Ma Ni, 50, is a mother of two who worked as a township-level executive member of the National League for Democracy (NLD) party in Kalaw Township, located in southern Shan State 44 miles (70 km) west of the state capital Taunggyi, before the military coup on Feb. 1, 2021 changed her career trajectory.
“Since peaceful protestors across the country were violently suppressed and killed by the military, I knew in my gut that we had to take up arms to fight back,” Ma Ni told DVB.
She and her family left their home in Aungban Township, located 35 miles (56 km) northwest of the state capital Taunggyi, heading into the jungles of southern Shan to join armed resistance to the 2021 coup.
“I have faced many difficulties after the death of my husband while in my 30s, leaving me with two children. But now, I have a lot more children [of families who joined the resistance] to look after,” Ma Ni said.
She founded a family-friendly resistance group called the Southern Shan Special Force on March 10, 2023, with several others like her from the region.
On April 9, 2024, the National Unity Government (NUG) Ministry of Defence recognized the group and granted it an official status as a People’s Defence Force (PDF) special battalion P3-9702.
“P3 represents Military Region 3 and the rest of the numbers represent the serial code number of our battalion,” Ma Ni said, adding that the Southern Shan Special Force has carried out operations against regime forces with other resistance groups across southern Shan.
“There are a lot of challenges being a woman but I overcome them with conviction and not with emotions. I follow my political convictions to fight the dictatorship to achieve a federal democracy [in Myanmar],” Ma Ni told DVB.
Ma Sandi, 38, worked as a fortune-teller before she joined the nationwide street protests in opposition to the 2021 coup. When her home was seized by the military, she fled underground and joined a resistance group calling itself the Southern Shan People Defence Force.
“I used to earn a living reading tarot cards. There was no burden in my life. But now, hundreds of people are depending on me,” Ma Sandi told DVB.
The Southern Shan People Defence Force, composed of PDF units from 21 townships in southern Shan State, was established by the NUG in August 2021. But it withdrew from NUG Ministry of Defence command earlier this year.
Ma Sandi now works as a financial officer for Southern Shan People Defence Force, and provides humanitarian assistance to residents living at Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camps in the region, which includes Karenni State.
*Ma Hla in Yangon did not join a resistance group after the 2021 anti-coup protests she participated in like Ma Sandi and Ma Ni. Instead she’s had to live her life with fear and uncertainty given the insecurity in Myanmar’s biggest city these days.
“Everyone has lost their rights and opportunities [since the coup]. Now everyone is struggling with financial problems due to inflation,” Ma Hla told DVB.
As of June 30, a reported 76 women have been conscripted into the military under the conscription law, according to DVB data.
The law was enforced by the regime on Feb. 10, 2024. The 15th intake for military conscripts began on July 14. To date, the regime has reportedly recruited 14 batches of mostly male conscripts, totaling an estimated 70,000 based on its plans of 5,000 per batch, as was announced by regime spokesperson Zaw Min Tun in April 2024.
Southeast Asia Stats (Seasia Stats), an independent online statistics service, has ranked Myanmar 1 out of 10 – the most unsafe place for women in Southeast Asia. This is based on data released by Women Peace and Security Index 2023-2024. In the region, Myanmar ranks the lowest at 13th.
Aye Mya Mya Myo, the spokesperson of the Coordination Unit of the Myanmar Women Parliamentarians Network, stated that women make up around 60 percent of those participating in the resistance to the 2021 coup.
“While our involvement is increasingly recognized, women’s participation is mostly in supporting roles such as fundraising, education, and healthcare but participation in important decision-making is still limited,” she acknowledged.
The International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (International IDEA), an intergovernmental organization that supports democracy worldwide, claimed that 10.4 million women and girls need humanitarian assistance in Myanmar This figure includes 7.1 million women and 3.3 million girls.
The Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP), which documents the number of people jailed or killed since the 2021 coup, stated that a total of 6,123 have been arrested and 1,729 women have been killed since Feb. 1, 2021.
The National Unity Government (NUG) Ministry of Human Rights reports that nearly 700 women have been killed in massacres committed by the military over the last four years since the coup.
*a pseudonym due to security reasons
