‘The people are the problem’
Junta boss Min Aung Hlaing expressed bitter anger at widespread public support for the nationwide armed uprising against his regime during his visit to southern Shan State this week.
Speaking to junta employees, military staff, police, militias and community elders in Hsihseng, Pa-O Self-Administered Zone, on Wednesday, the junta leader said the local population was responsible for the rise or fall of their towns.
“It is locals who can promote stability and development of their town and it is locals who can create instability and regression,” said the junta boss, who was in Hsihseng to inspect reconstruction following clashes between regime troops and the Pa’O National Liberation Army.
He was speaking after residents of three towns to the north – Mogoke, Hsipaw and Kyaukme – gave a hearty welcome to the Ta’ang National Liberation Army and People’s Defense Force when they liberated the towns from regime occupation.
This is not the first time that Min Aung Hlaing has sought to blame others for the destruction and mass killing triggered by his 2021 coup and deadly crackdown on peaceful protesters.
He made a similar statement at a junta cabinet meeting in June. “Our country is being destroyed primarily by destructive-minded citizens,” said the regime boss, referring to the popular uprising.
Local disruptive elements and terrorists were responsible for destructive acts in their regions and states, he added.
The junta boss refined his absurd portrayal of the nationwide rebellion against his brutal regime during his visit to Mandalay last month. “Low education levels in the country” had made people choose arms over dialogue to solve problems, he said.
Bragging in wake of war crimes
Myanmar’s military was the first in Southeast Asia to use jet fighters, Min Aung Hlaing boasted in a speech to military officers, female cadets and trainees at Hmawbi air base in Yangon on Sunday.
However, the junta boss conveniently forgot to mention the war crimes that his Air Force has been committing against civilian populations across the country.
The regime has relied heavily on airpower since 2022 in the wake of territorial gains made by resistance forces. The Air Force has since earned international notoriety for its targeted massacres of civilians, and attacks on towns and villages, religious buildings, hospitals and clinics, and even schools and displacement camps.
The number of bombing raids has surged in recent months as Min Aung Hlaing vows to retake towns held by resistance groups.
Within a week of his visit to Hmawbi air base, the regime conducted dozens of bombing raids in towns controlled by ethnic armies in northern Shan State and Karenni (Kayah) states, as well as territory controlled by the People’s Defense Force in Sagaing and Mandalay regions. These attacks claimed the lives of over 30 civilians, including pregnant women and children.
Min Aung Hlaing dodges shells in Karenni capital
Min Aung Hlaing escaped the attack by the Karenni Nationalities Defense Force and left Loikaw immediately after it, the ethnic armed group said. Read more
Three-wheeled militias
The Myanmar junta has started conscripting trishaw drivers into ward-level militias in the commercial hub of Yangon. Read more
Coup-maker threatens ethnic armies
Speaking in Taunggyi, southern Shan after designating the Brotherhood Alliance members as terrorist groups, he urged residents in areas held by ethnic armies to ‘stay alert’. Read more
‘Terrorist’ designation snuffs talks with Brotherhood Alliance
The move means the regime will no longer engage in talks with the AA, TNLA and MNDAA, which have seized swathes of territory in Rakhine, Shan and Mandalay since October. Read more
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