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Freedom of Expression During Myanmar’s Revolution: The Gap Between Legal Provisions and Practice A journalist from Sagaing region said, “Local people are reluctant to show their faces when we want to produce video reports. They’re worried that soldiers from the military regime would recognize their faces and arrest them when they go to cities such as Monywa or Mandalay from their villages. Even when they have personally experienced incidents such as airstrikes, they are afraid to reveal their names and show their faces.”23 Local people engage in self-censorship for “personal security”, which involves not only staying safe in their local area but also ensuring their safety when travelling through nearby military regime–controlled areas. 5.3.3 Gaps between Legal Frameworks and On-the-Ground Practice Although freedom of expression is formally recognised in law, a defining characteristic of the Sagaing Region in its implementation and protection is the highly fragmented command-and-control structure. According to information from focus group discussions and research interviews, governance in Sagaing Region operates through a dispersed arrangement in which authority is shared based on location, among People’s Defence Force (PDF) battalions under the National Unity Government’s Ministry of Defence, locally armed groups outside the command chain of the Ministry, members of People’s Administration Bodies, People’s Defence Forces, village administrators, and other local authorities. As a result, restrictions on and protections of freedom of expression vary from one area to another. For example, a Sagaing-based journalist who participated in the research interviews noted that the permission process for the approval of gathering news differs depending on the level of authority. He said, “When we want to gather news in the village, we have to ask permission from the village administrator. If we want to report on military units, we have to obtain permission from the battalion commanders.”24 23 24 A journalist from Sagaing Region A journalist from Sagaing Region 24

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Freedom of Expression During Myanmar’s Revolution : The Gap Between Legal Provisions and Practice

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Burmese
English

Topic

Information Operation
Military Coup

Author(s)

Athan

Date Published: Feb 17, 2026

Abstract: he military coup of 1 February 2021 marked a major turning point in Myanmar’s political and legal history. The military’s seizure of power constituted a blatant violation of Articles 417 and 4181 of the 2008 Constitution, which was in force at the time, with those entrusted with safeguarding the law instead breaching it. Consequently, on 31 March 2021, the Committee Representing the Pyidaungsu Hluttaw (CRPH)2 formally declared the complete abolition of the 2008 Constitution through Announcement No. 2/2021.

This decision also legally invalidated the military regime’s narrative that the 2021 coup was carried out in accordance with the Constitution. However, it simultaneously created a constitutional vacuum at the national level, leaving Myanmar without a governing constitution. To prevent the collapse of the rule of law and administrative mechanisms, and to establish the legal legitimacy of the revolution, it became urgently necessary to fill this vacuum.

In response to this need, revolutionary forces that emerged following the military coup issued the Federal Democracy Charter (FDC) on 31 March 2021. The Charter assumed the character of an interim constitutional framework, replacing the 2008 Constitution and serving as the highest legal framework during the revolutionary period. From 2023 onwards, revolutionary territories across Myanmar also began drafting and promulgating their own interim political arrangements. These developments began with the Interim Arrangements for Karenni State, followed by the Chinland Constitution, the Sagaing Federal Unit Interim Constitution, and the Mandalay Region Interim Political Plan, respectively.

These interim constitutional frameworks not only filled the legal gap left by the abolition of the 2008 Constitution, but also served as a foundational basis for establishing the legitimacy of the revolutionary forces and for building a future federal state. In particular, they function as a social contract between those who govern and those who are governed, aimed at protecting citizens’ rights.

Douglass C. North, a Nobel Prize–winning institutional economist, argues in his institutional theory3 that the principles applied in establishing a state’s foundational institutions play a decisive role in shaping its future political order. Accordingly, it becomes essential to examine how freedom of expression—one of the fundamental requirements of a democratic system—is incorporated into these foundational frameworks and the extent to which it is guaranteed, as they can serve as the critical veins of future federal units.

This study is a comparative analysis of how freedom of expression is placed in the Federal Democracy Charter and the interim legal frameworks enacted by three key revolutionary areas—Karenni State, Sagaing Region, and Mandalay Region—that emerged following the collapse of the 2008 Constitution. It comparatively examines how freedom of expression is addressed in papers and how it is practiced on the ground. This study furthermore identifies gaps between legal provisions and practical implementation, security-based restrictions, and self-censorship among the public.

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Freedom of Expression During Myanmar’s Revolution : The Gap Between Legal Provisions and Practice

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