Myanmar junta admits recruiting minors

Myanmar’s military regime has made a rare admission of wrongdoing, acknowledging that minors and overage civilians have been swept into its recruitment drive amid widespread reports of corruption and coercion.

General Maung Maung Aye, the junta’s Defence Minister and head of the Central Body for Summoning People’s Military Servants, told a committee meeting on 26 February that individuals outside the legal age limits had been sent to collection points and later returned. He called for stricter screening and pledged legal action against officials and intermediaries accused of exploiting loopholes or profiting from forced enlistment.

The statement comes as the army struggles to replenish its ranks, completing its 19th training batch while attempting to maintain a quota of 5,000 recruits per intake. Heavy battlefield losses have intensified pressure on the regime since the conscription law was activated in February 2024.

Human rights groups and the opposition National Unity Government (NUG) have documented widespread “snatch and recruit” operations, where young people are abducted from streets or homes. Although the law mandates service for men aged 18–35 and women aged 18–27, families report being forced to pay bribes of up to 1 million kyat to avoid the draft. Administrators, under pressure to meet quotas, have allegedly seized anyone available, including minors.

General Maung Maung Aye also warned that “false complaints” against village administrators would be prosecuted. Yet displaced families continue to accuse local officials of using the threat of conscription to extort money from the rural poor, deepening mistrust between communities and the regime.

The admission highlights the scale of Myanmar’s recruitment crisis and the systemic corruption surrounding it. For many, it confirms what rights groups have long alleged: that the junta’s survival strategy relies not only on coercion but on exploiting the most vulnerable.

As the military presses on with its conscription drive, the question remains whether these acknowledgements will lead to genuine reform—or simply serve as a warning to those who dare to resist.

-2026-03-02