On 1 February 2021, the Myanmar military seized power and detained the elected government. After that, people across the country peacefully protested against the coup. The military junta violently cracked down on these protests. Many people who experienced these events left their normal lives and jobs and directly joined the armed resistance.

After that, fighting became more intense across the country between resistance groups and the military junta. The impact of the war was not only felt by people involved in the armed resistance, but also affected the daily lives of civilians. Just as people come from different backgrounds, their lives have also changed in different ways during the war. *Portraits of a Dark Era* is a series that documents how people’s lives have changed during the war through their portraits.

Before 2021, I worked as a Software Tester. Since the war began, I have travelled to areas affected by the conflict and started taking news and documentary photographs. During this time, my career also changed. I approached this story from my own situation and photographed portraits of people I met in different areas where I travelled during the war, documenting them as the "Portraits of a Dark Era" series.

Ongoing-project

Since the military coup in 2021, Sagaing division has become one of the new frontlines of Myanmar’s armed resistance. The region hosts both NUG-affiliated battalions and other independent armed groups. Among them, Shwebo District People’s Defense Force Battalion No.12 in Military Zone 1 operates as part of the National Unity Government.

Within this battalion, weapons manufacturing and repair unit has also been established. Formed in November 2021 by privtaes from Mandalay, Yangon, Ayeyarwady, and Sagaing who were passionate about weapons engineering, the unit initially produced 5.56mm Bolt-action rifles and 3D-printed FGC-9 MKII firearms.

Today, the team manufactures drone bombs, hand grenades branded as ‘ANS,’ and magazines for KA rifles manufactured by the Kachin Independence Army (KIA).

Since the military coup in Myanmar in 2021, professionals from various fields, including students, have participated in the civil disobedience movement. On November 21, 2022, six healthcare workers who joined the civil disobedience movement and eight volunteer students established a clinic named Ludu Clinic(Community Health Clinic) using collective funds from 17 villages, including their own village and nearby communities in Sagaing Region, Myanmar.

Ludu Clinic operates as a cost-sharing community clinic, but people who have no income and are working for the revolution do not need to share the cost. The team also conducts free monthly mobile healthcare services in surrounding villages. The local communities support the clinic staff’s livelihood by donating essential food supplies such as rice, oil, and salt.

As the clinic operates in a liberated area, it faces significant challenges, especially in acquiring essential childhood vaccines, which remain unavailable due to the ongoing war in Myanmar.

Mentor by Ta Mwe