According to the DataReportal, Myanmar had 23.65 million internet users as of January 2021 – a 12% increase from 2020. Internet penetration in Myanmar is at 43.3%, and the country had 29 million social media users (53.1% of the total population) as of January 2021 (Datareportal, 2021). With the rise of internet and social media, digital literacy in Myanmar, however, remains low and internet users remain susceptible to hate speech, misinformation, and disinformation (Ridout, et al., 2020). As such, hate speech, misinformation and disinformation are proliferating in Myanmar’s cyberspace. Social media platforms have been widely reported to have amplified false news, rumors, misinformation, and disinformation that have had far-reaching impacts, the amplification of ultra-nationalist sentiment around the time of the Rohingya crisis in Myanmar being one such example. Among others, Facebook is the most widely used social media platform in Myanmar with approximately 28 million users as of January 2021 (NapoleanCat, 2021). Researchers in Myanmar have observed the linkages of the wider reach of Facebook in hate speech and fake news including against Rohingya Muslims (Lee, 2019; Woodring, Kleinberg, Thawnghmung, & Myat The Thitsar, 2020; Nyi Nyi Kyaw, 2019). Facebook in particular has as of yet failed to recognize its responsibility as a publisher and done little to revise the algorithms that promote hateful and offensive posts, over other content. users fighting for FoE, and how they may have changed over time through this historic moment for Myanmar. Young people comprise the majority of the users of social media in Myanmar and tend to be at higher risk as receptors of hate speech, misinformation and disinformation (Ridout, et al., 2020). It has been widely reported that that the Tatmadaw and its allies are running misinformation and hate speech campaigns on social media to manipulate public opinion. Due to the vacuum created by the restrictions on traditional media outlets, rumors and fake news tends to spread swiftly in post-coup Myanmar (Guest, 2021). However, youth in Myanmar have effectively circumvented the state’s control of information and widely disseminated information via various online (and offline) platforms. More importantly, social media has allowed the Civil Disobedience Movement (CDM) to be a nationwide movement, also underscoring the crisis in the international arena. As youth have been at the forefront of the pro-democracy movement, and have thereby played a crucial role in shaping the space for exercising FoE, this report takes a particular interest in youth internet users actively resisting restrictions of FoE, their perceptions on other young internet Chapter 1 of this report includes an introduction and provides the overview of the FoE situation in Myanmar. Chapter 2 provides a brief review of exiting literature on FoE. This chapter puts forward different theoretical and practical arguments. Chapter 3 and 4 provide insights on research process and methods and analysis of findings consecutively. Chapter 5 includes the discussion and recommendation sections of the report. 1 13