how to help myanmar?

More than 600 people have been killed in Myanmar since the country's military announced it would be taking over for at least a year more than two months ago on February 1.

Military security forces continue to escalate the violence, opening fire at protesters as the death toll grows each day. Dozens of children have been murdered — some in their own homes — and the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners estimates more than 2,000 have been detained.

Yet anti-coup protests and demonstrations persist, as Burmese people throughout the country stage acts of civil disobedience and risk their lives opposing the newfound, but not unfamiliar, military rule.

Even before the pandemic and subsequent coup, Myanmar was a country in poverty, working its way toward quasi-democracy after a 2011 transition from military control to free elections.

But February's coup and the resulting unrest have left the country in chaos and its people in danger.

Here are five ways you can help support those on the ground in Myanmar right now.

The Committee Representing Pyidaungsu Hluttaw is the country's democratically elected legislature, currently in exile since the coup. This GoFundMe account is run by the Citizen of Burma Award Organization and aims to support the growing civil disobedience movement in the country and abolish the junta dictatorship.

Funds donated to the Civil Disobedience Movement go directly toward supporting protesters on the ground in Myanmar who are taking part in acts of civil disobedience.

There is a multitude of international humanitarian relief and aid organizations that provide both long-term stabilizing support as well as immediate assistance around the world.

Here are a few that are dedicating assistance to the crises in Myanmar:

The International Rescue Committee first began working in Myanmar in 2008 in response to a natural disaster. Since then the organization has partnered with local aid organizations, providing health care, water and sanitation services, career training, and support for community development projects.

Doctors without Borders, the French international, non-governmental, medical organization works in conflict zones to provide life-saving health care to those in need. The group was running projects throughout Myanmar prior to the coup and pandemic, specifically targeting those in hard-to-reach communities and people affected by interethnic displacements and violence.

Save the Children directs targeted assistance toward children living in difficult conditions around the globe. The organization was already involved in Myanmar before 2021, but it has become an outspoken voice against the violence and unrest that has led to more than 40 children's deaths since the coup.

The US government has already imposed some sanctions on Myanmar in response to the military coup, but activists are calling for more action from the international community.

Social justice groups like Chin Leaders of Tomorrow and International Campaign for the Rohingya have numerous letter campaigns organized through The Action Network, which will send a letter to your senator or representative demanding their help in supporting the fight for democracy in Myanmar, whether that's through co-sponsoring legislation or imposing more sanctions.

Some of the non-profit organizations also accept donations.

Myanmar Now is an independent news outlet in the country, reporting tirelessly on the violence from the scene. The outlet's first-hand reporting has been instrumental in accurately conveying the realities of the coup.

Myanmar Now is asking for donations in order to help fund journalists' salaries and support the outlet's independent reporting.

If you don't have the funds to make monetary donations, getting active on social media is one way to help raise awareness of the coup and violence in Myanmar. Instagram pages like @chinyouthtalk and @standnow run social media awareness campaigns and collect donations on their pages.

Justice for Myanmar's verified Facebook page posts updates on online petitions, social media campaigns, and ways to help protesters.

On Twitter, @cvdom2021 provides important updates on the violence and deaths in the country each day.

Burmese people and supporters of the pro-democracy movement have found a variety of unique ways to show their support to those fighting the cause on the ground.

San Wai Oo, a Bay Area senior director of engineering who grew up in Myanmar, told Insider he's pledged to donate half his salary to the cause in Myanmar after being inspired by the generosity of those on the ground who continue to donate to the movement, despite having very little.

"I see street vendors giving away free food to protestors and people who participate in the Civil Disobedience Movement. I know the struggle that they have, how poor they are, and yet, they donate," Oo said. "And I think 'oh my goodness, why am I even hesitating to do that?'"

A university student is selling her handwritten poems and donating the proceeds to The Committee Representing Pyidaungsu Hluttaw. Another young artist is donating 100% of the proceeds on sales of her paintings and 3D printings to those on the ground in Myanmar.

There is no end in sight.

Myanmar’s future will be determined largely by what happens inside the country, but the international response matters and could be critical in the runup to rigged elections next year that the junta hopes will legitimize its rule. During that period, one can expect the Myanmar military to continue trying to cow the population into submission with indiscriminate violence and terror while it prosecutes — if not murders — its political opponents. The National Unity Government (NUG) and the diverse Myanmar resistance, in turn, will no doubt continue their struggle, hoping to win more international support and sufficiently weaken the junta so that it looks for an exit.

On balance, the net impact of the international community’s efforts to date has been neutral.  The substance of China, India and Russia’s support for the junta, including arms, has balanced the rhetoric, moral outrage toward the junta and public support of much of the rest of the world for the Myanmar people. If this trend continues, it is possible, if not probable, that the regime will succeed in using next year’s sham elections to gain some international legitimacy, likely extending its reign of brutality. Either way, the Myanmar people will continue to suffer and ask why the world — particularly the West — is so willing to help Ukraine but not assist them against a force that is every bit as brutal and evil as Putin’s invading army.

It is time for the West, led by the United States and ideally joined by at least a few ASEAN members disgusted by the junta’s behavior, to step up its contribution with the express goal of helping the resistance movement prevail.

The effort needs to start with a clear analysis and understanding of the situation inside the country. This is not a typical power struggle between two rival political communities. It is a national uprising against a hated, corrupt and bloodthirsty military that has waged war against ethnic minority communities for decades, committed genocide against the Rohingya population, and is now operating with a brutality and cruelty not seen in Southeast Asia since the Khmer Rouge.

ASEAN’s five-point consensus to promote dialogue and end the violence was doomed because it failed to reflect this reality. There was never any chance that the military would stop committing violence against the people, nor was there ever any hope that the ASEAN special envoy (or anyone else) would persuade General Min Aung Hlaing and his compatriots to be reasonable. It was impossible even to imagine a dialogue producing a political compromise that would be acceptable to the Myanmar people, until and unless the military felt under such duress that it was compelled to make dramatic concessions. The junta’s decision to execute four opposition actors on July 25 — explicitly rejecting ASEAN’s pleas — should make it crystal clear to all concerned that after 15 months of failure, the ASEAN five-point consensus is dead and should be given a proper burial

The only way for Myanmar to emerge from this crisis with any hope of peace and stability is for the military to be forced out of power, or at least forced into a position of such weakness that it seeks a face-saving departure from power to preserve itself. There is no other path. The military’s bogus elections planned for 2023 aim only to transform Myanmar into a single-party state, or what the junta refers to as “disciplined democracy.”

Those members of the international community who care about the Myanmar people — or at least want to see the country return to stability and the hope of progress — need to step back, rethink their approach and pursue much bolder policies that increase the resistance’s chance of success. Specifically, they should consider the following:

• Donate directly to a local organization on the ground in Myanmar.
• Donate to a humanitarian aid organization providing assistance in Myanmar.
• Contact your representatives.
• Support local journalism.
• Educate yourself and others on social media.