Gaining Peace in Myanmar: Invest in Youth to End the Coup

Protestors marching in February 2021 against the recent military coup. Photo courtesy of Wikimedia. 

On March 3, 19-year-old Angel, also known as Kyal Sin, was shot and killed by the Burmese military while participating in pro-democracy protests. While Angel’s death was the first documented murder of a young person since the start of Myanmar’s military coup, hundreds more youths have been killed and arrested. 

Youth in Myanmar (defined as age 15-35) are leading anti-coup protests and efforts to bring security to their country. Many of those on the frontlines of protests, infamous for their amount of bloodshed, are in their late teens and early twenties, and playing key roles in unifying labor, teacher, and student unions to organize against the military. The symbolic banging of pots and pans each night in solidarity against the coup is also largely attributed to the work of youth activists, many of whom were encouraged by protestors in their 20s.

Conversations on current youth contributions to Myanmar’s peace and security would not be complete without understanding the efforts of young peacebuilders in the years before the coup. Notably, youth began Myanmar’s 1988 uprising. In 1988, after several university students disagreed with government officials in a tea shop, the nation launched into strikes and marches that would eventually end in violence instigated by the Burmese military. 

In more recent years, peace process frameworks have largely relied on the skills of young people, many of whom aid in documentation and facilitation efforts and hold technological proficiency that adults do not. Reports from the Dag Hammarskjöld Foundation note that numerous active youth networks are present in Myanmar and involve their young participants in interfaith dialogue, awareness campaigns, local organizing, and community mobilization.

Despite the notable work and leadership of youth in Myanmar, many of these efforts are informal and on a small scale. This gap is telling of the need for formal avenues to youth inclusion, as until now, much, if not all, of youth participation has been through informal tracks with many barriers to recognition and documentation. Cultural and socio-economic barriers, ageism, a lack of education, and little to no monetary support from international donors stifles the potential of young activists. Moreover, youth are generally viewed as victims or burdens as opposed to the changemakers and peacebuilders they have proven to be.

The ongoing Rohingya genocide and persecution of ethnic minorities increases the necessity for opportunities for formal youth input, as young people from ethnic groups historically discriminated against hold perspectives vital to many social and political issues. Additionally, girls and young women suffer unique and disproportionate effects of conflict, similarly displaying need for representation and inclusion in conflict resolution efforts.

Beyond the demonstrated urgency for formal channels to youth inclusion, young people make up one-third of Myanmar’s population, a country with a median age of 27, and are arguably the most prominent stakeholders in the nation’s future. Strides towards peace in Myanmar would be significantly more effective, inclusive, and sustainable if young people were institutionally supported in their new and existing efforts. The U.S. has an opportunity to provide such support given the recently introduced Youth, Peace, and Security (YPS) Act of 2021, a House of Representatives bill based on a U.N. resolution of the same name. 

If passed, the YPS Act will open formal opportunities to include youth in peace and security efforts by encouraging youth policies across multiple U.S. federal agencies and providing American financial support to youth-led initiatives abroad. Representative Grace Meng, who led the introduction of the YPS Act, included that the bill will also form a Youth Coordinator position at USAID to manage relevant projects in the U.S. government. The act also holds language to protect youth at risk of violence, an extremely crucial point as civilian deaths in Myanmar increase with each day.

The YPS Act would aid in ensuring a greater likelihood of sustainable peace, as excluding youth means pursuing peace processes that do not meet the needs of a large portion of the population. From an economic perspective, the act offers more effective conflict prevention efforts, as investing in prevention is always cheaper than intervention. 

Myanmar’s youth demand assistance that they have long deserved, and showcase a history of powerful mobilization for a country currently entrenched in violence and political unrest. Youth in the present have proven vital to strides towards democracy and will continue to be vital to peace and security efforts, extending a chance for the U.S., and the YPS agenda, to contribute to lasting systems change.

Caroline Mendoza is a sophomore in Columbia College majoring in Human Rights and Gender Studies. She is passionate about atrocity prevention and women and youth’s roles in peace processes.