Myanmar’s Military Struggles to Control the Virtual Battlefield Crisis Group Asia Report N°314, 18 May 2021 Page 19 ing charges had been active in private Facebook groups, unaware that informers had infiltrated them and were reporting back to the police.87 These blunt tactics reflect the lack of other options that the military has to respond to such widespread opposition. Although it has acquired a range of tools to disrupt communications, monitor individuals and unlock devices (discussed in further detail in Section V.A), these are largely ineffective in the face of a mass uprising, particularly given the lack of capacity in the security forces to deploy them at scale. Although the internet shutdown has also had a significant impact on businesses and government operations, these are no longer major considerations for the Tatmadaw. The escalating protests and the existential threat they pose to military rule mean that security imperatives – the need to consolidate power and crush all opposition – are now the dominating factor in decision-making in Naypyitaw. Asked about the internet shutdown at a 23 March press conference, Deputy Information Minister Brigadier-General Zaw Min Tun replied that the military had “no plan” to restore internet services: The most fundamental and important task in a country is maintaining the rule of law and stability. Without the rule of law and stability, other activities cannot function. We have found that most of the incitement for the ongoing riots comes from the internet and social media. We will continue to put the restrictions in place for a certain period of time. Driven by this logic, the military will likely prolong the mobile internet outage if opposition to its rule continues – as was the case in Rakhine – or even go further and shut down the last remaining fibre connections. “The reason we’re winning is because we’re still online”, confided a civil society source active on digital rights issues. “But the Tatmadaw controls the kill switch and might use it – even though the collateral damage, economically, will be huge”.88 C. Propaganda Fail on Social Media The Tatmadaw’s difficulties have not been limited to controlling the online space and undermining the ability of its opponents to organise and challenge its authority. It has also lost control of the narrative about what is happening in Myanmar, to the point that it has struggled to even disseminate messages to its own supporters through major social media platforms. In contrast, anti-military activists have used social media highly effectively to reach domestic and international audiences with key messages and campaigns, as well as to raise funds for striking workers and the Committee Representing Pyidaungsu Hluttaw (CRPH), a group of parliamentarians elected in November 2020 who have formed a shadow government in the absence of the deposed NLD leadership. Facebook’s decision to completely remove the Tatmadaw from its platform shortly after the coup was a major blow to the military leadership. Following the brutal campaign against the Rohingya in 2017, the company had banned Myanmar’s commander-in-chief, Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, and removed twenty military87 88 Crisis Group interview, social media monitoring team member, April 2021. Crisis Group interview, civil society member, March 2021.