In Myanmar’s heartland, a ‘public militia’ created to sow division

Late one night in early June, a group of 14 men armed with single-round rifles silently approached a village about 10 miles south of the town of Kanbalu in Sagaing Region. The village was called Le Hla, and one of the men was named Ko Zaw. Ko Zaw was no stranger to the village; he had relatives there. But standing in the darkness and the rain, he wasn’t thinking about them. All he knew was that whoever he encountered there that night, he wasn’t going to hesitate to fire the first shot. Le Hla was a “Pyu” village, meaning that it was under the control of the Pyu Saw Htee, the military-backed militia formed to counter the growing armed resistance movement that emerged in response to the February 2021 coup. This was Ko Zaw’s first time taking part in a raid targeting the group, but he had no intention of holding back just because someone he knew might be among them. A number of his comrades had been brutally murdered by the Pyu, and his hatred of them was intense. As soon as they were close enough, Ko Zaw’s group lobbed two grenades into the village. But they were both duds, and the sound of them hitting the ground alerted the Pyu Saw Htee members to their presence. Flashlights suddenly started shining out into the darkness, but before they could find the source of the grenades, another one was thrown in their direction. This one went off, and was soon followed by a barrage of gunfire. The Pyu side didn’t even have a chance to shoot back. Ko Zaw didn’t see anybody he knew among the four dead bodies they found inside the Pyu Saw Htee base. There had been more people there when they started firing, so Ko Zaw assumed that the others must have escaped. Perhaps one of them was a family member or acquaintance. Kanbalu District, where Le Hla is located, is home to many Pyu Saw Htee villages. As opposition to the February 2021 coup grew in Bamar-majority Sagaing Region—traditionally a reliable recruiting ground for the military—the junta began arming local civilians it considered loyal to its rule. This put them on a collision course with resistance groups, including the People’s Defence Force (PDF) formed by the shadow National Unity Government (NUG). The NUG was initially successful in assuming administrative control over most of Kanbalu District outside of its main urban centres. However, the formation of Pyu Saw Htee groups eventually forced it to abandon many of the villages where it had gained a foothold. Attacks such as the one Ko Zaw took part in thus became essential to the NUG’s efforts to reclaim these villages. In a report released in September of last year, the NUG said that forces under its command had carried out 80 such raids over the preceding year. Members of the anti-regime People’s Defence Force join a military drill in Mandalay in December 2023 (AFP) Despite suffering setbacks due to the military’s recent defeats in northern Shan State and elsewhere in the country, the Pyu Saw Htee remains a feared force in Myanmar’s Bamar heartland. While it is generally understood that it serves as a paramilitary wing of the regime’s armed forces, there is much that remains unknown about its inner workings. However, Myanmar Now has researched its origins, formation, and manpower and investigated its involvement in junta operations in an effort to gain a clearer picture of what the Pyu Saw Htee is and how it functions. Through interviews with Pyu Saw Htee leaders and sources within regional resistance groups with in-depth knowledge of the militia’s activities, as well as leaked internal directives, we have attempted to show how the junta has not only deployed a segment of the population against its opponents, but also created deep social divisions that may take generations to heal. From the shadows of the past Pyu Saw Htee—or Pyusawhti, as it is sometimes spelled—was the name of a legendary Burmese king of the Bagan era. But it wasn’t until the 1950s that this name became synonymous with the kind of violence that we associate it with today. As part of his government’s counterinsurgency operations, then Prime Minister U Nu authorised the formation of the first Pyu Saw Htee paramilitary units. This was opposed by many, partly because some of those involved were accused of acting as thugs for the ruling party during the 1952 election. But the Pyu Saw Htee units proved to be an effective tool of the security forces, so even after they were officially disbanded in 1957, they were permitted to exist in all but name as a reserve police force. It was in the wake of the 2021 coup that the Pyu Saw Htee name re-entered public parlance for the first time in decades. There was no official announcement regarding its formation, but a document circulating on social media, dated May 17, 2021, included the logo of a group calling itself “Pyu Saw Htee (Central)”. This document—the authenticity of which Myanmar Now could not verify—called on members across the country to report the addresses and activities of officials from the ousted ruling party, the National League for Democracy (NLD). This came as urban guerrilla groups were stepping up their attacks on junta officials and anyone suspected of being a military collaborator or informant. This included newly appointed administrators and members of the military’s political proxy, the Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP), as