The Myanmar Police Force ( my, မြန်မာနိုင်ငံ ရဲတပ်ဖွဲ့), formerly the People's Police Force (), is the law enforcement agency of

Myanmar Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John C. Wells, Joh ...

. It was established in 1964 as an independent department under the

Ministry of Home Affairs An interior ministry (sometimes called a ministry of internal affairs or ministry of home affairs) is a government department that is responsible for internal affairs. Lists of current ministries of internal affairs Named "ministry" * Ministry ...

History

The Police Force in Myanmar have an extensive history; the police force also includes local police and regional police in different jurisdictions.

British rule in Myanmar

The ''Indian Imperial Police'' was the primary law enforcement in Burma until 1937, when it was split from British India. In 1872 the third mayor of

Mergui District Myeik (, or ; mnw, ဗိက်, ; th, มะริด, , ; formerly Mergui, ) is a rural city in Tanintharyi Region in Myanmar (Burma), located in the extreme south of the country on the coast off an island on the Andaman Sea. , the estimate ...

, Sir

Ashly Din Ashly Audio is an American audio equipment company founded by Bill Thompson and Dave Malloy in 1974. Ashly produces over 40 products, including amplifiers, mixers, equalizers, digital and analog audio processors, for the recording and live sou ...

(1870–1875) assigned the first police officer to be stationed at

Maliwan Maliwan ( my, မလိဝမ်း; th, มะลิวัลย์; ) is a village in Kawthaung Township in southern Myanmar near the border with Thailand. It was settled by Chinese and Thai people. The area is known for its hot springs and wate ...

, a village 24 miles north of current Victoria Point. Perhaps the most famous policeman in Burma from this period is the author

George Orwell Eric Arthur Blair (25 June 1903 – 21 January 1950), better known by his pen name George Orwell, was an English novelist, essayist, journalist, and critic. His work is characterised by lucid prose, social criticism, opposition to totalitar ...

, who in 1922 joined the

Indian Imperial Police The Indian Imperial Police, referred to variously as the Imperial Police or simply the Indian Police or, by 1905, Imperial Police, was part of the Indian Police Services, the uniform system of police administration in British Raj, as established by ...

in Burma.

Post-independence (1948–present)

Myanmar police in Bahan Township (Aung Naing Soe-VOA)

On 16 March 1988 following the killing of two students during the pro-democracy demonstrations,

student A student is a person enrolled in a school or other educational institution. In the United Kingdom and most commonwealth countries, a "student" attends a secondary school or higher (e.g., college or university); those in primary or elementar ...

s marching on Prome Road were confronted near

Inya Lake Inya Lake ( my, အင်းလျားကန်, ''ʔīnyā kǎn'' ; formerly, Lake Victoria) is the largest lake in Yangon, Burma (Myanmar), a popular recreational area for Yangonites, and a famous location for romance in popular culture. Locat ...

by the security force riot police and many beaten to death or drowned. The national police are made up of several smaller entities, including * Myanmar Railways Police * Intelligence division

Organisation

The current

director general A director general or director-general (plural: ''directors general'', ''directors-general'', ''director generals'' or ''director-generals'' ) or general director is a senior executive (government), executive officer, often the chief executive offi ...

of Myanmar Police Force is Major General Zin Min Htet with its headquarters in Naypyidaw. Its command structure is based on established civil jurisdictions. Under the command of police headquarters, state and region police forces have been established in respective territories of states and divisions with headquarters in their capital cities.

State and division police forces

There are 14 state and divisional police forces and three additional state/division police forces commanded by police brigadiers or colonels. Their jurisdictions are divided according to the Civil Administration. The states and divisions, additional states have the same status. Each state and divisional police force consist of four components. * Office of the Commander of the State and Divisional Police Force * Office of the Commander of the District Police Force * Office of the Commander of the Township Police Force * Police Stations In previous time, the district police forces are classified into two classes depending on the area, population and development, namely A and B Class. Commanders of the A Class District Police Forces are police

lieutenant colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

s, and B Classes are police

major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

s, but there is no classification and all districts assigned with lieutenant colonel. Commanders of township police forces are police

s, and police station officers are police

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

Special Departments

There are four Special Departments, in which the first ten departments are headed by the police brigadier generals and the remaining two are by police colonels. * Security Police Force * Border Guard Police Force * Special Intelligence Department (Special Branch) * Criminal Investigation Department (CID) * Railways Police Department * Anti-human Trafficking Police Force * Maritime Police force * Aviation Police Force * Drug Enforcement Division * Financial Investigation force * Myanmar Traffic Police * Tourist Security Police Force * Oil Field Security Police Force * Forestry Security Police Force * Highway Police Force * Municipal Police Department

Training Centres

There are three main Training Centers, one Central Training Institute of Myanmar Police Force and Three Police Training Depots. The State and Divisional Police Forces have their own training centres for refresher courses and Junior Leader ( NCO) Courses. Bachelor's degree holders from Distance Learning University were disqualified from sitting the SIP exam. Thus vast numbers of Bachelor holding police personal were concerned for their future.

