In the wake of last year’s coup, elected members of parliament wasted no time forming the Committee Representing Pyidaungsu Hluttaw (CRPH) to act as a voice for Myanmar’s legitimate lawmakers. It wasn’t until April, however, that it was able to bring the National Unity Government (NUG) into being. And it would be a few more weeks before the new shadow government’s armed wing, the People’s Defence Force (PDF), was born.
On May 5, to mark the first anniversary of the PDF’s formation, Myanmar Now spoke to the NUG’s defence minister, Yee Mon, about the challenges and lessons of the past year and his predictions for the future of the revolution.
Myanmar Now: What kind of progress has the PDF made over the course of one year?
Yee Mon: I am actually very satisfied with the PDF’s journey over the past year. I’m proud of it, in fact. Our comrades started from nothing at all. They had no military training and no weapons. At the beginning of the armed resistance, they had to invent their own weapons to fight back against the junta. So you can say we have really come a long way since then.
We have been able to arm our troops to some extent, so that’s a win for us. When the PDF was first founded, we didn’t even have any funds, but thanks to the people’s support and our troops’ commitment, dedication and perseverance, we managed to overcome many challenges.
What were the challenges, and what lessons have been learned over the past year?
Everyone has hopes and dreams. The NUG itself hopes to arm as many troops as possible so that the revolution can be finished as soon as possible. I’m sure that PDF troops on the ground feel the same way.
However, I have to admit that we are a bit handicapped when it comes to experience. Some troops are finding it difficult to follow orders, as they’re not used to life in the military. We have had some technical disadvantages as well.
The failure of the PDF troops to follow orders has resulted in the deaths of a number of troops, so I guess that’s one of the lessons learnt.
Some of the troops went beyond the guerrilla techniques and tried to face the enemy head-on without calculating the enemy’s strength and they had to pay for their mistake with their lives. We need to learn from these mistakes to make our PDF stronger in the future.
What are the future plans of the PDF now that every state and region has its own PDF groups?
The PDF and its allies now actually have the upper hand in terms of strategy. They are relentlessly attacking the military wherever they can in order to exhaust them. Also, everyone can now see that the military is starting to lose ground.
We are also working hard to perfect our technical skills as well, since we are now strategically superior. We also need to calculate and compare the exact strengths of the revolutionary forces and the junta forces.
Our revolutionary forces are already very dedicated and they’re at their peak right now. You could say that we are now 10 times better than when we first started, considering the amount of funds and arms we have acquired.
The military, on the other hand, is losing ground. If the revolutionary forces keep up the pressure, I can say for sure that there isn’t much time left for the military council.
To what extent have you armed the PDF?
We have formed a total of 259 PDF battalions and local defence forces in 250 townships, according to our latest records. We have also finished forming regional commands and supervision teams. We are prioritizing the formation of supervision teams for each district at the moment.
In just eight months, we managed to arm 10 times more troops than when we started. We have collected more weapons and ammunition for the coming months. Therefore, we are going to be able to provide more weapons for the defence forces.
We are also finally able to make our own semi-automatic rifles and support is also given for the production of those rifles. Therefore, the revolution is going to pick up momentum in the coming months.
Will you be able to provide tactical weapons such as ones that can shoot down military aircraft?
We currently need weapons that could disrupt enemy aircraft and destroy enemy bases. We are currently collecting funds and looking for materials for such weapons.
How would you respond if the commander-in-chief of the coup regime invited you to a meeting?
The NUG and the PDF represent the people. Therefore, we cannot do anything that is against the people’s will.
The one firm goal that every citizen of the country has is to eradicate the military dictatorship once and for all. Therefore, we cannot make any deals or conduct any kind of business with the military council.
Many political leaders, including Aung San Suu Kyi, have said that political problems should be solved through diplomatic and political means. What do you say to that?
We have always tried to solve political problems by political and diplomatic means, from the very beginning. Aung San Suu Kyi herself dedicated 30 years to this approach. However, not only did the problem not get solved, it actually got so bad that we’re in this state right now. The military cannot comprehend the idea of diplomacy and political solutions. They only know how to reign over the people using weapons. That has been their policy for 60 whole years. The coup was their ultimate move, one could say.
We are facing an organisation whose only known way of communication is through combat. Therefore, we have no choice but to take up arms against them. We are doing this for the history of our country.
It is the decision of all the people of Myanmar to remove the military from the country’s politics and build a federal union that can provide sustainable peace and stability for the people.
What orders have been given regarding military informants?
We don’t refer to them as military informants, but as the junta’s fifth columnists, as they are aiding the junta in their acts of terror against the people.
These terrorist groups may be either armed groups or unarmed groups providing information to the junta in order to oppress the people. However, we don’t regard everyone [in public service] who doesn’t join the Civil Disobedience Movement to be a terrorist, as long as they don’t terrorise the people.
We have supervision teams for every district to deal with complaints and reports regarding fifth columnists and terrorist groups. The ministry of defence has also given orders that only after thorough examination by the district supervision teams should legal action be taken against them, in accordance with either military judiciary laws or civil judiciary laws.
A group called Thwe Thout (“Blood-sworn”) has been targeting and killing the NLD party members and their supporters and families. What do you know about this?
We are collecting data regarding this matter. We have already received some important information regarding this. I can tell you this now—this Thwe Thout group is just another group sponsored by the military.
Junta officials from the central region military command are the ones who founded groups in Mandalay to target the families of NLD and PDF members. They’ve been constantly making threats as well.
We have acquired enough evidence about this, and the ministry of defence will also release more information to the public.
Why do you think they have started taking actions like this now?
The only possible answer is that it is because they are out of options now. They can no longer face the PDF and the alliance forces on the battlefield, so they have decided to terrorise the people instead. However, I would like to say that this will not only not solve their problems, but it will also make it worse for them.
What would else you like to say to our readers?
It is certain that the military is losing ground. At a time like this, we need to continue attacking them relentlessly so that they can’t get up. However, the people are bound to suffer losses due to the military’s actions. I would like to tell them to keep holding on for a little longer.
As the people’s government, we will take full responsibility for all the losses when the revolution is over. We would like to tell the people that we are ready to eradicate the military, which is already losing stability.