well as other pro-army individuals, dozens of whom have been assassinated in response to the regime’s slaughter of anti-coup protesters. Military-armed members of the Pyu Saw Htee assemble in a village in Sagaing Region in October 2022 (A Nyar Thar Lay) By late 2021, backers of the regime in Sagaing Region were increasingly under siege as non-violent protests gave way to armed resistance. Many sought refuge in areas that would come to be known as Pyu Saw Htee strongholds, especially along the Mu River in Shwebo and Kanbalu districts. One village in particular—Hmaw Taw, in Kanbalu Township—stood out because it was the home base of ultranationalist monk U Warthawa, whose monastery served not only as a safe haven for junta supporters, but also as a recruitment centre for the Pyu Saw Htee. It was in December 2021 that U Warthawa organised his first “self-defence” training session for some 500 army supporters sheltering at his monastery. According to Myanmar Now’s investigations, this marks the start of the Pyu Saw Htee’s operations in Sagaing Region. Since then, its numbers have steadily expanded, at least according to U Warthawa, who in July 2023 claimed that there were as many as 10,000 Pyu Saw Htee members in Kanbalu District alone. U Warthawa and Pyu Saw Htee members in a Sagaing village in 2022 (A Nyar Thar Lay) While Myanmar Now has not been able to verify this figure, leaked minutes from a meeting held in February 2022 between junta chief Min Aung Hlaing and the regime’s chief minister for Sagaing Region, Myat Kyaw, reveal that there were already 77 individual Pyu Saw Htee groups in the region by that time. A total of 2,080 firearms had been distributed to these groups, according to Myat Kyaw. Two months later, in April 2022, junta spokesperson Zaw Min Tun acknowledged that the military had begun implementing a system for the creation of what he called “public security forces.” An internal directive from the junta’s Ministry of Planning and Finance, dated March 25, 2022, indicates that these forces would include civilians, police and army veterans, as well as members of the fire department and the Red Cross. Another leaked directive from July of the same year, signed by the junta-appointed chair of the military council for Hpakant Township in Kachin State, stated that every village administrator in the township was expected to form a “public security force” of 67 members, consisting of army and police veterans and members of the Young Men’s Buddhist Association. A leaked directive dated July 25, 2022, describes the structure of the Pyu Saw Htee Their details also had to be reported to the commander of Light Infantry Division 33, based in the city of Sagaing, and to the township administrator and police chief, according to the directive. By the end of the year, Pyu Saw Htee groups had also been formed in Myanmar’s largest city, Yangon, and in Naypyitaw, the junta’s capital. But nowhere are they stronger than in Sagaing Region, where they are seen as an inseparable part of the regime’s armed forces. Even now, however, the military council remains tight-lipped about the exact nature of its relationship to the militia, despite abundant evidence of its direct ties. In August 2023, for instance, local resistance forces in Sagaing Region’s Salingyi Township captured 14 men who had just received 25 days of military training in Thabaung Township, Ayeyarwady Region, more than 460 miles to the south. The men, who were travelling to Salingyi to work as guards at the controversial Letpadaung copper mine, were carrying militia handbooks that outlined, among other things, the “ethical principles” they were expected to follow. Fighting for ‘race and religion’ Based on Myanmar Now’s analysis of the formation and operations of Pyu Saw Htee militia forces across the country, their main strongholds are in Sagaing’s Kanbalu District. According to local resistance forces, one reason that many communities in this area are susceptible to the military’s message and recruitment efforts is the entrenched nationalism of many who live there. Kanbalu is notable as the birthplace of Vice Senior-General Maung Aye, the second most powerful general in the junta that ruled Myanmar for more than two decades until 2011. It is also known as one of the few places in the country where the USDP has consistently performed well in elections. The party’s appeal to local Buddhists is based largely on the fact that there are a relatively large number of Muslim communities in the district. Hmaw Taw, the village of Pyu Saw Htee monk U Warthawa, has more than 500 Muslim households, and just 50 Buddhist. This has enabled him to play on the fears of Buddhist villagers living there and elsewhere in Kanbalu. Like the USDP, he portrays the rival NLD as a traitor to Myanmar’s majority “race and religion” and accuses anti-coup resistance forces of committing “crimes against civilians and Buddhists.” “They don’t like the NLD because they’ve been indoctrinated by the military, so Islamophobic, pro-USDP administrators gained support there,” said Thant Zin Aung, a 25-year-old resistance fighter who was forced to leave western Kanbalu Township due to the success of U Warthawa’s Pyu Saw Htee recruitment campaign in the area. U Warthawa is often seen in videos posted on social media giving anti-PDF speeches at graduation ceremonies for new Pyu Saw Htee recruits. In these