“After my arm was amputated, I felt like I was useless”
Now 35 years old, Bar Bu once worked as a chef at a local restaurant in Yangon Division, Burma. In his spare time, he learned to DJ, spinning music at local venues.
Everything changed on February 1st, 2021, when Myanmar's military seized power in a coup and declared a state of emergency. Bar Bu joined millions peacefully protesting the military junta's control of the country.
The military responded with violence. Soldiers and police used live ammunition against demonstrators.
After seeing his friends bleed out beside him, Bar Bu made a decision. In April 2021, he fled to the revolutionaries in Karen State, joining the Black Panther Column under the Karen National Liberation Army. There, he transitioned from chef to weapons developer, testing explosive devices for the resistance.
By 2023, Myanmar’s military rulers had imported more than $1bn worth of arms, largely from Russia, China and Singapore, the United Nations reports.
In contrast, resistance forces are vastly under-resourced, often fashioning homemade weapons and risking desperate actions collecting unexploded rockets fired by the army for reuse by the rebels.
Much of the conflict is fought with improvised weaponry, drones, grenades and mortars developed and manufactured by ethnic rebel groups themselves. Bar Bu became part of this work, testing prototypes that would arm himself and his comrades across the resistance front lines.
In April 2022, Bar Bu was testing a grenade prototype when it detonated in his left hand.
The explosion was instantaneous. Despite the shock, he remained conscious, looking down to see his right fingers mangled and his left forearm catastrophically damaged.
He underwent an emergency below-elbow amputation at a frontline medical clinic. The unit's doctor told him he needed more advanced care and recommended Mae Tao Clinic across the border in Thailand. By June 2022, Bar Bu had made it to Mae Sot, where he connected with Burma Children Medical Fund, a non-government organisation providing 3d printed prosthetics along the Thai-Burma border. They've since supplied him with over 5 variations of 3D-printed prosthetic arms.
The adjustment hasn't been easy. "To be honest, I still struggle to accept the loss of my left arm," Bar Bu admits. "I dream of having both arms and doing things like a normal person." But the prosthetic has helped. "It makes me feel like I still have my left arm. Of course, the capability is still limited, but I've adapted to performing my activities using it."
Bar Bu may have lost his arm, but he never lost his determination.
Today, he runs BB Bakery, a Burmese dessert and bakery business that serves a purpose beyond profit. He operates it alongside six other former injured PDF soldiers and frontline medics.
“When I started the business, my vision wasn’t just about myself, but I wanted to share it with others.”
Together, they are producing energy bars for soldiers on the front lines.
Story, Video and Photos Evie Jones.