In the weeks that have passed since Myanmar’s February 1 coup d’état, as dissenters have been jailed, disappeared and killed, a group of JURIST law student correspondents* has participated in street protests by day and navigated government-ordered internet blackouts by night to report on the crisis.

Below, we share some of their insights on how they and other members of their community perceive the coup, and how the country’s political upheaval has strengthened bonds or sown discords within their own households. What follows are perspectives gathered in recent weeks from JURIST’s correspondents and other student respondents from law schools across Myanmar. All of these responses are being published anonymously due to the risks faced by these students.  While we have made minor revisions for clarity, we have endeavored to publish these students’ words in their own voices, with minimal editorial interference.

This is part two of a series of articles in which we explore the Myanmar crisis from the perspectives of our correspondents on the front lines. All five parts can be accessed via the following links:

• Part 1: Voices of Myanmar: The crisis as seen from the front lines
• Part 2: Voices of Myanmar: How the coup has affected families and communities
• Part 3: Voices of Myanmar: How the coup has affected legal studies
• Part 4: Voices of Myanmar: Choosing to protest no matter the risks
• Part 5: Voices of Myanmar: Hopes for the country’s future

…

All my friends and family are strongly against this military coup. Since early February, doctors, engineers, teachers, lawyers and people from all walks of life have been protesting against this coup. In the weeks since this all started, we have suffered so much oppression.  We can’t even sleep at night because police and military forces have been arresting innocent people at night and releasing the prisoners to create chaos at night. They seem to be trying to enact human rights violations into law. But we never surrender, and we never back down. We are not deterred by the bloodshed we have witnessed; we remain enthusiastic in our fight for the downfall of this dictatorship.

…

There are many different people in my community with many different mindsets, so of course there are people who don’t support our way of fighting for our future. I can’t really blame them; everyone should be free to believe in what they want. That’s what democracy is all about.

…

The people of Myanmar are largely united against the military coup, and it seems like most people in the country are demanding democracy, and are hoping for the dictatorship to fail, and for the release of the detained officials.

Myanmar armed forces are worsening by the day. As far as I can tell, they have no rules, no discipline and no humanity. We never feel safe or secure, and we are constantly in fear of armed forces destroying our homes, robbing us or carrying out acts of violence. Every day, serious human rights abuses and violations are committed by the illegitimate military junta.

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I’ve been protesting in the streets with my family. My whole township has been turning out to the protests.

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Most of the people of Myanmar want democracy and they are saying that they hate the coup from the bottom of their hearts because the coup has claimed the lives of innocent people, breached human rights and resulted in unjust and unlawful actions.

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My family members and I share the opinion that the coup is unacceptable. However, many people in my neighborhood see this as an inter-party conflict. They don’t see the protests that are happening in other parts of Myanmar, and they mostly opt to remain silent.

…

Most people around me share the same viewpoints about the coup. We – the students and youths – are trying our best to end this coup. Neighbors are also uniting and protecting each other against the chaos caused by the dictatorship. Of course, there’s some societal discord at the moment – especially among the older people, who are afraid, as well as among the family members of police and military forces, who stand with the military coup.

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Some people believe the dictators will not give up and that they will try hard to keep hold of power. While we hope to get help from the international community and especially the United Nations, we also accept the fact that we have to fight this on our own. We cannot know what lies ahead, but we hope we will win and that the dictators will fail in the end.

…

Under these circumstances, most people I know have the same views. My family lived under a military regime for many years, and they know first-hand how bad it could get. The people around me just want democracy – that’s what most people in Myanmar want.

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There is a lot of social discord in my family. My dad and my brother are on one side and my mother and I are on the other. It’s really disrupted our home life. It’s very stressful.

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My family does not accept the legitimacy of this coup, but they are too scared to accept the fact that I want to protest. Whenever I talk about the protests, my mom starts to cry. They are terrified of losing someone they love. We argue about this almost every day.

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Some of my relatives are urging me not to post on social media or share reports with the outside world. But I can’t understand why they don’t feel compelled to do what I’m doing.

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My family is praying all the time. They eat a lot less than they used to, and my parents can’t sleep at night. They don’t even talk much anymore – they’re always so consumed with waiting for more news developments.

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My family worries about my safety because they believe the armed forces are terrorists.

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Almost everyone I know condemns the military coup. Most of the people I know who don’t condemn it have military backgrounds, or have been seriously brainwashed.

Sadly, a few my friends’ parents don’t allow them to protest, and they even control their kids’ social media activities. In these cases, I suspect their parents are being pressured by people in powerful positions.

…

I come from a family of civil servants, and most people I know in that situation share a few common beliefs:

We all condemn the military coup.

We want a civilian government, the composition of which should be based on the results of 2020 elections.

We want the release of our government officials and of all unlawful detainees.

We want democracy and justice.

Our president should be Win Myint, in accordance with the 2008 constitution.

We don’t believe the military officials had a legitimate need to seize power.

The citizens of Myanmar are strongly opposed to the military coup,

We are peaceful protestors.

—

My paternal grandpa is a retired soldier, so my father took his side and told me not to participate in the protests, but I insisted, and I continue to participate because this concerns my future. My maternal grandpa died at the hands of soldiers when he lived in a rural area, and thus my mom and grandma hate soldiers, and they side with me. There is a lot of social discord at home at the moment.

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My father knows how hard I’ve been working to be able to study abroad in America or Europe, so it was really hard for him to cope with my struggles as this all started. He told me he would sell the house and everything in it to try to get the whole family out of Myanmar, or at least to send me abroad. He even encouraged me to seek refugee status in America, because he believes I have the qualifications to offer something of value to the country.

I understand his fears as he witnessed a similarly fearful period when he was a student in 1988. But I figured that it’s 2021 – how could it be the same?

I told him I didn’t want to quit and run away. I want to go abroad to study, but not like this. I will fight until the end alongside my people and we will win this. I take pride in Myanmar; this country is my home. I think my father is starting to understand that, and he supports me in my efforts to protest, and to share our stories via JURIST.  He also encourages me to study every day, despite all the uncertainties, and encourages me to hold on to my dreams, and not let those military idiots rob me of my future.

When I go out to protest, my mom even packs my lunch for me to bring along, and she urges me to run any time I hear gunshots so that I can live another day to protest again.

Every time I go out to protest, I pay homage to my parents. But I do it in secret so I won’t cause them to worry more.

…

My grandparents have tried to transfer their fears to me, but I never listen to them. Look: they’ve already lived most of their lives, and my life is just beginning. I know that if I don’t fight now, I’ll regret it for the rest of my life. I would rather die young for a purpose than live a meaningless life.

And if I were to stop fighting now, how could I face younger generations? We have a duty to end dictatorships once and for all. We can’t let history repeat itself. This must be Myanmar’s last coup. We will cut it off at the roots so the younger generation won’d have to live through this again.

Silence is unforgivable. We need to take a stand, and we need to determine right from wrong. I’d rather die than shut my mouth and live in fear. I heard a quote somewhere – people live to survive, or live for honor. I choose honor.

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*Please note:  All of these responses are being published anonymously due to the risks faced by these students.  While we have made minor revisions for clarity, we have endeavored to publish these students’ words in their own voices, with minimal editorial interference.