The Forgotten People: Myanmar Nagas in Crisis
Among Myanmar’s 135 officially recognised ethnic groups, the Naga people remain one of the most underdeveloped and marginalised.
Published on May 30, 2025
By EMN
- 1. Coup d’état as Apocalypse: The Collapse
of Stability
- Among
Myanmar’s 135 officially recognised ethnic groups, the Naga people remain one
of the most underdeveloped and marginalised. Located primarily in the country’s
northwestern frontier, the Naga communities have long faced chronic neglect in
key sectors such as education, healthcare, economic development and
infrastructure. The military coup in 2021 further deepened their struggles,
creating what many describe as an existential crisis, a turning point akin to
an apocalypse for the Naga people. In the wake of the coup, many Naga youth
were forced to flee their homes, driven by fear of persecution, economic
collapse and more recently, the enforcement of the military conscription law.
-
- 2. Conscription as Nightmare: A Generation
on the Run
- Introduced
as a means to bolster the junta’s manpower, this conscription policy has become
a nightmare for young people across Myanmar, particularly for those in already
vulnerable communities like the Nagas. Students and young adults now face a
dire choice: serve in a brutal regime or flee into uncertainty. The majority of
those who flee leave without passports or any form of legal documentation.
- These
displaced youths, many of whom are students, have taken shelter in countries
like India, Thailand, Malaysia and Laos, Oman, the United Arab Emirates (UAE),
Saudi Arabia, and Iraq. Young Naga women also seek employment in West Asian
countries, including Oman, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Saudi Arabia, and
Iraq. While these nations offer labour opportunities, they pose profound
cultural, legal, and ethical challenges, especially for young women. They often
take up jobs as domestic workers in these countries.
- The
cultural and religious environments are starkly different from what they are
familiar with: conservative norms, gender expectations and language barriers
make them vulnerable. They face the risk of exploitation, abuse, isolation and
even trafficking. In some reported cases, these young women have endured harsh
working conditions without legal protection. Meanwhile, young Naga men take up
low-paying and physically demanding jobs in construction, agriculture and other
labour-intensive sectors in neighbouring countries such as India, Thailand,
Malaysia and Laos. Like their female counterparts, they are trapped in a cycle
of economic exploitation, limited mobility and constant fear of arrest or
deportation.
- The
recent amendments to Myanmar’s military conscription law have worsened this
situation. Under the new provisions, individuals who fail to comply with
conscription orders face up to three years in prison. This law has effectively
barred many young people including Naga students from Myanmar from obtaining
essential legal documents. As a result, they are unable to apply for admission
to colleges or universities abroad where such documents are mandatory. The
situation is further exacerbated by the lack of advocacy and institutional
support to help them navigate these barriers. Even international scholarship
programs designed for Burmese students are now out of reach for many Naga youth
due to their undocumented status.
-
- 3. Future Denied: The Cost of Neglect in
Education
- The
lack of civil society structures to support secular education in the Naga
community is a serious concern. While churches and religious associations offer
some assistance, this support is largely limited to theological education.
Unlike other ethnic communities in Myanmar, Nagas do not have NGOs or advocacy
groups dedicated to supporting students access to higher education. As a
result, the younger generation is left without guidance and mentorship to
pursue academic goals.
- What
future lies ahead for a community whose youth are deprived of education,
uprooted from their homeland and scattered across borders without legal
protection? Can a nation progress if its next generation is forced to choose
between survival and schooling? The answer is as clear as it is painful: No.
Education is the cornerstone of empowerment, dignity and progress. Denying it
means sentencing a people to continued marginalisation and erasure. Without
strategic investment in education and human capital, the Naga people in Myanmar
will remain trapped in a cycle of poverty, exploitation and voicelessness. But
with support, they can become powerful agents of change not just for their own
communities, but for a more inclusive and equitable future for Myanmar as a
whole.
-
- Chan Seth
- BA 6th Semester,
International Relations
- North East
Christian University
- Dimapur,
Nagaland
