Nearly two dozen young men who escaped being forcibly recruited into the junta army in Tanintharyi Region are now planning to fight the regime, according to the Karen National Union (KNU).
Padoh Saw Ehna, secretary of the KNU’s Myeik-Dawei District, said the young men had been conscripted after being handed over to junta authorities following their arrest in Thailand.
They were being transported by boat from Myeik to a military training centre in the town of Palauk in Palaw Township when they overpowered their guards and escaped on September 8, according to Padoh Saw Ehna.
“The boat was carrying 29 new recruits and two junta soldiers. The recruits killed the soldiers and fled. They eventually reached us, except for two who went missing,” he told Myanmar Now.
“Of the 27 who arrived here, 22 have expressed their intention to join the fight against the regime, while the remaining. . .
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