Q&A: Leader of Myanmar’s shadow government talks civil war strategy in 2025

This twelvemonth is apt to beryllium 1 of the astir pivotal successful Myanmar’s modern history.

The state is embroiled successful a civilian war, ignited by the military’s 2021 coup against an elected government.

Fighting has escalated and the subject regime, which calls itself the State Administration Council (SAC), has suffered mounting defeats. It has responded to the nonaccomplishment of power implicit borderline regions and swaths of territory to opposition forces with indiscriminate aerial attacks and atrocities against civilians.

The military’s astir formidable absorption – a conjugation of ethnic equipped groups – present controls astir of Rakhine authorities successful the country’s eastbound and from the borderline with China to the metropolis of Mandalay successful the north.

Another large absorption unit is the National Unity Government (NUG) – described arsenic Myanmar’s shadiness authorities – successful exile, which oversees a escaped postulation of anti-regime groups known arsenic the People’s Defence Force (PDF).

The NUG faces challenges successful gaining diplomatic designation connected the planetary beforehand and its fighters are struggling to seizure municipality areas connected the location front.

Al Jazeera spoke with NUG Acting President Duwa Lashi La astir the movement’s subject and governmental strategy successful 2025 and the war’s apt extremity game.

Al Jazeera: Please picture the NUG’s strategy for 2025.

Duwa Lashi La: In 2025, we would similar to accelerate the question of our revolution. Although it began with precise small resources, the gyration has go stronger. In 2022, we formed equipped forces. In 2023, we could motorboat subject operations. In 2025, we are seeking the extremity game. The radical of Myanmar person suffered excessively overmuch for each these years. We person to carnivore each these atrocities, portion the satellite conscionable watches on.

In 2025, we are aiming for the implicit elimination of evil [regime leader] Min Aung Hlaing from our soil.

Armed gyration is simply a captious focus, but it’s not the lone one. It’s politically important to person inclusive information of each the equipped forces. It’s besides precise important to person beardown diplomatic practice with the planetary assemblage and to summation much enactment from them.

Another important origin is bully connection with the public, and bully governing successful our controlled areas. We’re aiming to amended successful each these areas successful the caller year. To execute that, we person a strategical plan.

Myanmar’s National Unity Government (NUG) Acting President Duwa Lashi La, left, inspect troops of the People’s Defence Force (PDF) [Courtesy of Duwa Lashi La]

Al Jazeera: What bash you deliberation volition hap successful 2025?

Duwa Lashi La: We purpose to scope a tipping constituent successful 2025, a akin concern to Syria erstwhile al-Assad fled the country.

We person to onslaught a last stroke against the SAC.

Parts of the planetary community, specified arsenic the ICC [International Criminal Court], are besides attempting to prosecute Min Aung Hlaing. We wholly enactment this. It would beryllium large if the planetary assemblage could apprehension him. We’ll besides proceed our effort to prosecute him wrong our state from each mode possible.

However, planetary involution is indispensable successful this transitional period.

With simultaneous and collaborative attempts betwixt the planetary assemblage and absorption forces against the SAC, we judge the SAC would beryllium destroyed astatine once.

It’s precise important to chopped disconnected the fiscal travel to the SAC to execute this goal. The subject is backed by beardown resources that they person acquired from decades of controlling the country. We request to halt this.

The planetary assemblage should besides halt purchasing from Myanma Oil and Gas Enterprise, a immense fiscal root for the military. Additionally, the planetary assemblage should halt providing pitchy substance and selling weapons to the military.

I powerfully impulse the planetary assemblage to halt communicating with the SAC, associating with them and recognizing them.

Al Jazeera: Does the NUG see itself a person of the nationwide revolution?

Duwa Lashi La: The NUG is astatine the frontline of the revolution, arsenic the radical of Myanmar elected america to pb it.

The planetary assemblage needs to admit this mandate.

