An estimated 631 male conscripts from the first batch of 5,155 new recruits, who began training on April 8, 2024, have reportedly been allowed to return home after completing their mandated two years of military service under the regime’s conscription law, according to sources close to the regime.
Naung Yoe, a military defector who joined the Civil Disobedience Movement (CDM) after the 2021 military coup, told DVB that the number of those discharged is limited and as part of a “propaganda effort” by the regime in Naypyidaw.
“The low percentage of conscripts allowed to be discharged suggests that many were either forced to remain in the service or were killed in combat across the country,” said Naung Yoe, who is also a researcher from the Myanmar Defense & Security Institute (MDSI).
MDSI is a group of military defectors who track the regime’s human rights abuses on behalf of the CDM, which is the non-violent resistance movement opposed to a return to military rule in Myanmar.
“We believe that some of the survivors have been permitted to withdraw in order to be used for recruitment propaganda,” he added.
Another 246 were reportedly recalled from the “frontline” and sent back to their families on April 6, although pro-regime media did not disclose the locations or provide further details.
The conscription law, enforced on Feb. 10, 2024, requires a minimum of two years of service for males aged 18 to 35 and females aged 18 to 27. The first batch completed its term on April 8, according to MDSI.
A source close to a family with a son who was conscripted told DVB that the number discharged after completing their two-years of military service appears “incomplete,” leaving many families uncertain of the fate of their conscripted sons and brothers.
“Families don’t know whether their sons are dead or alive. They hear nothing back,” the source told DVB on the condition of anonymity. “The silence makes them believe the worst like their sons were killed.”
The regime said those who have completed training are now serving in military units nationwide, fulfilling what it described as their “responsibilities for national defence and security.”
But it refuses to disclose how many conscripted males are serving in the military.
Nationwide conscription has now reached its 23rd round with the 21st round of conscripts reported to have completed training earlier this month, according to the regime.
MDSI estimates that the number of conscripts has reached nearly 100,000.
The regime stated in 2024 that around 5,000 conscripts would be drafted into the military per round, but the total number of conscripts in each intake has not been publicly disclosed.
Officially known as the “People’s Military Service Law,” conscription was enacted in 2010 under former military ruler Than Shwe.
