Tattoo Art as Resistance in Myanmar

By Ranjan Kaul

The recently published Spring Revolution in Myanmar: Songs, Symbols and Tattoos of Resistance by Nandita Haksar has drawn my attention to the creative use of tattoos and other symbols as weapons of resistance in Myanmar and has prompted this article. This captivating book celebrates the spirit of defiance, resilience, and courage of the Burmese people in the face of the military regime’s brutal repression and violence. Besides the socio-political dimensions of the resistance by pro-democracy activists, it dwells on the various cultural forms – poetry, songs, posters, and tattoos – that have been used as weapons of resistance. For those unfamiliar with Myanmar’s recent history, given below is a brief background of the military coup in 2021 and the resistance movement that followed, known as the “Spring Revolution”.

In February 2021, the military commander-in-chief Min Aung Hlaing staged a coup d’état and imposed a state of emergency, arresting the then State Counsellor, Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, and other key government officials. This galvanised the various ethnic groups of Myanmar, the youth, Buddhist monks, and civil society to join forces to oppose the unpopular coup. The protests included marches, civil disobedience movements, a boycott of the military and its economic products, and use of various cultural forms including poetry, songs, posters, and tattoo art. Over the five years since then, from the period 2021 till the present day, the military regime has tried all means to put an end to the resistance movement. However, the people have remained undaunted: the arrest of pro-democracy leaders and execution of poets, artists, musicians, and writers has failed to dampen their spirit. They have launched armed resistance, calling for a democratic federal Myanmar and demanded the release of their leader, Nobel laureate Aung Suu Kyi, from house arrest.

Protest marches and Civil Disobedience Movement (CDM) in Myanmar.

(The top left and bottom two images are courtesy of Aung Nay Myo.)

Recently, to attain a semblance of legitimacy of their authoritarian regime, the military powers held elections in December 2025 and January 2026, the first since the military coup. Expectedly, the military-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) secured a landslide win, given that there were systematic exclusions that made the USDP’s win possible – more than 40 opposition parties were dissolved or barred from contesting the elections, including Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy (NLD), which had swept the 2020 polls.

Myanmar has had a history of military rule, beginning in 1962 when Ne Win seized power in a coup, overthrowing the elected government; the armed forces, known as the Tatmadaw, centralized power and suppressed dissent. A major rupture occurred in 1988 with a nationwide uprising against the military regime. While the protests were brutally crushed, the uprising saw the emergence of Aung San Suu Kyi and the NLD, which won the 1990 elections decisively. However, the military refused to hand over power to Suu Kyi, placing her under house arrest. A partial political opening began around 2011, when the military initiated controlled reforms. Suu Kyi was released, elections held, and the NLD came to power in 2015. However, the military retained key ministries and constitutional authority. In 2016 Myanmar military forces under General Min Aung Hlaing carried out a deadly military campaign in northern Rakhine State on Rohingya Muslims. There were widespread arrests and killings of Rohingya village leaders and individuals, sending hundreds of thousands of Rohingyas fleeing across the border into Bangladesh, and many finding their way to India as well. This highlighted the enduring power of the Tatmadaw even under a civilian government and drew global condemnation. In December 2019, Aung San Suu Kyi appeared before the International Court of Justice, denied genocidal intent against the Rohingya, arguing that the military operations were a counterinsurgency response, while admitting possible excessive force. 

On 1 February 2021, the military, led by Min Aung Hlaing, staged another coup, detaining NLD leaders and declaring emergency rule. This time, the resistance was far more intense: massive civil disobedience movements emerged through peaceful street protests, street art, and flash mobs. The peaceful resistance escalated into armed struggle in some pockets with militias known as the People’s Defence Forces aligning themselves with ethnic armed groups. Parallel governance structures such as the National Unity Government have been formed in exile, claiming democratic legitimacy. Today, the resistance continues, sustained by ongoing collective action.  What is remarkable is that the entire movement has been crowdfunded.

The use of tattoos as protest art emerged strongly as a significant part of the resistance among pro-democracy activists. Tattooing in Myanmar (erstwhile Burma) is not new to Burmese culture – it was a widespread custom practised by various ethnic groups, including the Bamar, Shan, and Karen. Tattoos were distinguishing cultural markers and symbols of strength, courage, and intimidation. These included tattoos of dragons and snakes and symbols seen on gangsters and martial art fighters, such as the Leithwei fighters practising the traditional Burmese “art of nine limbs” (so called because they also use the head butt) too often had tattoos.

Traditional tattoos of Myanmar

In response to the 2021 military coup in Myanmar, tattoo artists sat by the roadside and made free tattoos as a sign of solidarity among citizens opposing military rule. Soon tattoos came to be widely used in street protests and on social media. The most popular is the portrait of Aung San Suu Kyi; other tattoos include the words “Spring Revolution” and “Freedom from Fear” (the famous words spoken by Suu Kyi),  portraits of those who lost their lives in the resistance, and the three-finger salute as a symbol of resistance.

Tattoos with the portrait of Aung San Suu Kyi (All images courtesy of Aung Nay Myo)

Health workers were among the first to use the three-finger salute as a symbol of resistance. The three-finger salute first appeared in Thailand during the 2014 coup and reappeared prominently in the 2020 youth-led protests against military rule and monarchy-linked authoritarianism, symbolizing liberty, equality, and fraternity. Protesters in Hong Kong also adopted it during the 2019-20 pro-democracy demonstrations as a gesture of solidarity and defiance against Beijing’s tightening control. The salute used in the protests was appropriated from The Hunger Games novel series by Suzanne Collins (and its later film adaptations). In the series, citizens of a particular district raise three fingers as a silent gesture of respect, gratitude, and rebellion against the authoritarian Capitol. The simple and silent gesture, being difficult to suppress, makes it a potent visual emblem of collective dissent.

