Pro-Junta Militias Escalate Arbitrary Arrests of Young People in Mon State for Forced Conscription

August 15, 2025

HURFOM field reporters have confirmed a disturbing escalation in arbitrary arrests by pro-junta militias and Pyusawhti groups at the village and ward level, targeting young people for forced military service. These arrests, often conducted in coordination with junta soldiers and police, are leaving communities gripped with fear and young men with no safe place to go.

In townships including Kyaik Hto, Bilin, Paung, Kyaikmayaw, and Mudon, these militias have been setting up ad-hoc checkpoints on small connecting roads between villages, blocking travel, and targeting youth returning from work or simply passing through.

Eyewitnesses reported that those captured are quickly transported to the nearest military camp by militia trucks. The men are often dressed in plain clothes and carrying bags, giving the impression they are civilians, only revealing their weapons when surrounding and arresting their targets.

In one recent incident in Paung Township two days ago, five young men were arrested on the outskirts of town. Families of two of them were able to secure their release by paying ransom amounts of three million kyat each. The remaining three are still in detention, with their whereabouts unknown.

The problem is not limited to these militias. In Kyaikmayaw Township, combined teams of junta troops, police, and pro-junta militias have been setting up toll gate-style checkpoints on key roads. On 13 August, six young men were detained near Chan Gone village and accused of being “porters” for the military.

An eyewitness, a 50-year-old local resident, told HURFOM: “I saw them being beaten and arrested. Soldiers, police, and militia surrounded three motorcycles carrying the young men. They said they were taking them as porters. I don’t know which village the boys were from. I was hiding behind my garden fence when I saw it happen.”

Local administrators in Kyaikmayaw confirmed that since 1 August, village leaders have been ordered to provide five young men per village for military service. While some families have paid as much as 15,000 MMK per household to avoid sending their sons, many cannot afford such payments.

In the second week of August, militia and military units in Bilin Township began similar nighttime and evening operations in Taung Soon village tract, targeting workers returning home. In some cases, detainees have been released after paying ransoms of two to three million kyat, but most are cut off from all contact with their families.

HURFOM’s field data indicates that in the past week alone, at least 45 young men from Bilin and Paung Townships have been taken for military service through these coordinated arrest operations. The Junta’s forced conscription campaign has emptied many villages of young people. In Mudon Township, residents say evenings are eerily quiet, with few venturing outside for fear of being detained.

These arrests are part of the junta’s broader push to meet troop requirements under the People’s Military Service Law, enacted on 10 February 2024, which mandates service for men aged 18–35 and women aged 18–27. In Mon State, summons letters have been delivered in some areas, while in others, young people are being taken directly from the streets without any legal process and sent to military training camps.

Written by HURFOM · Filed Under News