This research studies the changing practice of UCP in Myanmar during and after the 2021 military coup. Security tensions in Myanmar, including the coup and the ongoing armed conflict, have drastically increased and intensified the forms of harm and vulnerability faced by civilians. This study will investigate how communities have adapted to new threats and levels of vulnerability under the Military Junta both during and after the 2021 coup. It will explore changes in unarmed community (self-) protection strategies as well as the protection of wider communities in the face of different threats and vulnerabilities following the coup. The study aims to provide insights into effective UCP strategies during times of political turmoil and military rule.
To achieve the objectives, this research will be guided by the following research questions:
- What are the strategies that communities and CSOs use to protect themselves and their communities from harm during the military junta after the coup of 2021?
- Are there different strategies for different threats and vulnerabilities?
- What can we learn about adapting UCP and civilian self-protection when there is a military coup or new threats arising from a coup?
This research is mainly qualitative, including in-depth face-to-face interview, focus group discussions (FGDs) and literature study. The research will be conducted in Kachin and Northern Shan states of Myanmar, where armed conflict has escalated significantly since the coup. NP has an existing network with local CSOs in these areas from their previous collaborations on UCP work. One of the areas, Kachin, was studied by scholars to explore what kind of UCP is practiced by the community. Our study of Northern Shan will further broaden, deepen, and enrich perspectives and knowledges about the community’s strategy to provide (self-) protection to each other during and after coup in Myanmar. NP will closely collaborate with the local CSO partners in Kachin and Northern Shan in collecting data. The research will take six months to complete.
The output of the research will be a draft working paper, which will be disseminated to local CSOs through a FGD in each research area. The FGD is in itself a data collection process to clarify and refine the working paper. The participants of this research (communities and CSO members) are the main beneficiaries of the output. The team expects that the project outputs will provide learning that may be adopted by CSOs in providing protection for civilians as well as independently practiced by communities.
This project is implemented through Nonviolent Peaceforce.