Exploiting Ethnic Conflicts in Attempt to Consolidate Military Control 5. Conclusion Ethnic and religious conflicts have been plaguing Myanmar for decades and the junta constantly monitor ethnic and religious tensions in order to exploit them in advancing their interests and consolidating their centralized control. Spring revolution forces4 should develop concrete policies and comprehensive roadmaps to avoid committing ethnicity-based oppressions, to reduce animosity between ethnic groups, and to prevent ethnic conflicts and violation of human rights norms. Even if precautionary measures were in place, an individual from an ethnic group or an organization could violate human rights norms. In this scenario, relevant stakeholders should coordinate on conducting unbiased investigations and apprehending the culprit. However, it should be noted that portraying an individual's wrongdoing as the misdeed of the whole ethnic group could lead to ethnic conflicts. Similarly, collaborators with the military junta – whether they do so due to coercion or voluntarily – should not be depicted as representatives of their whole ethnic group. Moreover, leaders of revolutionary forces should keep in mind that what they post or write on social media could be interpreted as rules of engagement by their subordinates. Instead of expressing an individual view on social media, a response should be made only after holding inter-group negotiations and forming a consensus on what to do. After losing a significant amount of territory, the junta denigrated actions of revolutionary forces and highlighted their role in national politics in a positive light. In addition to tensions existing between Burmans and other ethnic groups, ethnic groups around the country also occasionally disagree, collide, and clash with one another. The best way to solve this kind of issue is by holding frequent transparent dialogues among stakeholders, taking an extensive amount of time. Incitement could not only inflame the existing animosities but also amplify the conflict. It cannot be concluded that a centralized political system imposed by the military could lessen ethnic conflicts, subsequently stabilizing the country. 4 Spring revolution forces include those who has taken part in the revolution since before the 2021 military coup and continue to do so after the coup, organizations and individuals participating in various sectors in the Spring revolution. 32