How Myanmar's Gen Z flash mobs evade soldiers to protest against junta, rally for Ukraine

For Myanmar's ruling junta, an ideal state of affairs would be one where all forms of dissent are completely crushed and people fear protesting in public - eradicating the need for authorities to play cat-and-mouse games with demonstrators.

But even as junta chief Min Aung Hlaing chases that goal, a resistance effort by the likes of James (not his real name), a 21-year-old graphic designer, will keep the regime on alert for quite some time yet.

James is among the leaders of a group of youths who are continuing to stage "flash mob" protests in Myanmar's urban areas, more than 13 months after the military coup.

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These demonstrations are hard to curb as participants organise themselves through encrypted messaging platforms, and arrive at a protest site with little sign they are there to demonstrate.

Participants usually mill around a bus stop, as if waiting for the bus, or near a bank machine, where queues or crowds are not seen as suspicious by authorities.

Then, they unfurl banners and chant slogans - sometimes with passers-by joining them. The protests tend to last just a few minutes.

In the most recent instance, some flash mob protests took place on Sunday in solidarity with Ukraine in the commercial hub of Yangon, as well as in Dawei in the country's deep south and Kachin State in the north, reported the news website The Irrawaddy.

The junta - a long-time client of Russia's arms industry - has stood out in Southeast Asia as being the only national authority to openly back Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.

While the risks of these protests are high - those apprehended may face lengthy jail terms - James told This Week in Asia that his group had refined their tactics over the years to evade arrest.

The group has taken part in various demonstrations, including one on February 22, 2022 - in what activists termed the "Six Twos Revolution Strike".

The key to being successful in this endeavour, James said, was for participants to collectively "behave like an octopus". His group, comprising rag-tag protesters largely from Generation Z and from across income class groups, calls itself the "Octopus Youth Organisation".

"I chose the name Octopus because we need to act like one," James said in an interview. He requested the use of a pseudonym for security reasons.

"These are highly-intelligent creatures that are masters of disguise, and they quickly vanish right before your eyes," he said, referring to the ability of cephalopods to manipulate pigments in their skin to disguise themselves in any situation.

James said flash mobs remained prevalent despite heavy security presence in places like Yangon, as the protesters had spent a considerable amount of time studying the techniques that the police used in these scenarios.

"It's a bit like the 'Bomberman' game we used to play when we were younger," James said. "We have to avoid them if they are coming in our direction, and we have to disperse if they are closing in."

The young graphic designer said public reception had largely been warm to the flash mobs.

"We are always welcomed and applauded. When we ended our protest on February 22, some of the aunties gave us pocket money of about 2,000 to 5,000 kyat (US$1.15-2.80) to spend for our own needs," he said.

While the aim of taking part in flash mobs is to evade arrest, protesters are fully aware that their acts of open dissent involve high risks.

Since last year's coup on February 1, nearly 1,600 people have been killed by the junta, according to a tally by the local monitor Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, which is used by the United Nations.

"When I walk these streets, I have made up my mind [about the risks] and consider myself a dead person," said James, adding that many protest participants wrote their blood group and family contact details on their hands. "We know the risks that we could get arrested and tortured to death. But we will not stop."

James said his parents had voiced concerns about his safety, but ultimately understood why he wanted to take part in flash mobs. If the ongoing nationwide effort to resist junta rule as a fait accompli failed, "every generation will have to kneel down to dictators without a choice", he said.

Wai, a 19-year-old civil servant who has remained active in the civil disobedience movement over the last 13 months, said peaceful protests remained a key part of the nationwide struggle.

Apart from civilian protests, a shadow government of MPs currently in exile or in hiding is backing multiple militias and some decades-old ethnic armed organisations in a so-called "defensive war" against the junta.

Experts say the military's previous dominance has been somewhat diminished on the battlefield as it repels these militias on multiple fronts, including in Sagaing, Kayah, Chin, Kachin states. The fighting is expected to intensify until at least May, when the dry season ends.

Wai, who took part in a Six Twos revolution protest in Yangon, said the event had been a success. She and other women held hands and walked down the streets of downtown Yangon.

But arrests have taken place. Wai said 16 fellow protesters she knew - who were mostly younger than 18 - were arrested and thrown into the Youth Rehabilitation Centre in Yangon.

"Four of them were sent to the interrogation centre in Yangon first," she said. "One of the boys was told to reveal other names of those who took part in the protests by officers threatening to gang rape him if he wouldn't give up their names."

This article originally appeared on the South China Morning Post (SCMP).

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