Qualla: Pinlaung Massacre

Pinlaung Massacre: Introduction

Thu, 26 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Thirty-three people stayed behind. When fighting reached Pinlaung Township in Shan State in late February 2023 and more than 5,000 villagers fled the village of Namneng, these thirty-three chose to remain -- the abbot of the local Buddhist monastery, two disciple monks, and thirty lay followers who believed that the monastery's sanctity would protect them. The village emptied around them. Then, on March 11, Myanmar Army troops arrived and occupied the monastery grounds. Within hours, at least thirty of the thirty-three were dead.

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Pinlaung Massacre: The Road to Namneng

Thu, 26 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

The massacre did not emerge from nowhere. On February 1, 2021, the Myanmar Armed Forces overthrew the democratically elected government of the National League for Democracy, triggering nationwide protests that by May had escalated into civil war. Namneng sits in a contested corne...

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Pinlaung Massacre: Sanctuary Violated

Thu, 26 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

In January 2023, the military began indiscriminate airstrikes and shelling across Pinlaung Township, hitting the nearby villages of Nampan and Leinlin. Ground fighting erupted on February 24, sending thousands fleeing. In Namneng, most residents joined the exodus. The thirty-thre...

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Pinlaung Massacre: Denial and Deflection

Thu, 26 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

The junta's response followed a familiar script. On March 13, military spokesman Zaw Min Tun appeared on state-run Myawaddy TV to claim that resistance forces, including the Karenni Nationalities Defence Force, had ambushed military troops and allied Pa-O National Army fighters e...

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Pinlaung Massacre: A Pattern Written Across the Land

Thu, 26 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

The Pinlaung massacre occurred just nine days after the Tar Taing massacre in Sagaing Region, where military forces carried out a similar attack on civilians. It was not an isolated event but part of what the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights described as a scorch...

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