Toward a Just Society: Myanmar’s Legal System Being Redrawn in Liberated Zones

or decades, Myanmar’s legal system has been used as a tool of repression by those who control it – first by colonial powers and then successive military juntas. Since the 2021 military coup, resistance to military rule is stronger than ever. In response, the number of political prisoners detained by the military has surpassed the previous decades of military rule combined. My organization, the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP), has recorded that since 2021, 28,526 political prisoners have been arrested, while 21,792 remain incarcerated. These numbers are likely to be much higher on the ground.