Mizzima-Sept 20
Human rights defenders in Myanmar bravely face burnout, trauma, fear, and self-censorship amid conflict, surveillance, criminalization, and displacement, according to Human Rights Myanmar. This submission to a UN process argues that psychological harm is not only a consequence of repression but also a mechanism that weakens civic space, collective action, and the long-term sustainability of human rights movements.
This submission to the UN Special Rapporteur’s report on the mental health and psychosocial well-being of human rights defenders (HRDs) documents the experiences of HRDs in Myanmar since the 2021 military coup. HRDs, including journalists, women HRDs, community leaders, lawyers, and civil society actors, operate amidst armed conflict, military rule, mass surveillance, and widespread attacks on civic space. Their mental health and psychosocial well-being are shaped not only by direct threats, violence, and arbitrary detention, but also by the cumulative effects of displacement, digital repression, family separation, and continued exposure to human rights violations. Myanmar demonstrates how psychological harms such as fear, hypervigilance, burnout, and self-censorship can affect both individual HRDs and the wider human rights movement, weakening civic participation and collective action. Many HRDs have experienced threats, arrest, forced relocation, loss of livelihood, or separation from family members while continuing to document abuses and advocate for accountability. The cumulative effect of these experiences generate significant psychosocial strain. Unlike contexts where trauma is linked to a past event, many HRDs in Myanmar experience what may be understood as continuous traumatic stress. Human rights work is frequently conducted amidst ongoing insecurity, military operations, displacement, and threats of arrest, leaving few opportunities for recovery. HRDs often continue working under the same conditions that generate their stress and trauma.
Read more at: https://eng.mizzima.com/2026/09/20/38730
