Three Pyu Saw Htee members from Kan Ni village in Myaing Township, Magway Region, have defected with their families and revealed the systematic sexual abuse of young women by their leader. The defectors disclosed that the Pyu Saw Htee leader has been using weapons to threaten and sexually assault young women in the village, forcing them to become his concubines. The group of defectors includes two Pyu Saw Htee members in their thirties and one in their twenties, accompanied by three children. They fled from Kan Ni Pyu village on May 7 and contacted local defense forces expressing their desire to defect.
According to an official from Battalion 15 in Pakokku District, the Pyu Saw Htee leader in Kan Ni village has been forcing young women to become his minor wives through coercion and threats at gunpoint. Some of these victims are now pregnant, and these abuses have been occurring since the previous year, though the exact number of victims remains undetermined. The Kan Ni Pyu Saw Htee camp is currently under blockade by People’s Defense Forces, resulting in food shortages and deteriorating conditions within the camp.
The defectors include two individuals who were forced to take up arms and the wife of a Pyu Saw Htee member. Local residents frequently attempt to escape due to the torture and oppression inflicted by these military-backed Pyu Saw Htee forces. This situation has created severe physical and psychological trauma among the local population, who live in constant fear for their safety. The revelations highlight the urgent need to address the crimes being committed against civilians through the military council’s use of Pyu Saw Htee groups as instruments of oppression in the region. The systematic abuse of power and sexual violence represents a serious human rights violation that requires immediate attention and action.
