A new report by International Crisis Group, Breaking Gender and Age Barriers amid Myanmar’s Spring Revolution, focuses on the role youth, particularly young women, have played in the Spring Revolution and what roles they will play in Myanmar’s future.

According to Crisis Group, the Spring Revolution has galvanised the youth.

Young people, particularly young women, have been visible and important contributors to the anti-military resistance, challenging age and gender norms in patriarchal Myanmar society. Yet two years after the coup they remain largely excluded from formal political power, and their role in the opposition movement often goes unacknowledged.

Because older men have traditionally dominated Myanmar politics, Aung San Suu Kyi being a notable exception, policy priorities have become skewed to the detriment of women and the youth. The outcome of Myanmar’s post-coup crisis is uncertain, but changing norms within the anti-military resistance may well shape politics and society more broadly.

Crisis Group says that the National Unity Government (NUG) in exile should move beyond tokenism to genuinely include women and youth from diverse backgrounds in decision-making to build its credibility and break down patriarchal barriers. Donors should increase support for women- and youth-led organisations, while anti-regime armed groups should review the gendered way they assign recruits.

The International Crisis Group is “an independent organisation working to prevent wars and shape policies that will build a more peaceful world.”