Tattoos with the word နွေဦးတော်လှန်ရေ which in English translation means “Spring Revolution” (bottom four images are courtesy of Aung Any Myo)

A “Freedom Tattoo Campaign” was launched to commemorate the death of the celebrated Myanmar kickboxer (a Leithwei fighter) Htoo Htoo Aung, popularly known as Too Too, who likely died under torture in prison in 2021 after being detained by the military authorities following the coup. About two years ago, Kim Aris, Suu Kyi’s son living in exile, shared a video as part of a campaign for humanitarian aid for the displaced millions after the 2021 coup. In the video he refers to Too Too (who wore tattoos) and talks about taking forward the tattoo campaign and shows his arms tattooed with the image of the mythical naga snake.

Screen shot of a tattoo displayed by Dannian Kim Arundel Aris,

Aung San Suu Kyi’s son, in a YouTube video he released two years ago. 

Aung Nay Myo, a photojournalist and pro-democracy activist, was among the many who decided to get his back tattooed. Haksar’s book includes a detailed description of the tattoos in Nay Myo’s own words (in English translation), done by the famous tattoo artist Chin Ley, a graduate of the Mandalay Fine Art Academy and an active member of the Spring Revolution.

Spreading across Nay Myo’s shoulders are tattooed the words SPRING REVOLUTION, with stars below to represent the fallen martyrs. The tattoo on the left shoulder is the portrait of the popular musician and songwriter Phyo Zeya Thaw, a founding member of Generation Wave, a youth movement, who sang songs about the hardships of the Burmese people. He was arrested along with other pro-democracy activists.

Tattoo on the full back of Aung Nay Myo

Detail of Aung Nay Myo’s tattoo 

Another tattoo detail: Aung Nay Myo (right) facing his friend Wai Moe Naing, currently in prison 

Below the figure of Zeya Thaw is a smaller figure of a young woman, Kyal Sin, known as Angel, who was shot in the head by a sniper. Minutes before she was shot, she kicked open a water pipe so that protesters could wash tear gas from their eyes. Opposite Angel is the figure of Dr Tayzar San, who led the first anti-military junta protests in Mandalay.

Facing Zeya Thaw is Thinzar Hein, a nursing student, giving a speech into a microphone. She was shot and killed while attending to the injured protesters. Between these two women is the map of Myanmar, and below that is Aung San Suu Kyi, with the three-finger salute. There is also a tattoo of Nay Myo facing his close friend Wai Moe, a Muslim.

On Myo’s right shoulder we see the tattoo of Ko Kyaw Min Yu, better known as Ko Jimmy, who spent many years in jail, writing books.  The tattoo on his lower back reads, “Fuck Military Rule 1/2/2021”. There are other smaller tattoos, including that of a child, of people holding placards, and activists being arrested. Each of these tattoos, Myo explains, represents a milestone in the movement and his own permanent commitment to the cause. He says he plans to tattoo his entire body to represent future milestones.

Since 1962, Myanmar’s story has been not one of passive subjugation but of continuous resistance. From students and monks to digital activists and armed civilian groups, each generation has adopted varied methods of protest. The military’s grip has remained powerful, but so too has the population’s enduring refusal to accept permanent authoritarian rule. While the resistance movement has made considerable progress, it has a long way to go before democracy can be restored in this strife-torn land. Aung San Suu Kyi is now 80 years old and the country is in dire straits, which was compounded by a devastating earthquake in March 2025, and is in desperate need for humanitarian aid, There is need for reconciliation among all ethnic groups and religious minorities, and resolution of other pressing issues before the people can see a true democracy in Myanmar.

(Images of tattoos provided by Aung Nay Myo of his back included in the article are ©copyright Aung Nay Myo and may not be reproduced without permission.)

REFERENCES

“Aung San Suu Kyi tattoos flourish among Myanmar’s Resistance,” The Guardian, 24 Feb. 2021.

Nandita Haksar, Spring Revolution in Myanmar: Songs, Symbols and Tattoos of Resistance, Aakar Books, Delhi, 2026.

Nathalie Johnston, “The Artists Fighting for a Different Future in Myanmar,” www.frieze.com, 19 Feb. 2021. 

Robert Narai, “Myanmar’s Spring Revolution February 2021,” www.redflag.org.au, 27 Feb. 2021

Suyin Haynes, “Myanmar Artists Captured the Spirit of Resistance”, Time, 23 Jun. 2021.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The description of the tattoo on the back of Aung Nay Myo’s back is drawn from Haksar’s book, Spring Revolution in Myanmar, where it is given in his own words. I strongly recommend readers who would like more information on the Spring Revolution to read the book. 

I’m highly indebted to Nandita Haksar for introducing me to Aung Nay Myo, who readily sourced for me many of the images included in this article. Thank you Myo!

A few of the images included in this article have been sourced from social media and the net; while it has not been possible to trace the copyright holders, these will be credited once the original sources are brought to our notice.

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Ranjan Kaul is a visual artist, art writer and critic, curator, published fiction author, and Founding Partner of artamour. His works may be viewed on www.ranjankaul.com and his Instagram handle @ranjan_creates.

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