Two village administrators shot dead for assisting Myanmar regime’s conscription effort

Two junta-appointed village administrators have been shot dead in as many days in Magway and Mandalay regions after making announcements about plans to begin implementing Myanmar’s conscription law. The first incident occurred on Monday in Magway’s Salin Township, where Myint Htoo, the administrator of the village of Pa Khet Taing, was gunned down at around 10:30pm while speaking about the law over a loudspeaker. The following day, the Salin Township People’s Defence Force (PDF) claimed responsibility for the shooting, saying that the victim was targeted because he was in possession of a handmade rifle. “Armed administrators and Pyu Saw Htee members are regarded as military targets,” said a Salin Township PDF officer, referring to a pro-junta militia formed since the military seized power three years ago. “We understand that some people make these announcements [about the conscription law] because they are forced to by the military, and we take that into serious consideration. However, it is our duty to take out any armed junta personnel,” he added. Officials have reportedly been holding rallies in Salin Township to promote support for the conscription law, which the junta announced last month would be implemented for the first time since it was enacted by a former regime more than a decade ago. Under the law, all men between the ages of 18 and 35 and all women from 18 to 27 are required to serve in the armed forces for at least two years. According to the Salin Township PDF, around a dozen local village administrators have resigned from their positions since the regime stated that the law was about to come into effect. The second fatal shooting was reported in Thee Kone, a village in Mandalay Region’s Wundwin Township, at around 6pm on Tuesday. Myint Htoo, left, and Maung Pu, the two junta-appointed village administrators assassinated on March 18 and 19 (Supplied) Maung Pu, Thee Kone’s administrator, was shot dead because he was helping the junta forcibly recruit youths from local villages into the army, according to the Wundwin Township Revolution Force, which claimed responsibility for the killing. “He was holding a meeting with people from the village yesterday and told them that young men would have to draw lots to decide who would be conscripted,” said a member of the group, adding that Maung Pu was shot after leaving the meeting. Similar meetings have also been held in other villages in the township, according to residents. Local authorities have also been compiling lists to determine the number of draft-age people in each household, and have urged local youths to enlist, they added. Across central Myanmar, local people have reported that the regime’s efforts to replenish its numbers of ground troops are well underway. “Even 15-year-old high-school students are on their lists,” complained one villager from Mahlaing Township in Mandalay’s Meiktila District. Others say that draft notices have been sent to everyone of eligible age, including those with chronic illnesses and other health issues.“They say they need at least two people from each village, but then they just take as many as they want. It’s a free for all for administrators, who now have a new excuse to demand bribes from the people,” said a PDF officer from Magway’s Minbu District. Across the country, including in its major cities, there have been reports that the recruitment process has already begun, despite the regime’s claims that it would start after next month’s Thingyan holiday. In response, anti-junta groups have released statements urging the public not to cooperate with local authorities taking part in the conscription drive. In Chin State, junta personnel compiling lists of household members in the urban wards of Hakha were attacked on Monday by the local chapter of the Chinland Defence Force, sources there said. The following day, the Ta’ang National Liberation Army issued a warning to administrators in parts of northern Shan State still under regime control not to help the military to recruit new troops.

Two village administrators shot dead for assisting Myanmar regime’s conscription effort

The shootings, in Magway and Mandalay regions, come amid warnings from resistance groups not to cooperate with the military’s drive to force civilians into its ranks

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