Burma

Burma, officially known as Myanmar, gained independence from the British Commonwealth in 1948. In 1962, General Ne Win seized power in a military coup and ruled the country under an authoritarian regime until widespread protests in 1988 forced his resignation. The military, however, quickly regained control.

In 1990, Burma held multiparty elections in which the National League for Democracy (NLD), led by Aung San Suu Kyi, won a decisive victory. The military refused to recognize the results and kept power. Aung San Suu Kyi, winner of the 1991 Nobel Peace Prize, spent much of the next two decades under house arrest.

In 2008, the military approved a constitution that guaranteed it significant political influence. The military-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) won the widely criticized 2010 elections. In 2011, President Thein Sein introduced political and economic reforms, including releasing political prisoners and easing censorship.

The NLD won another landslide victory in the 2015 elections, and Htin Kyaw became president in 2016, marking Burma’s first civilian-led government in decades. However, ethnic conflict and violence continued, particularly involving minority groups such as the Rohingya, hundreds of thousands of whom fled to Bangladesh after military crackdowns in 2016 and 2017.

On February 1, 2021, the military, led by Min Aung Hlaing, seized power in another coup after the NLD won the 2020 elections. Since the 2021 coup, Burma has descended into widespread conflict that many observers describe as a civil war. Pro-democracy resistance groups, ethnic armed organizations, and newly formed militias known as People’s Defense Forces (PDFs) have fought against the military junta throughout much of the country. The violence has displaced millions of people internally and forced many others to seek refuge in neighboring countries including Thailand and Bangladesh. Human rights organizations and the United Nations have documented widespread abuses, including airstrikes on civilians, mass arrests, torture, and the destruction of villages.

Today, Burma remains deeply divided politically and militarily. The military junta continues to control major state institutions and urban centers, while resistance groups and ethnic organizations control or contest large portions of territory. International efforts to negotiate peace have had limited success, and the humanitarian crisis remains severe.

Buddhism is the dominant religion in Burma, practiced by approximately 88% of the population. Christianity and Islam are the two largest minority religions, with Christianity practiced largely among ethnic minority groups such as the Chin, Kachin, and Karen peoples, while Muslims, including the Rohingya, make up a smaller percentage of the population.

AMC partners with several native missionaries in Burma, including Ngwa and his wife, Nar Yet, who serve as the house parents for AMC’s children’s home. Thanks to the faithful financial support of generous donors, these children have been evacuated from dangerous and politically unstable regions of Burma to a safer major city.