speeches, he routinely describes PDF groups as “terrorists” and “traitors” and threatens to “destroy” the villages that support them. U Warthawa addresses Pyu Saw Htee members in Kanbalu Township in July 2023 (Facebook) “The so-called PDFs are traitors who are killing whoever doesn’t agree with their ideals; they are trying to annihilate the state,” he says in one video posted on July 19, 2023, addressing several hundred people armed with army-manufactured rifles and wearing commando uniforms bearing “Public Security Force” insignia. “The people supporting the PDF, you are destroying the country, race, and religion. You must stop now. Don’t support terrorists. Don’t finance them. You will be in trouble. I warn you now. If you support them, you will not be spared,” he says in another video dated September 14. According to Thant Zin Aung, new recruits who receive training in Hmaw Taw are often accompanied by military personnel when they return to their home villages. “They attend the Pyu training and then go back to their villages with the army,” he said, explaining that this was how the military steadily increased the number of Pyu Saw Htee units throughout the area. Some recruits were more than eager to join the fight. “I really like being a soldier,” said Kar Phye, a farmer who became not only a leader of his village’s Pyu Saw Htee force, but also a personal bodyguard of U Warthawa. “When the public militia forces were formed, I believed that this work was for the good of my community and so I decided to protect it by taking up arms.” He told Myanmar Now that after completing his own training in Hmaw Taw, he organised training in his home village of Myay Doo. Initially, 30 people joined, but when the army asked for more, they recruited another 20. It was mandatory for young people in the village to take part in this training, he said, adding that they were also provided with firearms. He explained that when such training begins, a group of 50 armed individuals—including both soldiers and Pyu Saw Htee members—are stationed in the village for security, as resistance forces typically target the militia when it is undergoing training. When the training is finished, some soldiers stay in the village to oversee the newly-graduated militia fighters, said Kar Phye. “Nobody supports the PDF in the village anymore. Everyone keeps a low profile since we formed the public militia force. We take immediate action according to orders from above if we hear that anyone is associated with those people,” he added, referring to resistance forces. He did not clarify what actions were taken. Command structure The Pyu Saw Htee militia groups in Kanbalu District are under the command of Lt-Col San Lin of Tank Battalion 6006, based in the town of Kanbalu. Military training is provided by a sergeant from the battalion and takes from 15 to 40 days, depending on the number of recruits, Pyu Saw Htee sources told Myanmar Now. Selected individuals are chosen from each group and provided with combat and commando training at the battalion’s base, the sources added. The western part of Kanbalu District is divided into four sections, each comprising around 10 villages. The leader of each section commands all of the forces in their assigned area. Whenever one village under their control is attacked by resistance forces, other villages from the same section have to prepare to send 10 fighters each as reinforcements. Myanmar Now contacted Lt-Col San Lin via a social media channel to ask him about the number of Pyu Saw Htee forces under his command, but he declined to provide any information. “It’s a little difficult for me to comment on this matter,” he said, confirming that he is responsible for the Pyu Saw Htee groups in Kanbalu District. “I can’t say how widespread the [militia forces] are, but we are forming militia villages.” The circles mark areas in Sagaing’s Kanbalu District where the Pyu Saw Htee is strongest. (Myanmar Now) Regarding the deployment of Pyu Saw Htee members, other militia leaders said that each village was required to send two members to Tank Battalion 6006, and that the groups took turns going to the frontline along with the junta soldiers. As for how well-armed the Pyu Saw Htee troops are, the leaders said that those stationed in their villages receive single-round carbine guns and various types of explosives from the military, while those joining army soldiers at military bases get rifles. According to Kar Phye, however, militia troops in Hmaw Taw and other Pyu Saw Htee strongholds, as well as those from villages frequently attacked by resistance forces, are provided with mortars, MA4 40mm grenade launchers, and semi-machine guns. He and U Warthawa’s other bodyguard are both armed with M22 handguns, he added. Weapons and ammunition seized during a raid on a Pyu Saw Htee base in Kanbalu District on November 10, 2023 (Myanmar Now) Military defector Min Yan Aung, a second lieutenant, told Myanmar Now that the Pyu Saw Htee’s primary activities involved collecting local intelligence for the junta and serving as reinforcements during raids in the area. Min Yan Aung deserted from the military and joined the anti-junta revolution in June 2023 after being assigned to a base in the village of Koe Taung Boet in Kanbalu Township. Some 70 soldiers and 130 Pyu Saw Htee members were stationed at the base. He said he took part in three clashes during