Battalion Commanders Deserting Myanmar Army

             (Based on staff articles from Burmese Facebook Pages in March-April 2022.)

A few commanders and deputy-commanders of light infantry battalions are deserting their field posts and joining either ethnic rebels or NUG-controlled PDFs in coup-ravaged Myanmar. The resent desertions have been causing sleepless nights for the mad man MAH, the Myanmar Army Chief.

Just last March, Major Tin Lin Aung the deputy commander of Boat-pyinn based LIB-585 surrendered to the KNLA (Karen National Liberation Army) forces in the Lay-kay-kaw region in Myawaddy Township on Thai-Burma border. His battalion has been fighting KNLA there for weeks now since last February. He brought one MA-3 and one MA-1 assault rifles and a pistol along with him.

He declared in the press interview immediately after his surrender that mad army chief MAH is sacrificing the lives and limbs of Myanmar Army soldiers by treating the people of Burma as enemies because they overwhelmingly reject his power-grab from the legitimately-elected ASSK Government.

He said he is a soldier and previously his fights were only the military affairs but since last February his fights are turning into a political fight to keep the power in the hands of MAH and his generals who have been benefitting handsomely while soldiers like him are losing faith in their brutally oppressive army.

He added that nowadays people hate them soldiers and even their own parents and close relatives are encouraging them to desert the army and join the side of people and thus he had decided to abandon the hated army and surrender to the KNLA.

PDFs Are Killing the Parents of Serving & Retired Soldiers

There are many alarming cases of local PDF (People Defense Forces) killing the parents of serving or even retired members of hated Myanmar Army. On April-2 at about 9 in the morning, unknown gunmen in Mogoke Town shot dead Ko Myo and Cho Cho the parents of army engineer Captain Kyaw Myo Hein.

The couple was wounded lightly in last December when the local PDF members tried to assassinate them at their house. This time they didn’t survive the multiple gunshots fired at them just outside their house.

On April-10 a Rangoon PDF unit ambushed and killed army major Kuday Phyo Aung the township military administrator of Lan-ma-daw Township in Rangoon City. Another PDF unit then did a drive-by shooting of the housing estate where the families of General Min Aung Hlaing and General Soe Win on exclusive Rangoon’s Inya Avenue.

Only 22 Burmese men applied for more than 2,000 DSA vacancies

Every year the DSA (Defense Services Academy) admitted nearly 2,000 matriculated young men and most of them were from the Burmese stronghold of Mandalay Division of Proper Burma. But this year only 22 candidates applied.

Apparently most hot-blooded young Burmese men willing to fight are now joining the PDF (People Defense Force) to fight against Myanmar Army since the military repression began after the last year February Coup.

Myanmar Army on the verge of collapse is being depleted so far down that most infantry battalions have less than half of their organizational strength. Instead of fighting the ethnic insurgents on the border lands Myanmar Army is now facing its own people and the resulting low moral is causing so many desertions from both officer ranks and ordinary soldiers.

Only 22 applied for 2,000 intake at DSA this year.