Following the March 28 earthquake that resulted in the destruction of approximately 400,000 university entrance examination answer sheets at Mandalay University, the military council has announced that students from Mandalay, Naypyidaw, Sagaing, and Kachin State must retake their examinations starting June 16. Reports from local residents indicate that the military, police, and General Administration Department are now pressuring and threatening students and parents from earthquake-affected areas to mandatorily participate in these rescheduled university entrance examinations.
In the affected regions, military, police, and administrative bodies are summoning students and parents to the education office, where they are being pressured with claims that the re-examination is necessary for dignity and fairness. Officials are asserting that this is a benevolent action by the state and threatening that students who do not participate will lose their future opportunities to take the examination. Additionally, strict instructions have been issued requiring students to report to designated examination camps within specified dates. Local sources report that ward administrators in Mandalay have been using loudspeakers to announce and pressure students to participate in the rescheduled examinations.
Current data shows that registration for the rescheduled university entrance examinations in Mandalay, Sagaing, and Naypyidaw regions has fallen below 50 percent, prompting the military council to intensify its pressure tactics. According to the military council’s announcement, over 63,000 students are expected to retake the examinations, with nearly 200 examination centers to be established. Local education staff members report that the low registration numbers have led to increasingly aggressive enforcement measures by the authorities.
However, parents from earthquake-affected areas have expressed significant concerns about the situation. They point out that while their children were able to take the original examinations in a calm and focused state before the earthquake, the current circumstances are drastically different. Families are now dealing with destroyed homes, economic hardships, and in some cases, the loss of family members due to the earthquake. This has created substantial psychological pressure on students, making it extremely difficult for them to prepare for and retake the examinations. Parents also emphasize the practical challenges of arranging for their children to participate in the examinations while dealing with the ongoing aftermath of the natural disaster, highlighting the insensitivity of the military council’s demands during this period of crisis and recovery.
