Three Pyu Saw Htee members from Kan Ni village in Myaing Township, Magway Region, have defected with their families and exposed the sexual abuse of young women by their leader who used weapons to threaten and assault them. The defectors include two Pyu Saw Htee members in their thirties and one in their twenties, along with three children. They fled from Kan Ni Pyu village on May 7 and contacted the local defense force expressing their desire to defect.
According to an official from Battalion 15 in Pakokku District, during interrogation, the defectors revealed that the Pyu Saw Htee leader in Kan Ni village had been using weapons to threaten and sexually assault young women in the village, forcing them to become his minor wives. Some of these women are now pregnant. The official indicated that these abuses had been occurring since the previous year. The current situation at the Kan Ni Pyu Saw Htee camp is dire, with People’s Defense Forces maintaining a blockade that has resulted in food shortages. Due to the oppression by military council-affiliated Pyu Saw Htee members, many people frequently attempt to escape from the camp.
The circumstances have forced Pyu Saw Htee members and their families to bear arms unwillingly while enduring oppression from the military council. The defectors’ testimonies highlight the ongoing pattern of abuse and coercion within the military-backed Pyu Saw Htee structure, where weapons are used to maintain control and perpetrate violence against civilians, particularly vulnerable young women in the village. The situation reflects the broader context of military council-supported groups using their power to commit human rights violations against local populations, leading to increased defections as people seek to escape the cycle of violence and oppression.
