Big Brother Is Getting a Facial Upgrade in Myanmar
What’s Going On?
Since that brutal February 2021 coup, the junta has been quietly sprouting new camera networks everywhere – like a constellation of uneventful drones. But this time they’re not just any cameras; they’re Chinese-made, face‑recognizing beasts that can apparently snap alibis out of you in a blink.
Numbers That’ll Make Your Head Spin
- Five city projects launched by the coup regime, including the hustle‑and‑bust of Mawlamyine, Myanmar’s fourth‑largest metropolis.
- Meanwhile, the pre‑coup government (led by Aung San Suu Kyi) had already set up or made plans for camera setups in another five cities, using the same “crime‑prevention” rhetoric.
- Now the junta is eyeing every state and region – that’s seven states and seven regions across the country – for future surveillance rollouts.
Who’s Actually Dragging the Cables?
The tender hunting has gone to local procurement firms, namely:
- Fisca Security & Communication – based in Yangon.
- Naung Yoe Technologies Co – also Yangon‑based.
These guys are in cahoots with the big names from China: Zhejiang Dahua Technology, Huawei Technologies, and Hikvision. The cameras and tech are coming from the same factories that build surveillance for Shenzhen and beyond.
About the Face‑Recognition Side:
While the giant Chinese tech firms say they haven’t sold the facial‑recognition tech directly to Myanmar’s government, the procurement teams sometimes license the software from local or regional companies. That way, they avoid the pricey Chinese licences and still get the creepy “identification” feature.
Where Are the Voices? Silence All Around
If you called a junta spokesman or any of the ten municipal governments for a statement, you’d hear a wall of silence. Same goes for the tech giants – no responses from Huawei, Dahua, or Hikvision. Hikvision, however, shrugged on a statement that it only sells through distributors and integrators, never directly to the junta.
Bottom Line
It turns out the silent “city‑safety” propaganda is actually a sobering invasion of privacy, with the junta quietly tightening its grip on every corner of Myanmar. And if you worry about your face being scanned on your way to the market, just remember: somewhere in the country, a camera is already eyeing you.
Surveillance concerns
Surveillance Blooper: Why Myanmar Needs a New Privacy Bump
In cities all over the globe, CCTV cameras have become the digital bouncers that keep unwanted parties out. They’re the great deterrents that whisper, “You’re not escaping anymore!” Marketers and law‑enforcement agencies alike have been piling on facial‑recognition tech to make sure those bouncers are a little smarter, a little faster, and an entire lot more creepy. In the US, this tech is creeping into police pallets, while in Chinese metropolises, AIs are hunting in real time, match‑making faces against a massive image database.
Is the Watchful Eye Too Much of an Eye?
Human rights advocates and insiders who’ve seen what Myanmar’s junta is up to are raising an alarm: the new CCTV & facial‑recognition combo could turn a public safety tool into a lesson for political dissenters. The junta may brand activists and resistance groups as “terrorists,” and the cameras might just make it easier to track them.
What the Calm Front Really Looks Like
Phil Robertson, Deputy Asia Director at Human Rights Watch, said to Reuters:
- “Surveillance cameras pose a serious risk to Myanmar’s democracy activists because the military and police can use them to track movements, map out who’s who, sniff out safe houses, and intercept every car or motorcycle that might be used by activists.”
Meanwhile, the army’s “information combat” units have stretched into telecommunications and internet providers, installing spyware to listen in on every conversation a citizen has. The whole thing feels like a sprawling polka dot of paranoia.
Inside the Control Rooms
Reports suggest that the army houses a dedicated squad of officers analyzing CCTV footage day and night. Nyi Thuta, a former captain who defected in February 2021, claims he saw soldiers swatting through live feeds in Naypyidaw’s main control rooms. How many officers are grinding the gears behind those monitors? We don’t know.
Sadly, the junta’s spokesperson never responded to a request for comment, so the dust still lingers over what is really happening.
Ten cities
Mytanians Turning Their Towns into Spy‑Studios—After the Coup
Shortly after the military takeover, the bustling city of Mawlamyine started a bidding war for a camera surveillance system. It’s a story that has you wondering if the locals were flirting with the cameras or if the cameras were flirting with the locals.
Who Won the Bid?
Fisca and Naung Yoe were the dynamic duo that slapped the winning price tag on Mawlamyine’s tender—two sources confirmed. In the following months, Taunggyi and Dawei followed suit, picking the same winning partner, Fisca, and each claimed to have hundreds of Dahua cameras sprouting like lettuce on their streets.
Mawlamyine’s Camera Blitz
- Over 200 Dahua cameras are already buzzing.
- More will arrive soon—because who doesn’t like an eye on every corner?
Beyond Mawlamyine
- Myitkyina, the chaotic capital of Kachin, got a fresh batch of Dahua cameras this year.
- Hpa‑an’s administration is already brainstorming a new camera system.
- Before the coup, the old government had already set up CCTV in Naypyidaw and Yangon. Mandalay even signed on with Huawei.
The Big Names in the Tech Game
In Naypyidaw, the cameras are jacked into facial‑recognition software—so watch out if you’re wearing sunglasses! Yangon got a mix of brands, including a Hikvision traffic command centre to keep the highway rats in line.
The Junta’s Push for “Quick Action”
Since the coup, the military has nudged Mandalay—a city of at least 300 Huawei cameras already installed—to speed things up. More cameras are on the way, so the town’s residents might now be taller than the cameras.
Other Cities? Oh, Yeah
- Bagan, the ancient tourist hotspot, held a tender before the coup.
- In Rakhine, the security forces have been deploying Huawei CCTV gear in Sittwe and nearby villages since 2019.
So, in short: Myanmar’s got more cameras than a movie set, and if you’re wondering why every corner looks watched, the answer is simple—no one wants to be left out in the dark anymore.
