Myanmar junta ally pushing high-school students into military training

The Shanni Nationalities Army (SNA), an ethnic armed group aligned with Myanmar’s military, is pressuring high-school students in Kachin State’s Mohnyin Township to attend military training, according to local sources. Since February 1, the group and village administrators have been pushing both male and female students at schools in the area south of Indawgyi Lake to sign agreements committing them to attend training, a local man told Myanmar Now. “They entered every school and said the training will start on the 28th. The students must bring their own food,” the man said, adding that the training will be held in the town of Nam Mun. Students from schools in Nam Mun and at least five villages—Mine Naung, Mamon Kaing, Lone Ton, Lay Pone Lay, and Shwe Let Pan—have reportedly been forced to sign the agreements. “They are using ethnic propaganda to persuade them, saying Shanni people must defend Shanni territory,” the man added. According to residents, all roads out of the area have been closed to prevent the students from leaving. SNA officials confirmed that the students will be given between two weeks and one month of basic training, after which they will be allowed to return home to assume local security and defence duties. They will not be expected to go to the frontlines, the officials said. Residents estimate that hundreds of students may be required to attend, but Myanmar Now was not able to determine the exact number. The SNA and ethnic Shanni “people’s militias” have been recruiting local youth in the Indawgyi area to undergo military training since June 2024, ostensibly to help defend their villages from attack. Residents say that in previous instances, some trainees were later sent to frontline battles. According to another local man, both men and women in the Indawgyi region have been forced into military service on a one-person-per-household basis since last year. “If a household has no male member, women have to serve. If they don’t come when called, they fire guns, kick down doors, and drag people away,” he said. Sources living near Indawgyi Lake reported that at least 30 area residents have been sent to Nam Mun to receive military training this week. The Indawgyi region is strategically important as it lies just south of the jade-mining centre of Hpakant. The SNA, together with regime forces, have been fighting the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) for control of the area. In July of last year SNA troops captured two villages south of Indawgyi Lake previously held by the KIA. Earlier this month, KIA-led forces attacked junta and SNA outposts on the southern and eastern sides of Indawgyi Lake, reportedly capturing some camps. Before the current regime seized power in February 2021, the SNA frequently clashed with both the military and the KIA. Since the coup, however, the group has aligned itself with the junta amid military advances by the KIA and its allies. The SNA has cooperated with the junta’s military operations in Kachin State’s Mohnyin and Hpakant townships, as well as in Hkamti, Homalin, Phaungpyin, Banmauk, Wuntho, and Indaw townships in Sagaing Region. While the junta has been expanding its ranks under a People’s Military Service Law enacted two years ago, other armed groups are also recruiting new members in areas under their control. In Hpakant, the KIA’s recruitment efforts have also drawn criticism from local residents. In Kachin State, fighting remains intense not only in the Indawgyi area, but also in Hpakant, Waingmaw, and Bhamo townships, according to KIA spokesperson Colonel Naw Bu.

Myanmar junta ally pushing high-school students into military training

Locals say the Shanni Nationalities Army has restricted travel in Kachin State’s Mohnyin Township to prevent students from leaving

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