Myanmar’s junta regime has reinstated compulsory conscription laws under the People’s Military Services Law enacted in 2010.
The enforcement of these laws has led to thousands fleeing the country to avoid conscription, while thousands more have been arrested and forced into military training to bolster the dwindling forces of the Tatmadaw.
Families in major cities like Mandalay and Yangon are being extorted for large sums of money by junta recruiting officials to evade conscription.
This move, coming in the midst of a civil war, is seen as an attempt by the junta to counter the increasing resistance from ethnic armed groups and opposition forces in Myanmar.