2025 was not a good year for the people of Myanmar. The country faced severe drought caused by climate change, economic hardship, and devastating earthquakes that claimed over 5,000 lives in central Myanmar. At the same time, foreign criminal networks expanded call-scam centers across the country, conflict areas widened, civilians were killed by Myanmar military airstrikes, and displacement and forced conscription intensified.

Despite all these hardships, the resilience of the people of Myanmar remains stronger than ever.

The Docuteller editorial team would like to highlight the realities of 2025 through A Year in Pictures: 2025. We have invited Myanmar photographers who are documenting and storytelling through photography. Please note that one photograph from each photographer has been selected as an excerpt from their larger body of work. The sequence is thematic rather than chronological.

A man rests in Kandawgyi lake in Yangon. Photo by Linkar
Myanmar migrant Pyar Tho looks out from her apartment in Chiang Mai after fleeing conflict in Myanmar. Now settled in northern Thailand, she is among thousands seeking safety and a chance to rebuild their lives, as many displaced people carry lasting psychological scars including grief, fear and the trauma of displacement. Photo by Shwe Paw Mya Tin
I don’t know if it’s because I grew up with older people, but I always noticed their presence in every household. During these four years, I would call it the disappearance not only of the young, but also of the elderly. Both young and old have experienced an additional loss of a sense of belonging and community during this time. However, I feel it is more severe for older people because of the vulnerabilities that come with aging. Yet despite these losses, they keep moving. Photo by HABo
Yangon as seen in January 2025. Photo by imjim
Villagers watch as members of the ethnic Kayan tribe burn the hillside to prepare terrace farms during a harvest-ground burning ceremony in a village in Pekon Township. Photo by Min Htet San
A displaced farmer runs to catch a tarpaulin sheet from their makeshift shelter as the wind blows it away during a hailstorm in Moebye township. Extreme weather conditions such as drought, heavy hailstorms, and flooding have become additional factors pushing displaced farmers to grow opium in the region. Photo by Ta Mwe
A man looking at the ruined western entrance corridor of the Maha Myatmuni pagoda, which collapsed due to 7.7 -magnitude earthquake in Mandalay, Myanmar on 28 March 2025. Photo by WY
The view of Inle after the earthquake (aka) beautiful broken pieces of Inle Lake. Photo by Renie
People look at the collapsed Sagaing Bridge after it was destroyed by a 7.7-magnitude earthquake in Mandalay. Photo by Tar Tee
This photo was taken in Myaung Wa Gyi village in Inle lake on 9 April 2025. Photo by Ants Are Always Busy
A worker takes a water break while clearing debris from an earthquake-damaged house in Pyinmana, Nay Pyi Taw. A Buddhist altar with images of a family, a monk, and Buddha remains on the wall of the ruined structure. Photo by Ri
Whenever I went to Mandalay, I never stayed at a hotel but at my friends’ homes. This time, for the very first time, I stayed at a hotel, missing my friends who are no longer here and realizing that I never asked them about Mandalay tea culture. Amarapura, 2025. Photo by Poune
Children play along the banks of the Irrawaddy River in Sagaing, Myanmar, with the collapsed Inwa Bridge visible in the background after a magnitude 7.7 earthquake on March 28, 2025. Photo by Than Hlyat Maw
Thai security forces are seen arresting four Chinese nationals from the KKPark online scam syndicate on the Thai border along the Moei River. After widespread reports emerged that the military council (junta) and BGF (Border Guard Force) joint troops would enter and suppress the areas where the KKPark online scam syndicates are based, five Chinese nationals swam across the Moei River from the Myanmar side where KKPark is located, fleeing into Thailand. One of them was swept away and disappeared in the Moei River. Mae Sot, 22 October 2025. Photo by Shakeel
An African woman who was trafficked into the online scam operation, under the protection of the Democratic Karen Benevolent Army (DKBA), is seen calling her family in Kyauk Khat village. Photo by Han Htoo Zaw
Civilian war refugees sheltering on the bank of the Moei River on the Thai-Myanmar border, as intense fighting continues between the coup-leading Military Council troops and the revolutionary forces near Min Let Pan village, Myawaddy Township. Photo by Paschal Zayar
Kay Htoe Boe is an annual festival celebrated by the Karenni people in April or May, marking the new year in the traditional Karenni calendar. On an auspicious day, a Eugenia tree is cut to create a ceremonial totem pole called the kay htoe boe. The Karenni recognize three types of totems: male, female, and rice paddy. The male and female totems alternate annually, while the paddy totem is erected during harvest season. During this festival, Kayah/Karenni weavers weave long fabrics to match the height of the totem pole, using them as decorations. Photo by Shwe Wutt Hmon
Doctors and nurses assist a refugee mother as she gives birth at a secret underground hospital in Karenni State, Myanmar. Photo by Ye Aung Thu