Although definite taste absorption organizations (EROs) don’t precisely admit the NUG arsenic a cardinal government, we are performing arsenic one. We are besides successful consultation with assorted taste equipped groups. Some EROs spot the NUG arsenic a common, cardinal assemblage that they support. So, our work is to fulfil this role. That is wherefore we cannot suffer this revolution.

Al Jazeera: Recently you called for the instrumentality of NUG ministers to Myanmar – the nationalist welcomed this call. Have immoderate returned yet?

Duwa Lashi La: Our argumentation is that the gyration should not go stuck. There indispensable beryllium progressive changes wrong our movement. This is the clip for NUG ministers to unrecorded with the radical connected the ground, stock the conflict together, and consciousness the bully and the atrocious of what radical experience.

That is wherefore I person urged ministers to instrumentality to the country. As this is an important issue, we person been discussing it wrong the ministerial committee, exclusively comprising each ministers, for astir 2 months now. Certain plans person been laid down by the committee regarding this issue. Some ministers successful the committee pledged to travel to the frontline.

Al Jazeera: When volition the NUG reshuffle its ministers? And who bash you person successful caput to instrumentality implicit what roles?

Duwa Lashi La: This is classified information. However, we person been arsenic transparent arsenic imaginable astir this. The NUCC [a argumentation advisory body, the National Unity Consultative Council] has besides already announced the NUG’s reformation.

We wholly hold with the reforms. We don’t mean to inhabit these roles permanently. It is besides important for strengthening the NUG. We are ever acceptable to invited much skilful and susceptible individuals who would similar to lend to the revolution.

We person plans to reshuffle ministers to fortify and velocity up the revolution. But, arsenic to erstwhile and what reshuffling, I won’t disclose astatine present. We person agreed connected doing that successful aboriginal 2025. There volition beryllium immoderate changes successful aboriginal 2025.

A 34-year-old erstwhile fittingness trainer and subordinate of the People’s Defence Force (PDF) gets a military-style haircut astatine a grooming campy successful an country controlled by taste Karen rebels, successful Karen State, Myanmar, successful September 2021 [Reuters]

Al Jazeera: What are the NUG’s conditions for bid talks with the military?

Duwa Lashi La: The NUG is ever unfastened for dialogue. We ne'er adjacent the doorway connected bid talks. The occupation is that the SAC ne'er wants to prosecute successful governmental dialog with us.

But we person 1 condition, arsenic is outlined successful our associated connection with the K3C [an taste equipped radical coalition]. If the SAC agrees to astatine slightest 3 of our six requirements, specified arsenic accepting civilian rule, and declaring to the satellite they volition ne'er interfere successful the country’s politics, past we tin determination guardant with the bid talks.

It’s important that the world’s superpowers, neighbouring countries and ASEAN countries [the Association of Southeast Asian Nations] indispensable beryllium included successful witnessing and ensuring the military’s departure from politics. If they cannot hold connected these grounds, it volition beryllium hard for america to person bid talks with the SAC.

A Myanmar subject defender of honour marches during a ceremonial to people the 71st day of Martyrs’ Day successful Yangon successful 2018 [File: Ye Aung Thu/AFP]

Al Jazeera: How are you trying to person taste absorption organisations to backmost you, and wherefore are immoderate EROs reluctant?

Duwa Lashi La: We request to look backmost to past to recognize that. Myanmar has often had situations wherever galore ethnicities participated unneurotic successful revolution. For example, erstwhile we rebelled against Japanese rule, it was the Kachin who started the revolution, and past the Chin besides participated.

The Burmese and Buddhist groups sided with the Japanese, arsenic they were besides Buddhists. I don’t mean to discriminate against immoderate communities here; I americium conscionable explaining the concern based connected the facts.

We are seen arsenic a Western-influenced group. But this gyration is wholly antithetic due to the fact that everyone is progressive successful this struggle, arsenic they should be. There are immoderate levels of mistrust among the taste equipped groups. For example, the KNU [Karen National Union] was unsocial successful rebelling against subject dictatorship.

Similarly, the Shan besides started to rebel against the cardinal authorities successful 1959 and established an autarkic concatenation of bid – the Kachin successful 1961 and, later, the Chin. Everyone has been independently warring against subject dictatorship.

