and contained pro-military messages in its lyrics. The music video depicts battles between regime and resistance forces, highlighting territory recaptured by the military. A source close to the military’s Office of the Commander-in-Chief told DVB that the video production involved the regime’s Public Relations and Psychological Warfare Department.
“Blood Oath” was written by late singer-songwriter Htoo Eain Thin in 1989 while in hiding with Mun Awng following the crackdown on pro-democracy protesters in 1988. It was recorded by Mun Awng in Thailand in 1991. It has since become an anthem for the pro-democracy movement and was sung at anti-coup protests in 2021. Mun Awng performed the song at a fundraising concert in Tokyo on May 24.
Military chief laments foreign influence at ASEAN
Pro-regime media reported that Burma’s new Commander-in-Chief Ye Win Oo told his counterparts from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), at a virtual meeting of the 23rd ASEAN Chiefs of Defence Forces Meeting on Thursday, that “major powers are trying to exert influence” over smaller Asia-Pacific nations through aid, propaganda and diplomacy, without specifying which countries he was referring to.
Ye Win Oo claimed on May 21 that Burma now has a “government” elected by the people through “free and dignified” general elections, which ended on Jan. 25. The 2025–26 elections—which resulted in a landslide victory for the military-proxy Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP)—were widely dismissed by the international community and civil society as a “sham,” as no real opposition parties were allowed on the ballot.
Naypyidaw accused ASEAN of “non-constructive” engagement for excluding it from the 48th ASEAN Summit in Cebu, Philippines, May 7-8. Min Aung Hlaing, inaugurated as the president by a pro-military parliament on April 10, accused nations of placing undue pressure on his “democratically-elected government” by imposing sanctions on May 6. Ye Win Oo was appointed Burma’s commander-in-chief on March 30.
Read our latest DVB English News op-ed: Why ASEAN must stop lending legitimacy and drop the junta
A counteroffensive for rare earths and border trade routes
The military’s recent counteroffensive has focused on Kachin State, a region rich in heavy rare-earth elements that abuts China, as well as key trade corridors in Chin State, Karen State and Tanintharyi Region, along the borders of India and Thailand. Regime forces regained control of Tanintharyi’s Mawtaung town, located along the Burma-Thai border, on May 19.
Along the Burma-India border, Chin State’s Tonzang Township was recaptured on May 19 and Falam Township was retaken on April 25. “The military’s strategic rationale is that they need to regain control over the primary communication and trade routes in Myanmar,” said political analyst Sai Kyi Zin Soe. “We can see that the military is trying desperately to recapture towns that host border trade gates.”
Regime forces are also seeking to drive deeper into northern Kachin State’s Chipwi and Pangwa townships, with an eye to retake mining belts along the China border that produce roughly half of the world’s heavy rare earths, which are essential for wind turbines and electric vehicles. “We will welcome them with the barrels of our guns,” said Naw Bu, the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) spokesperson. Read more
News by Region
ARAKAN—The Arakan Army (AA) announced that its newly-established administrative and political body, called the “Arakan People’s Revolutionary Government,” will launch an official lottery named “Laong Pao” in its territory on June 1. The AA controls 14 out of 17 townships in Arakan.
Six-digit lottery tickets will cost 1,000 MMK ($0.20 USD) each. The lottery features 39 prizes, including first prize of 50 million MMK ($11,904 USD) and second prize of 30 million MMK ($7,142 USD). The AA claimed that 50 per cent of the profit will be used for healthcare, education and social services.
SAGAING—Aid workers in Depayin Township told DVB that at least 100,000 residents have fled their homes during fighting over control of a police station in Saipyin town, which was seized by the People’s Defence Force (PDF) on May 16. Depayin, located 40 miles (64 km) north of the region’s capital Monywa, was seized by the PDF on Aug. 18, 2024.
An aid worker in Depayin told DVB on the condition of anonymity that regime forces arrived from Butalin, 24 miles (38 km) south of Depayin. A PDF member in Butalin told DVB that the regime counteroffensive in Kani and Yinmabin townships has been ongoing since the beginning of this year.
YANGON—The regime’s Yangon Region Police Force announced on Saturday that a total of 174 pickpockets, including 21 women, were arrested at bus stops and on Yangon Bus Service (YBS) transit routes since January. Police added that the alleged 174 pickpockets face a total of 205 charges.
Over 220 mobile devices and eight million MMK ($1,904 USD) in cash were retrieved from those arrested by police. A Yangon resident told DVB that pickpockets mostly target public transportation. The Yangon Region Police Force announced that it is also carrying out a 100-day crime reduction campaign.
(Exchange rate: $1 USD = 4,200 MMK)
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