his time there, fighting alongside both soldiers and Pyu Saw Htee. According to Min Yan Aung, the Pyu Saw Htee troops only had access to weapons during emergencies and when they were on night guard duty. At other times, firearms were locked up in the armoury, he said. “They usually send out around 30 soldiers and 20 Pyu troops whenever there’s fighting, or even when there isn’t. The Pyu troops can be unruly, because they tend to do as they please [to detainees] if they have grudges against them,” he said. “They also wreak havoc to stay on the good side of military officers,” he added. The base in Koe Taung Boet was divided into two parts—upper and lower. The upper section had around 100 Pyu Saw Htee troops and the lower section had a similar number of both soldiers and Pyu Saw Htee, according to Min Yan Aung. Prisoners captured during raids were interrogated in the lower section, but it was the militia members in the upper section who ultimately decided their fate, he explained. Most who were sent to the upper base were brutally murdered and their bodies were burned, he said. “Whether a hostage lived or died depended on the Pyu Saw Htee, because they’re the ones who know the villages and the people who live in them. If they say someone is a PDF funder, that person will be shot and killed.” While the battalion commander was usually informed before executions were carried out, this wasn’t always the case. When prisoners were killed on the spot, it would later be reported that they had “resisted” during interrogation, according to Min Yan Aung, who said he also witnessed Pyu Saw Htee troops looting and torching houses and killing farm animals during raids. Throughout its ongoing campaign to crush anti-regime forces, the junta has used arson attacks to punish civilians backing the resistance, in some cases burning down entire villages. Kar Phye, U Warthawa’s bodyguard, admitted to the practice, but claimed that it is not as widespread as reported. “We sometimes torched three or four houses in villages where we had clashes, but it wasn’t in every village,” he said. Mixed motives But the desire to attack perceived enemies is not the only factor motivating many who join the Pyu Saw Htee. Every member of the militia who spoke to Myanmar Now admitted to being paid for their services. Ordinary members typically receive 120,000 kyat (US$55) per month, according to militia leaders and other sources. Late last year, leaked documents revealed that that Soe Shwe Aung, the chair of the regime’s Kanbalu District Administration Council, transferred more than four million kyat ($1,900) to U Warthawa from a disaster relief fund to buy food for some 160 Pyu Saw Htee members in Kanbalu and neighbouring Taze Township. A leaked document records transfer of money from the General Administration Department to the Pyu Saw Htee While these amounts don’t seem especially high—and undoubtedly represent only a tiny fraction of what the junta is spending on the Pyu Saw Htee—they are enough to attract many impoverished farmers whose livelihoods have been disrupted by nearly three years of conflict. “The public wasn’t interested in joining the Pyu Saw Htee at first, but as the economy got worse, they had no choice but to join them for the money,” said resistance fighter Thant Zin Aung. Even in cities like Yangon and Mandalay, where General Administration Department officials have been assigned the task of forming Pyu Saw Htee units, recruitment has focussed on poverty-stricken neighbourhoods. Some of these areas are also known for their high crime rates, meaning that urban Pyu Saw Htee groups often include hardened criminals. Kyaw Win Sein, a convict who had spent most of his life behind bars for committing a variety of offences, including robbery, kidnapping, drug trafficking, and battery, perhaps exemplifies the type of person that junta authorities regard as prime Pyu Saw Htee material. In 2022, while serving a 70-year sentence inside Yangon’s Insein prison, he was released as part of an amnesty and given a chance to “rehabilitate” himself by becoming the leader of a 50-member Pyu Saw Htee group tasked with rooting out the city’s anti-junta urban guerrillas. Pyu Saw Htee members from the cities of Taungoo and Pyay receive weapons from the military in September 2023 (Myanma Alin) As one former colleague noted, Kyaw Win Sein was “the kind of guy who would do anything for money.” But he also approached his newfound role with zeal, regularly sharing videos of himself living his state-sanctioned thug life on his favourite platform, TikTok. However, like many others who have felt empowered by the junta’s decision to unleash unmitigated violence on the country, Kyaw Win Sein’s moment of glory was short-lived, ending last month in his brutal murder in Yangon’s Kyimyindaing Township, apparently at the hands of a rival group. While this may not be the fate of all who join the Pyu Saw Htee, many have already died—and killed—fighting their neighbours. Instigated by a regime infamous for its disregard for human life, the current conflict will undoubtedly leave a legacy of fear and mistrust among many in Myanmar, whatever its outcome. Related story: https://myanmar-now.org/en/news/military-council-forcibly-recruiting-men-as-old-as-60-in-bago-township/

In Myanmar’s heartland, a ‘public militia’ created to sow division

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