On February 18, 2025, the military regime in Myanmar announced the enactment of the Private Security Service Law 2025, which allows foreign companies registered under the Myanmar Companies Law to apply for licenses to establish private security companies. The law grants these companies powers to arrest “offenders” in areas or buildings where they operate and hand them over to regime police. Additionally, private security companies must report any information affecting “state security” to regime police and acquire the necessary technology and equipment to carry out their security roles. The National Defense and Security Council has the power to approve the use of arms by these security companies. This new legislation passed without broad consultation and participation of civil society has sent chills across civil society, highlighting the regime’s increasing desire for control and the potential negative impacts this law will bring on public dissent and civil liberties. The law is likely to create a more hostile environment for civil society, as it empowers foreign-owned private security companies to act as extensions of the regime’s surveillance and enforcement apparatus, ready to stifle freedom of association and of expression.
