A 24-year-old fighter from Myanmar’s pro-democracy People’s Defence Force has said many of those who fight alongside him have switched sides at times in the long-running civil war, with a lack of financial compensation forcing them to temporarily side with a junta-aligned armed group.
The fighter, who identified himself only as Soe, joined the PDF to “regain democracy” after the military coup of February 1, 2021, which ousted the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi.
Formerly a physics major at a university in Yangon, he has taken part in battles in the jungles of southeastern Kayin state as a member of the armed wing of the shadow government formed by Suu Kyi’s party members.
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But Soe said many PDF fighters now “sometimes change into DKBA uniforms”, referring to the Democratic Karen Benevolent Army, an ethnic militia allied with the ruling junta.
Speaking from the border town of Payathonzu in October, he said PDF fighters take part in DKBA operations in exchange for food and money.
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Payathonzu, close to the Thai border and one of the front lines in the conflict, is known as a hub for illegal drug trafficking and human smuggling.