No. 1 Police Training Depot

The No.1 Police Training Depot is commanded by a Police

Lieutenant Colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

and undertakes:

No. 2 Police Training Depot

The No.2 Police Training Depot is also commanded by a Police Lieutenant Colonel, and undertakes only Basic Training Course for Constables, which normally takes around 6 months to complete.

Taung Lay Lone Police Training Depot

The Taung Lay Lone Police Training Depot is commanded by a Police

and undertakes:

Combat Police Battalions (SWAT)

There are sixteen Police Battalions to carry out general security duties under the command of Battalion Control Command. The Battalion Commandants are Police

s. As the populace of the cities including Yangon and Mandalay have been increased day after day, problems on social, economy and politics are risen up that could lead to emergence of civil unrest and sabotage. It is necessary to prevent from destruction and harassment, VIP and project factories and workshops, security of

diplomat A diplomat (from grc, δίπλωμα; romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state or an intergovernmental institution such as the United Nations or the European Union to conduct diplomacy with one or more other states or internati ...

s and their embassies. Seven of these Police Battalions are situated in the Yangon Divisional areas and two in Mandalay and three in Arakan, one in Sagaing, one in

Mon State Mon State ( my, မွန်ပြည်နယ်, ; mnw, တွဵုရးဍုင်မန်, italics=no) is an administrative division of Myanmar. It lies between Kayin State to the east, the Andaman Sea to the west, Bago Region to the ...

, one in Pegu, one in Prome. These specially-trained and combat capable battalions are formed with personnel from former Riot Security Police, better known as "Lon Htein" Units. Each battalion consists of 500+ personnel and these battalions are supported by two support battalions, which include signal and medical units. These battalions structure are similar to that of Army's

Light Infantry Light infantry refers to certain types of lightly equipped infantry throughout history. They have a more mobile or fluid function than other types of infantry, such as heavy infantry or line infantry. Historically, light infantry often fought ...

Battalions and they are subordinate to their respective Regional Military Commands. * 1st Combat Police Battalion (HQ at Hlawga) * 2nd Combat Police Battalion (HQ at Maungtaw) * 3rd Combat Police Battalion (HQ at Shwemyayar) * 4th Combat Police Battalion (HQ at Shwesaryan) * 5th Combat Police Battalion (HQ at Hmawbi) * 6th Combat Police Battalion (HQ at Shwepyitha) * 7th Combat Police Battalion (HQ at Kyauktan) * 8th Combat Police Battalion (HQ at Mingaladon) * 9th Combat Police Battalion (HQ at Hlaingthaya) * 10th Combat Police Battalion * 11th Combat Police Battalion * 12th Combat Police Battalion * 14th Combat Police Battalion (HQ at Pa Lake, Mandalay) * 15th Combat Police Battalion * 16th Combat Police Battalion

Anti-Narcotic Task Forces

26 special anti-narcotic task forces have been established under the direction of the Central Committee for Drug Abuse Control.

Weapons and equipment

Myanmar Police Force uses wide range of weapons and ammunitions, ranging from Second World War vintage to modern sophisticated weapons. Most of the weapons are either seized from ethnic wars and narco-insurgents or locally produced copies of the G3 and other weapons phased out of their army.

Pistols

* Enfield revolver * Colt Detective Special * Ka Pa Sa MA5 MKI * Ka Pa Sa MA5 MKII

Sub machine gun

* Heckler & Koch MP5 (Norinco made NR-08) * Ka Pa Sa BA-52 *

Sten Gun The STEN (or Sten gun) is a family of British submachine guns chambered in 9×19mm which were used extensively by British and Commonwealth forces throughout World War II and the Korean War. They had a simple design and very low production cost ...

* BA93 * BA94 * MA13 MKI * MA13 MKII

Rifles

* M1 carbine * Type-56 Carbine *

Type 63 assault rifle The Type 63 () is a Chinese-designed assault rifle with a resemblance to the SKS. The weapon features a fully-automatic rotating-bolt system modified from the Type 56 assault rifle instead of the tilting bolt system of the SKS. Overall, the weapo ...

