Three Pyu Saw Htee members from Kan Ni village in Myaing Township, Magway Region, have defected with their families and exposed how their leader has been using weapons to threaten and sexually assault young women in the village. 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, the Pyu Saw Htee leader in Kan Ni village has been using weapons to coerce young women in the village and forcing them to become his minor wives. Some of these women are now pregnant. The official revealed that these sexual assaults have been occurring since the previous year. The defectors’ testimonies have brought these crimes to light, exposing the systematic abuse of power within the military-backed militia group.
Currently, the Kan Ni Pyu Saw Htee camp is under blockade by People’s Defense Forces, resulting in food shortages within the camp. Due to the oppression and abuse by the military council-affiliated Pyu Saw Htee members, there have been frequent defections from the camp. Among those who defected are two individuals who were forced to carry weapons and the wife of a Pyu Saw Htee member. The situation highlights the ongoing crisis within military-controlled territories and the abuse of power by military-backed militia leaders against civilian populations.
