November 14, 2024,
The military is requesting 700 young people for its weekly recruitment quota in Yangon and Mandalay, and due to a shortage in the required number, ongoing arrests have been reported, according to local sources.
In Maha-Aungmyay Township, Mandalay Region, the military has instructed local administrative and ward management teams to find 200 young recruits to meet the quota. As of November 14, the required number of recruits has not been met, and the military has ordered prompt action to fulfill the demand, sources said.
“The situation in Maha-Aungmyay, Mandalay, is really bad. Young people are being stopped on the streets and taken away without any questioning. Those who are ill, disabled, or elderly are also being arrested. They are rounding up young people in the morning and at night, with more arrests in the early morning under the guise of ‘guest registration.’ Young people are fleeing their neighborhoods to avoid capture,” said a local source from Maha-Aungmyay Township.
Similarly, in Chanmyathazi Township, Mandalay, in Ward 868, led by Quarter Head Soe Win and with the assistance of 15 police officers and Pyu Saung Ti (militia), young people are being rounded up under the pretext of “guest registration,” with widespread extortion from those who can afford it. Sources say the military and its local administrative teams, police, and Pyu Saung Ti are forcibly collecting new recruits while also extorting money from the public.
In a related incident, on November 13, around 2:00 PM, in Insein Township, Yangon Region, Township Administrator Chit San was reportedly involved in the harsh detention of young people, with local militia and Pyu Saung Ti also participating in the arrests. Young people from the Kan Nar and Kyaing Hoke areas were reportedly captured during these raids.
