Ward administrators across Hlaing Tharyar Township in Yangon Region are reportedly pressuring residents to join the military council’s Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) through threats and coercion. In Ward 18, administrator U Maung called an ’emergency meeting’ on May 19, requiring one member from each household to attend. During the meeting, he pressured residents to join the USDP, promising road construction projects while threatening those who refuse with military conscription and guest registration checks.
The administrator claimed that the USDP is the only party capable of maintaining national stability and ensuring public peace. He promised to upgrade roads in Ward 18, including Thakhin Phoe Hla Gyi 2 Street, to concrete if residents join the party. However, local residents revealed that this road project had already been approved during the previous National League for Democracy (NLD) government’s administration. The administrator’s promises appear to be leveraging previously planned infrastructure improvements as political bargaining tools.
Additionally, motorcycle taxi drivers with sidecars in Hlaing Tharyar Township are being targeted for recruitment into the USDP. Township General Administration Department officials and ward administrators are promising protection from arrest and claiming that USDP membership cards can substitute for proper licenses. They have also promised immediate sidecar licenses if the USDP gains power. Sidecar station leaders were summoned to so-called emergency meetings that turned out to be USDP recruitment sessions, where they were pressured to join the party and were asked to provide five photos and complete membership forms for USDP smart cards.
Similar pressure tactics are being reported in Shwepyithar and Dagon Myothit townships. In these areas, officials are promising immunity from harassment by military, police, and other authorities for USDP members. They are also claiming that party membership will exempt people from military service and forced porter duty. These coercive recruitment efforts have created significant concern among local residents, who feel trapped between joining a party they don’t support and facing potential consequences for refusing. The systematic nature of these recruitment drives suggests a coordinated effort to boost USDP membership through intimidation and false promises rather than genuine political support.
