A concerning incident has emerged from Hlaing Tharyar Township in Yangon Region, where two young men were deceived into military recruitment after responding to an advertisement for a well-paying security position at Shwe Lin Ban Industrial Zone. The victims, Maung Zaw Htet Lin and Maung Ye Naung, both 25 years old from Thanatpin Township in Bago Region, were lured by the promise of a monthly salary of 510,000 kyats for a security guard position.
The events unfolded on May 4th when the two young men traveled from Thanatpin to Yangon to apply for the security position. Prior to their arrival, they had already submitted their personal information and photographs via Viber. Upon reaching Hlaing Tharyar, they were met by two men in civilian clothes on motorcycles who then transferred them to a hired vehicle. Instead of being taken to the promised job location, they were transported to the military recruitment center in Danyingone, Insein Township. Their mobile phones were confiscated upon arrival, effectively cutting off their communication with the outside world.
It wasn’t until May 8th that the young men managed to contact their families by paying to use a soldier’s phone at the Danyingone facility. They informed their families that instead of the promised security training, they were being forced to undergo military training. They are scheduled to join the military training batch No. 13, which is set to commence this month. This incident highlights a recurring pattern of deceptive recruitment practices by the military council, prompting warnings to young people to be extremely cautious of job advertisements promising attractive salaries and opportunities. The case serves as a stark reminder of the military council’s ongoing efforts to forcibly recruit civilians into military service through deceptive means, demonstrating their continued oppression of Myanmar’s civilian population.
