Regime committee to find jobs for ex-military personnel
Naypyidaw announced the formation of a 19-member committee chaired by the regime Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defence Maung Maung Aye to find employment for former military personnel on July 7, according to a regime press statement. The military conscription law was enforced on Feb. 10, 2024, requiring males aged 18 to 35 and females aged 18 to 27 to serve for at least two years.
A Burma Army veteran told DVB on the condition of anonymity that the regime would not release conscripted personnel after they complete their service, and instead would place them in the reserve forces. He claimed that the committee is intending to only find jobs for disabled ex-military personnel in the public and private sectors.
The regime launched its 15th intake for military conscripts on July 14. It has reportedly recruited 14 batches since April 2024, totaling an estimated 70,000 based on its plans of 5,000 per batch, as was announced by regime spokesperson Zaw Min Tun. The U.N. has documented pro-regime forces’ use of over 1,800 child soldiers – as young as age 12 – since the 2021 coup.
Min Aung Hlaing enacts Myanmar Coast Guard Law
Regime media reported that Min Aung Hlaing enacted the Coast Guard Law on July 17 granting authority to the Coast Guard to collaborate with the Burma Navy – with permission from the Ministry of Defense – in order to “prevent and investigate piracy of international waters and any location outside the state’s jurisdiction to confiscate foreign vessels that break the law,” which comprises 13 chapters and 47 articles.
“The [regime] wants to manipulate maritime businesses and restrict maritime trading,” a source close to the Port Authority told DVB on the condition of anonymity. Min Aung Hlaing pledged at the Coast Guard’s third founding ceremony – held in Yangon on Oct. 6 – that he will provide more manpower and materials to the Coast Guard.
The regime stated that it has increased the number of vessels in order to protect over 140,000 square nautical miles of territorial waters, including some 1,300 nautical miles of coastline, in Burma. The law stipulates that offenders can face punishment from two years to life imprisonment, as well as a fine from 50-100 million MMK ($11,210-22,421 USD). The Coast Guard was established in October 2021.
Two political prisoners die due to inadequate medical attention
The Women’s Organization of Political Prisoners reported that student activist Wutyi Aung died at Insein Prison in Yangon on July 20. The Political Prisoners Network Myanmar (PPNM) reported that Pyae Sone Aung, an executive member of the ousted National League for Democracy (NLD) party in Bilin Township, died at Thaton Prison in Mon State on July 19.
A source close to Wutyi Aung’s family told DVB on the condition of anonymity that the 25-year-old died during an epileptic seizure as she had developed a brain tumour due to injuries sustained during interrogations and was denied adequate medical treatment. Pyae Sone Aung, age 44, had reportedly suffered from hypertension, diabetes and cardiovascular disease.
Wutyi Aung and Pyae Sone Aung were given seven and six year prison sentences in 2021 and 2022 respectively by regime-controlled courts for alleged sedition and terrorism. Their deaths bring the number of political prisoners who have died in prison for health reasons due to the lack of adequate medical treatment so far this year to 17, according to the PPNM. Read more
News by Region
MANDALAY—The People’s Defence Force (PDF) shared on social media on Sunday that it had attacked the regime naval fleet on the Irrawaddy River heading upstream towards Kachin State carrying reinforcements. One of the boats sank and three others, including a warship, caught fire.
Sources told DVB that the navy fleet was composed of two combat vessels, two landing crafts and 22 cargo boats. The fleet is enroute to Bhamo District, where the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) has been fighting against regime forces over control of Bhamo town since Dec. 4.
The PDF in Natogyi Township claimed that it killed two police officers and seized their weapons during an attack on a police car patrolling near the 318 mile post along the Yangon-Mandalay highway on Sunday. Natogyi is located 67 miles (108 km) south of Mandalay.
“There was no fighting [between resistance and regime forces] only an attack,” a source from Naypyidaw told DVB on the condition of anonymity. A driver told DVB that regime forces blocked the highway between 318 and 320 mile posts, inspecting all vehicles following the attack.
NAYPYIDAW—Regime Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Transport and Communications Mya Tun Oo told a meeting on July 17 that he has permitted 35 new foreign investments with a total investment capital of $72.8 million USD, which is expected to create nearly 10,000 jobs.
Regime media reported that 53 countries have invested in Burma, with Singapore, China, and Thailand as top three. Among 12 sectors, the energy sector received the most investment at 28.33 percent, or $40.8 million USD, in the first three quarters of the current financial year.
The regime Ministry of Immigration and Population stated that the electronic identification (e-ID) system is “not to surveil the public” and any report suggesting otherwise is false. The e-ID issues a 10-digit Unique Identification based on a citizen’s personal details and biometric data.
An anti-regime activist told DVB on the condition of anonymity that the e-ID “monitors” citizens, so nobody should trust it. The ministry claimed that over 9.1 million ID cards have been issued for citizens, associate citizens, and naturalized citizens, since May 2021.
KACHIN—Residents of Hpakant Township told DVB that 18 informal jade miners were killed during the collapse of a soil mound at an old mining site due to continuous rains on Monday. A resident told DVB that only one body has been recovered so far by rescue workers.
An informal miner who was searching for jade in a discarded soil heap was killed by a falling rock in Hpakant on July 14, according to residents. Hpakant is located 94-158 miles (151-254 km) west and northwest of the state capital Myitkyina and the KIA headquarters of Laiza.
AYEYARWADY—Sources close to Pathein Prison told DVB that more than 20 prisoners released on July 11 were re-arrested by the authorities the same day at the entrance of the prison, located in the region’s capital Pathein. Seven of those 21 rearrested are women.
“Prison authorities re-arrested them, claiming that more investigations were needed,” a source close to the prison told DVB on the condition of anonymity. He added that all 20 of the re-arrested prisoners were ethnic Rakhine from Arakan State.
(Exchange rate: $1 USD = 4,470 MMK)
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