To systemize everyone nether 1 concatenation of command, each having their ain cardinal body, has been the biggest situation for the NUG. We request to enactment arsenic a associated concatenation of command, wherever each chiefs of unit volition person a associated commanding system.

As for now, we are moving nether a coordination strategy for associated subject cooperation, and, arsenic we person seen, it’s going successfully. But successful the aboriginal national military, we volition person to found 1 concatenation of bid with the assistance of experts and acrophobic parties.

Al Jazeera: In June 2023, the NUG approved the replacement of the 1982 Citizenship Law that denies adjacent entree to afloat citizenship rights for Rohingya and others successful the country. Has the NUG officially repealed this law?

Duwa Lashi La: This has been nether our information since 2021, conscionable aft the coup. We released a connection connected the amendment of the unjust 1982 law. But erstwhile and however to bash it depends connected the ineligible requirements and the country’s situation.

When the concern improves, arsenic we often accidental during the transitional period, erstwhile we are capable to see the sentiment of the grassroots level, erstwhile we get the people’s mandate, the acrophobic authorities volition decidedly amend that law.

It is not thing we tin rush. If we amend a instrumentality without deliberate consultation, it would beryllium a anemic instrumentality that would request to beryllium amended again and again. We would not person the public’s spot successful specified anemic laws. We indispensable instrumentality clip to make a instrumentality that the radical person afloat religion and beardown content in.

Al Jazeera: How volition you code accrued Chinese backing for the subject regime?

Duwa Lashi La: We are ever attempting to make China understand the realities successful Myanmar. Not lone China – we would similar our neighbouring countries, specified arsenic India and Bangladesh, to recognize the existent situation.

I cannot recognize wherefore they would enactment this brutal, heartless subject that destroys its ain country. China is our neighbouring country. We cannot take our neighbour. We can’t accidental that we don’t similar to beryllium their neighbour and determination Myanmar to an island. That’s impossible. Whether we similar it oregon not, we ever request connection with China.

Municipal workers expanse a roadworthy adjacent a welcoming billboard for Chinese President Xi Jinping, successful 2020, to the superior Naypyidaw, Myanmar [File: Aung Shine Oo/AP Photo]

But it’s important for our neighbours to cognize what the radical of Myanmar want. One happening is clear: Myanmar indispensable beryllium successful accordance with the volition of the Myanmar people, arsenic noted successful the United Nations Security Council Resolution 2669. The radical of Myanmar bash not privation a subject dictatorship. Period.

To transportation them, we are communicating with China successful each diplomatic mode possible, done immoderate transmission possible. As we are neighbours, we guarantee information and amended collaboration successful economics and their investments, arsenic it’s a precise economic-orientated country. We person informed them that immoderate bilateral statement betwixt a antiauthoritarian authorities of Myanmar and China would beryllium ensured.

Al Jazeera: The subject has been committing atrocities with its indiscriminate aerial strikes. What is the NUG’s antagonistic to these aerial strikes?

Duwa Lashi La: We person ever expressed our hopeless request for antiaircraft weapons to antagonistic subject aerial strikes done assorted media channels. Ordinary weapons person been incapable to instrumentality down the regime’s highly modernized Russian-made pitchy fighters.

We truly request effectual weapons, similar antiaircraft missiles. But determination are galore limitations to obtaining specified subject weapons.

It’s imaginable if there’s a volition – instrumentality Ukraine, for example. We are assured to instrumentality the full subject down wrong six months if we are provided with specified weapons.

If we could ever get enactment similar Ukraine, this conflict would extremity immediately.

At slightest 6,000 guiltless radical person mislaid their lives truthful far. Hundreds of thousands of civilian homes, spiritual buildings and schools person been destroyed, and these atrocities are chiefly due to the fact that of the aerial strikes.

Once again, I earnestly impulse the planetary assemblage to see the Myanmar concern and enactment the people’s revolution.

This interrogation has been edited for magnitude and clarity.