* M1 Garand * Lee–Enfield Rifles * AK-47 series（Including Chinese Type 56） * M16 rifle * M4 carbine * Norinco CQ * Norinco QBZ 97 * Ka Pa Sa BA63 * Ka Pa Sa MA11 * Ka Pa Sa MA3

Machine gun

Bren Gun The Bren gun was a series of light machine guns (LMG) made by Britain in the 1930s and used in various roles until 1992. While best known for its role as the British and Commonwealth forces' primary infantry LMG in World War II, it was also use ...

* Ka Pa Sa BA64 * Ka Pa Sa MA12 * Type 81 lmg (seized from narco ethnic insurgents) * Type 56 lmg (seized from narco ethnic insurgents)

Sniper rifle

M40 rifle The M40 rifle is a bolt-action sniper rifle used by the United States Marine Corps. It has had four variants: the M40, M40A1, M40A3, and M40A5. The M40 was introduced in 1966. The changeover to the A1 model was completed in the 1970s, the A3 in ...

(seized from ethnic and narcotic insurgents) * Ka Pa Sa BA100 * Ka Pa Sa MAS MKII

Non-Lethal Weapons

* Taser * Pepper Spray cans * Pepper-spray projectile gun * Pepperball * Rubber,

beanbag A bean bag (also beanbag) is a sealed bag containing dried beans, PVC pellets, expanded polystyrene, or expanded polypropylene. The bags are commonly used for throwing games, but they have various other applications. Furniture Designed by ...

, & plastic bullet *

Baton Baton may refer to: Stick-like objects *Baton, a type of club *Baton (law enforcement) *Baston (weapon), a type of baton used in Arnis and Filipino Martial Arts *Baton charge, a coordinated tactic for dispersing crowds of people *Baton (conductin ...

* Riot shield *

M84 stun grenade The M84 is the currently-issued stun grenade ("flashbang") of the United States Armed Forces and SWAT teams throughout the United States. Upon detonation, it emits an intensely loud "bang" of 170–180 decibels and a blinding flash of more than ...

* Tear gas * M6/M7 series chemical grenade * Sting grenade

Automobiles

Cars and Trucks

* Japan cars (confiscated item), *

Chevrolet Suburban The Chevrolet Suburban is a series of automobiles built by the Chevrolet division of General Motors. The name started in 1934 for the 1935 U.S. model year, making it the longest continuously used automobile nameplate in production. It has tra ...

(confiscated item), * Range Rover donated by Foreign Organisations for Anti-drugs Enforcement, * Mercedes Benz C-Class sedan (confiscated item), * Toyota Dyna paddy wagon (Private owned vehicles are commonly called as volunteers patrol cars), * Toyota closed double cab (confiscated item, used by escort team, patrol), * Mitsubishi double cab (confiscated item, used by Police Col, Yangon), * Mitsubishi pickup (confiscated item, used by Township Police Station, Yangon), * Mitsubishi pickup (confiscated item, used by Police Lt Col, Yangon), * Toyota pickup (confiscated item, used by Township Police Station, Yangon), * FAW pickup, *

Honda Saloon Honda Zero is an upcoming series of electric vehicles by Honda. The series' models include a sedan-like Saloon and a van A van is a type of road vehicle used for transporting goods or people. Depending on the type of van, it can be bigger o ...

, Patrol car, *

Jeep Jeep is an American automobile marque, now owned by multi-national corporation Stellantis. Jeep has been part of Chrysler since 1987, when Chrysler acquired the Jeep brand, along with remaining assets, from its previous owner American Moto ...

, Used by police station, * Mazda B pick-up, Used by police station, * Toyota Celica, used as a police lead vehicle and as a high-speed police car to arrest sport cars, *

Nissan Fairlady Z The Nissan Z-series is a model series of sports cars manufactured by Nissan in seven generations since 1969. The original Z was sold in October of 1969 in Japan as the at Nissan#Japan, Nissan Exhibition dealerships that previously sold the Ni ...

, used as a police lead vehicle and as a high-speed police car to arrest sport cars.

Armoured vehicles

Coastal Patrol Craft

River Patrol Boat

Rank structure and insignia

Commissioned officers

Enlisted ranks

References

Citations

Sources

Books

Journal articles

* * {{commons category, Police of Myanmar Law of Myanmar Law enforcement in Myanmar Military of Myanmar 1964 establishments in Burma