It is not just the women fighting and protesting against the Myanmar junta who are suffering, the wives of junta soldiers have also suffered and been subjected to bad treatment.

Many soldiers’ wives live with them on army bases, which leaves them at the mercy of the military authorities and despite not signing up to serve in the army themselves they still have to, like their husbands, obey army officers’ orders.

There might be some advantages to living on an army base. They can often see their husbands, there are other army families to socialise with and their houses are secure.

Unfortunately, there are also many downsides. Firstly, though their houses may be protected by the soldiers in the base, army bases themselves have become targets for anti-junta groups.

Also, if they live on an army base, their entire lives are effectively controlled by the army. They are at the mercy of the military authorities and despite not signing up themselves they still have to, obey army officers’ orders, like soldiers do.

According to Alice May from Spring Revolution News, since August 2021 soldiers’ wives have been forced to attend military training, carry guns and do sentry duty on army bases, even though they are not military personnel.

On some military bases the soldiers’ wives are regarded as a reserve force and they have to take turns on guard duty, day and night.

These changes have been forced on the army because they have allegedly lost so many soldiers. Now, it appears, soldiers’ wives are vital to the army if it wants to have sufficient manpower to function properly.

Apparently, there are far fewer soldiers on bases than the records indicate because instead of recording soldiers who have been killed as dead, officers are claiming they are on leave, which is causing manpower problems.

Captain Lin Htet Aung, who joined the Civil Defence Movement (CDM) movement told Spring Revolution News: “The numbers are really low at the bases because the structure is not full anymore. When the manpower reports are submitted, soldiers who have been killed in action are reported as on leave.”

In an 11 February 2022 interview with Reuters, Captain Kaung Thu Win, who deserted from the Tatmadaw (Burma Army) in Chin State, explaining the situation said: “Their resources are not rapidly depleting because they order soldiers’ wives to guard bases in order to send more men to the frontline.”

On occasion, military wives make their displeasure clear. For instance, according to Spring Revolution News on 13 March, military wives in Karen State held a protest where they publicly cursed junta leader Min Aung Hlaing for causing the deaths and arrests of so many soldiers.

But, most of the time they remain silent because they fear there will be reprisals against their husbands if they speak out publicly.

Despite this, the soldiers’ wives have also faced criticism from those opposed to the junta. There have been cartoons degrading them and people have made social media posts saying that lots will be drawn to see who gets the wives of soldiers who have been killed.

Though many people have suffered human rights abuse at the hands of soldiers acting on orders from Min Aung Hlaing and his generals it is unfair to pick on soldiers’ wives as many are also being abused by the military. But, according to Spring Revolution News, civil society organisations (CSOs) have long ignored the plight of soldier’s wives.

Rather than humiliating soldiers’ wives, junta opponents may achieve better results if they engage and sympathise with them. This might increase the chances of them and their husbands defecting to the anti-junta side. There are risks in defecting and soldiers wives are far less likely to try to persuade or agree to their husbands changing sides if anti-junta supporters are abusing them like the Tatmadaw does.

In the long run it might be better if anti junta supporters showed some sympathy towards soldiers’ wives and their predicament. Doing that, rather than throwing insults at them may be a better way to persuade their husbands to leave the army.

But, it is not just soldiers’ wives who are being forced to take up arms and guard army bases. Soldiers who have lost limbs are not being allowed to leave the army and still have to carry arms and do jobs like sentry duty.

Previously they could have bribed their way out of the army or would have been given a desk job.

According to a serving captain’s wife who spoke to Spring Revolution News: “Now, even the soldiers with missing limbs are not allowed to leave and they are given whatever duties they can perform, to fill whatever spot, like guarding the gate or working in the office. They are not given the chance to leave.”

Soldiers are given a wellness grade. Grade A means they are healthy and have all their limbs. If they are grade B they are missing one limb and if they are grade C they are missing two or more limbs.

But, having one or more limbs amputated no longer means soldiers are excused from duty. According to Captain Lin Htet Aung: “A soldier does not get a lower wellness grade just because he became disabled. You won’t be allowed to leave that easily. If you can move around, you continue serving.”

But it is not just the soldier’s wives who are forced to work for the army. Men are often forcibly conscripted into the army against their will. In a May 2020 interview with the Arakan Army a Tatmadaw (Burma Army) deserter described how he was forced to join the army. He said: “I was forcibly arrested by the recruitment unit when I was sleeping at the station in Mohnyin Town in Kachin State.”

Many soldiers’ wives are currently suffering and are being badly treated by the army. Maybe anti-junta supporters should take a more nuanced view of their situation and instead of abusing and dismissing them instead, they could work on ways of offering the women and their husbands, some of whom were also forced to serve in the army, an exit strategy that allows them to extricate themselves from the Tatmadaw’s clutches.