Naypyidaw ‘orders’ destruction of NLD parliamentary records; Nearly 100,000 ‘conscripted’ into military

Naypyidaw ‘orders’ destruction of NLD parliamentary records 

Sources inside the military’s Union Election Commission (UEC) told DVB that they were instructed by the regime in Naypyidaw to burn paper documents containing parliamentary records from the National League for Democracy (NLD) party’s administration on Tuesday. The NLD governed Burma from 2016 until it was ousted by a military coup led by Senior General Min Aung Hlaing on Feb. 1, 2021.  

A UEC source told DVB on the condition of anonymity that the parliamentary records “have exceeded the prescribed retention period” and that the UEC was instructed to destroy them by fire, as per the regime’s instructions. The regime’s Ministry of Home Affairs reportedly ordered the destruction of all records relating to the 2020 general elections in Yangon Region on Feb. 4.

A regime employee told DVB that UEC staff have been burning paper documents containing 2020 election-related information in eight townships of the capital Naypyidaw since Feb. 4. “No one is allowed to read the documents or take photos of them,” he added. Officials in Yangon Region’s Twantay, Dala, Kungyangon, and Kawhmu townships were “scolded” for delaying the burning of these documents on Feb. 10. 

Philippines calls for release of political prisoners in Myanmar

The Philippine government, through its Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), has urged the release of some of the 22,000 political prisoners in Burma as the country marked its 79th Union Day on Thursday. In a statement on Feb. 12, Manila said that doing so would indicate “further gestures of reconciliation” and the regime in Naypyidaw’s openness to initiate inclusive political dialogue in Burma.

“It is our fervent hope that this occasion be marked by the release of more political prisoners,” the DFA stated. The Philippines is the 2026 chair of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and its Special Envoy on the crisis in Burma is DFA Secretary Theresa Lazaro, who met with regime leader Senior General Min Aung Hlaing in Naypyidaw as well as ethnic and political leaders from Burma in the Philippines last month. 

“Many in the international community, including the Philippines, look forward to the release of more political prisoners as further gestures of reconciliation and an initial step towards an inclusive national political dialogue, in line with the Five-Point Consensus and the subsequent ASEAN Leaders’ Review and Decision on the Implementation of the Five-Point Consensus,” the DFA added. Read more

Nearly 100,000 ‘conscripted’ into military since 2024

An estimated 96,000 males have been conscripted into the military in a total of 20 intakes since the military conscription law was enforced on Feb. 10, 2024, according to DVB data and the Myanmar Defense & Security Institute (MDSI), which is an independent research group formed last year by military defectors who have joined the Civil Disobedience Movement (CDM) since the military coup on Feb. 1, 2021.

Naung Yoe, the MDSI research officer, told DVB that the military will reach 100,000 conscripts this year. Another group of military defectors, known as People’s Goal, told DVB that the military is mobilising all available young males in Burma. People’s Goal, formerly known as People’s Soldiers, assists soldiers and police officers to leave their positions and join the resistance to military rule, via the CDM. 

Regime spokesperson Zaw Min Tun told BBC Burmese in February 2024 that around 5,000 males would be conscripted per intake. At least 27 military training schools are operating nationwide, recruiting approximately 4,800 people per intake on average, according to MDSI.  The conscription law stipulates that males aged 18-35 and females aged 18-27 are subject to military service for at least two years. Read more

News by Region

ARAKAN—Seven civilians, including an infant, were killed and at least 10 others were injured by airstrikes carried out by the Burma Air Force on two towns in Kyauktaw and Mrauk-U townships on Thursday, residents told DVB. “Everyone ran away in a panic,” a Mrauk-U resident told DVB on the condition of anonymity. 

Mrauk-U and Kyauktaw, located 60-88 miles (96-142 km) north and northeast of the Arakan State capital Sittwe, were seized by the Arakan Army (AA) in February 2024. Four civilians from Kyauktaw and a family of three, including an infant, from Mrauk-U were among those killed by airstrikes on Feb. 12. Read more

NAYPYIDAW—The Arakan Liberation Party (ALP), told DVB that a planned meeting between six Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA) signatories and the military failed to take place in the capital on Thursday. Saw Mra Razar Lin, the ALP chairperson, added that NCA signatories wanted to wait until a new “government” emerged in March.

The ALP, the KNU/KNLA PC, the Democratic Karen Benevolent Army (DKBA), the Restoration Council of Shan State (RCSS), and the New Mon State Party (NMSP) abide by the NCA. The Lahu Democratic Union (LDU) split into two factions following the 2021 military coup. Four other NCA signatories claimed it was “null and void” after the coup.

YANGON—Residents of Dala Township living across the Yangon River from the commercial capital’s downtown told DVB that toll collection for vehicles crossing the newly opened Yangon-Dala Bridge, also known as the Myanmar-Korea Friendship Bridge, began on Thursday following the bridge’s opening on Feb. 6.

“There has been congestion on the bridge since they began the toll collection,” a Dala resident told DVB. The 1.8-kilometer cable-stayed bridge spans the Yangon River, connecting downtown to Dala, Twantay, Kawhmu and Kungyangon townships, as well as neighbouring Ayeyarwady Region. Read more

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