The Office of the Chief of Military Security Affairs (OCMSA) (), commonly referred to by its Burmese acronym Sa Ya Pha (စရဖ),functions as the paramount military intelligence apparatus of the Myanmar Armed Forces (Tatmadaw).

The agency’s statutory purviews and operational mandates encompass the execution of clandestine and covert operations, counterinsurgency, counter-revolutionary, military counterintelligence, and military focused counterterrorism. Furthermore, its institutional responsibilities extend to political and psychological warfare operations, foreign military threat assessments, and executive protection for high-ranking military commanders at risk of assault or assassination—with particular emphasis on the Commander-in-Chief, Deputy Commander-in-Chief, Joint Chief of Staff, and Minister of Defence—as well as support for irregular warfare operations. Within the defense infrastructure, the OCMSA is tasked with the protection of classified military assets and the implementation of military cybersecurity protocols. Additionally, its domestic mandate includes comprehensive surveillance and the suppression of political dissidence against the ruling regime.

The OCMSA was formally established as the successor institution to the Directorate of Defence Services Intelligence (DDSI), which was disbanded in 2004.

OCMSA is charged with handling political issues, and had played a central role in monitoring the 2007 popular protests in Myanmar; coordinating widespread arrests of protesters and their interrogation. Human Rights Watch reported that as part of its interrogation process, OCMSA uses sleep deprivation and condones the beating and kicking of detainees until they are unconscious.

Notable former commanders of OCMSA include Vice President Lieutenant General (Ret.) Myint Swe, Chief of General Staff (Army, Navy and Airforce) General Mya Tun Oo and Union Minister for Home Affairs Lieutenant General Kyaw Swe. As of September 2016, OCMSA is headed by Lieutenant General Soe Htut. Brig.-Gen Tin Oo (no relation to Gen. Tin Oo) was trained by the CIA on the Pacific island of Saipan and went on to run one of the most feared and effective military intelligence spy networks in Asia throughout the 1970s and ’80s.

Chiefs Office Name Head Term Directorate of Military Intelligence Colonel Lwin 1959–1969 Directorate of Military Intelligence Colonel Chit Khin 1969–1972 Directorate of Military Intelligence Brigadier General Tin Oo 1972–1978 Directorate of Military Intelligence Colonel Aung Htay 1978–1980 Directorate of Military Intelligence Colonel Myo Aung 1980–1982 Directorate of Military Intelligence Colonel Kan Nyunt 1982 – May 1983 Directorate of Military Intelligence Colonel Aung Koe May 1983 – September 1983 Directorate of Defence Service Intelligence / Office of Chief of Military Intelligence (OCMI) Lieutenant General / General Khin Nyunt September 1983 – October 2004 Office of Chief of Military Security Affairs Lieutenant General Myint Swe 2004–2005 Office of Chief of Military Security Affairs Lieutenant General Ye Myint 2005–2010 Office of Chief of Military Security Affairs Lieutenant General Kyaw Swe 2010–2014 Office of Chief of Military Security Affairs Lieutenant General Mya Tun Oo 2014–2016 Office of Chief of Military Security Affairs Lieutenant General Soe Htut 2016–2020 Office of Chief of Military Security Affairs Lieutenant General Ye Win Oo 2020−present

See also

Bureau of Special Investigation Special Intelligence Department

References