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Five villagers killed by regiment during military operations

HURFOM: From November 19^th to December 4^th, 2024, a military junta’s regiment killed five villagers in Yebyu and Long Lone Townships, Tenasserim Division during a military operation.

The junta’s forces attacked a distillery on the Dawei Airport Road between Sin Sake and Eain Shay Pyin Wards, Dawei City.  Then on November 19^th, the junta launched a military operation targeting villages in Yebyu and Long Lone Townships.

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Junta arrest young man: Forces joining military training

HURFOM: At about 6 pm on December 5^th, 2024, junta’s police forces at the Than Lwin Bridge (Mawlamyine) security gate arrested 24-year-old Maung Aung Soe, from Mottama village, Paung Township, Mon State.

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Ye resident argues with Captain:  Arrested and charged

HURFOM: On December 2^nd, 2024, 40-year-old U Win Nine from Aung Mitta Ward, Ye Town, Mon State was arrested and charged after having an argument with a captain in the military.

U Win Nine was carrying boxes of lobsters on his truck along the Ye – Yangon Highway Road when he was stopped by the junta’s security force at the “Phaung Sein” gate at the entrance of Thanbyuzayat Town.

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The Human Rights Foundation of Monland Releases a New Report:

“Forced to Enlist: The Impacts of Military Conscription in Southeastern Burma”

For Immediate Release
10 December 2024

The military junta’s enforcement of conscription has led to violent tactics being deployed to unjustly enlist young men and women in the regime’s armed forces. In a new report released today by the Human Rights Foundation of Monland (HURFOM), “Forced to Enlist: The Impacts of Military Conscription in Southeastern Burma”, we call for urgent and coordinated action in response to the aggressive strategies being carried out across targeted areas of Mon State, Karen State, and the Tanintharyi region.

This report is a follow-up to the briefing paper “Forced to Fight” released by HURFOM in May 2024.

Civilians have been subjected to numerous threats and abuses under the junta’s conscription law. Seven months have passed since HURFOM’s last report on forced conscription, and more cases of extortion and fear-mongering have been reported. Military forces often raid villages searching for young recruits, leading to widespread fear and panic.

Those who resist or attempt to hide are frequently beaten or detained. In some cases, entire families have been targeted, with parents threatened or arrested to force their children to enlist. This latest report includes specific calls for accountability and justice that international stakeholders must pursue.

The situation in all of HURFOM’s target areas has worsened, and the junta’s presence constantly threatens the safety and security of local people. HURFOM spoke to communities that shared how junta soldiers arrived in the middle of the night to take away sons and daughters to fight on battlefields in a war they want no part in. The ongoing forced conscription practices highlight the junta’s desperation to meet its military needs, and innocent people are paying the price with their lives.

Read the full report

Beyond the immediate human rights violations, these actions are causing widespread fear and distrust within local communities, further destabilizing the region. Residents worry that these methods will not only continue to oppress vulnerable groups but will also significantly alter the demographic balance in the long term.

HURFOM calls on regional and global stakeholders to:

• Demand an end to forced recruitment and the immediate release of all individuals who have been unlawfully conscripted.
• Enforce targeted sanctions on officials responsible for enforcing the conscription law.
• Support documentation efforts to collect and preserve evidence of forced recruitment, displacement, and other human rights abuses for future legal accountability.

Media Contact:

Name: Nai Aue Mon, HURFOM Program Director
Email: auemon@rehmonnya.org
Signal: +66 86 167 9741

About HURFOM:
HURFOM was founded by exiled pro-democracy students from the 1988 uprisings, recent activists, Mon community leaders, and youth. Its primary objective is to restore democracy, human rights, and genuine peace in Burma. HURFOM is a non-profit organization, and all its members are volunteers with a shared vision for peace in the country.

Forced to Enlist: The Impacts of Military Conscription in Southeastern Burma

Introduction

Since the attempted military coup nearly four years ago on 1 February 2024, Burma has experienced increasingly widespread human rights abuses perpetrated by the military. Among these violations, the enforcement of a forced conscription law has emerged as a brutal tool of control, primarily targeting young men and women across the country.

This report, Forced to Enlist: The Impact of Military Conscription in Southeastern Burma, will provide a detailed analysis of these abuses, focusing specifically on the Mon, Karen, and Tanintharyi regions—areas where the Human Rights Foundation of Monland (HURFOM) has extensively documented the impact of these practices in Southern Burma.  Additional reporting supports our findings, as detailed in HURFOM’s May 2024 briefing paper, ‘Forced to Fight: Military Conscription in Southeastern Burma.’

The forced conscription law has not only infringed on the fundamental rights of individuals but has also spread fear and intimidation throughout communities, leading to the mass displacement of civilians. Throughout southeastern Burma and much of the nation, the junta’s aggressive conscription efforts have faced strong resistance. Those who have courageously opposed the military are met with severe consequences such as imprisonment, torture, and even death.

The long-term consequences of the forced conscription policies for regional stability in Mon State, Karen State, and the Tanintharyi Region are severe and multifaceted. The disruption of social structures, the psychological trauma inflicted on individuals and communities, and the resulting displacement and migration have all contributed to an environment of instability that will be difficult to overcome.

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Paddy farmers face loss due to new weight measuring system

HURFOM: Last year, a bucket of paddy rice was priced at 22,000 MMK, and in 2024, the price rose to 25,000 MMK per bucket. While consumers must pay more, paddy farmers won’t see a benefit because of a significant loss due to the new measuring weight system.

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Weekly Analysis: Displacement Crisis Worsens in Southeastern Burma

HURFOM

Across Southeastern Burma, specifically in target areas of the Human Rights Foundation of Monland (HURFOM), including Mon State, Karen State, and the Tanintharyi region, the junta is escalating its attacks against sheltering populations who the conflict has impacted.

Renewed clashes between the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA) and allied forces against the junta troops near the Anankwin strategic camp along the Thanbyuzayat-Three Pagodas Pass Road on the Mon-Karen State border have forced thousands of villagers into prolonged displacement.

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Prolonged shutdown of telecommunication network creates hardships in Kyarinnseikyi

HURFOM: Beginning in mid-September, 2024, the military junta cut off the telecommunication network in heavy conflict areas in Kyarinnseikyi Township, Karen State, leaving residents in socioeconomic jeopardy.

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66 schools closed in Bilin: Children denied access to education due to prolonged and constant battles

HURFOM: Since early 2024, there have been prolonged, frequent battles between the military junta and local resistance forces in Bilin Township, Mon State. As a result, 66 schools have been forced to stop their operations leaving thousands of children without access to education.

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Two siblings arrested by junta disappear in Dawei

HURFOM: According to local sources, on November 4^th, 2024, two sibling sisters from Way D village, Long Lone Township, Tenasserim Division were arrested by the military junta in Dawei, and there has been no trace of them since after the arrest,

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