A resistance fighter from a People’s Defense Force (PDF) unit and allied groups stands guard at an improvised checkpoint on Myanmar’s No. 8 Highway, a major arterial road, stopping and inspecting passing vehicles in May 2025. Photo by Yan Naing Aung
Members of the Special Regiment under the command of the Ayeyarwady Region Military Command of the National Unity Government (NUG)'s People's Defense Force (PDF) are conducting military training. This training is taking place in a resting period at a location within the Karenni (Kayah State) operational area, as part of the "Delta Sons' Journey Home" operation. "Even in an operational area, a soldier who does not train will become like a dull knife," said Ko Myo Thu Ra Ko Ko, the commander of the Special Regiment. The training includes male, female, and LGBTQ+ troops. Photo by Siang Khun U
Destroyed buildings and a police truck is seen after the battle of Pinlebu township on 20 May 2025. Photo by Hkun Li
A fighter from Strategy No. 9 of the Karenni Nationalities Defense Force (KNDF) is seen engaging in combat during clashes in Pha Saung town, Karenni State. KNDF troops and allied resistance forces launched coordinated attacks on Myanmar military battalions 134 and 135 in the town, successfully capturing Battalion 134 after fighting. Photo by Aung Kyaw Htet
Members of the People's Defense Force (PDF) are seen carrying the body of a fallen comrade to prepare for a funeral service in Singu Township, Mandalay Region, on September 6, 2025. Photo by Pyay Kyaw
A young medic from the KNDF (Karenni National Defense Force) cries loudly in pain as he hugs the coffin of his friend who was died during the fighting in Moebye in April 2025. Photo by Nyein Chan Aung
This photo shows the funeral service of comrade PK from Taungoo district batallion No 3 who fell in action on the front lines on June 27,2025 in Bago Region. Photo by Mar Naw
​A disabled resistance comrade prays for his fallen brother-in-arms at a military cemetery on All Souls' Day, Nov 2, 2025. Photo by Nyein Mg
Members of the People's Defense Force (PDF), Shwebo District Battalion No. 12, practicing the disassembly and reassembly of weapons. November 4, 2025. Photo by Swe Lin Tun
I never once imagined that I would end up on journeys like these. Everything was uncertain. I never knew when I would arrive, what I would face, or when I would return. Day after day, the journey of not-knowing only grew harsher. All of us moved through this journey like children; walking forward on impulse, without thinking much about anything. These are some of my wanderings and witnessings from the numerous journeys I’ve taken since I left home just after the military coup in Myanmar in February 2021. Photo by Anna Hmue Mahr
A PDF soldier buys betel quid from a vendor in Lay Kay Kaw, Myanmar, on February. 27, 2025. Internally displaced residents are attempting to enter Lay Kay Kaw to resettle and restart small businesses. Photo by Thurein
Member of People's Defence Force (PDF) remove unexploded bomb dropped by a military drone near residential homes in a village in Nyaung Lay Bin Township, Bago region on July 30, 2025. The area has been repeatedly targeted by the military junta with artillery fire and drone attacks, resulting in civillian casualties, according to local residents. Photo by Zarni Phyo
Sai Moe (29) is performing walking exercises in the evening at a housing complex in Chiang Mai, Thailand. Sai Moe is a person who sustained severe injuries in the Tani La Hle-Kan Hni Hnin Htaut battle in eastern Demoso, Kayah State (Karenni), on May 22, 2023. Driven by the desire to return to normal for the sake of his 3-year-old daughter, Sai Moe continues to perform intense daily exercises. Photo by Kom Blai
A protest was held on December 30, 2025, by strike committees and locals in a village in Shwebo Township, Sagaing Region, opposing the election being organized and led by the Military Council troops. Photo by Myo Satt Hla Thaw
People who had been detained at Insein Prison in Yangon under Section 505(a) were released in the afternoon of November 27, 2025. According to statements by the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP), since the military coup in 2021, more than 30,000 people have been arbitrarily arrested up to the present time. Of those, more than 20,000 remain in detention, while over 10,000 are still serving prison sentences. Photo by PHK
Many of the revolutionary comrades from Karenni State are participating in the revolution against the military dictatorship, sacrificing their lives and property during important operations. Some are still serving in the forces in the roles they are capable of, while others have opened small shops in their homes to support their families. Regardless of their immense losses, all comrades share the same answer: they will continue to fight until victory is achieved and the military dictatorship comes to an end. Photo by Tin Soe
Khaing Thin Kyi, 18, a Grade 12 student, poses with the school bag she carried on the day of the military junta airstrike that injured her, at the school where the bombing took place. She was injured in the Myanmar military’s junta airstrike on Oetein Twin Village, Tabayin Township, on May 12, 2025, which cost her the loss of her right hand. Born right-handed, she is now learning to adapt by starting to write and practice daily activities with her left hand. Photo by Thu Myae