Junta forces in Pakokku Township, Magwe Region are punishing women who wear trousers or black clothes by forcing them to do sit-ups at checkpoints, according to locals.
Police and soldiers in the township began arbitrarily stopping women in the first week of December and fining them if they refuse the punishment, according to a representative of a local resistance force.
“Women who wear trousers or all-black outfits are being forced to do sit-ups. Otherwise, they are fined up to 50,000 kyats [US$23],” he told The Irrawaddy.
Residents said the absurd punishment was imposed after a ward administrator in Pakokku Township was killed by female members of a local resistance force on November 25. The killing came one week after a retired military colonel was shot dead by a woman on November 18.
Regime forces in Pakokku also imposed a curfew for motorcycles at the end of last month. Soldiers will open fire on any motorcyclists seen riding between the hours of 6 pm and 8 am, according to a resident. They have also banned motorcyclists from carrying passengers.
“Locals are facing many difficulties because of this ridiculous order. People have now switched to riding bicycles because the regime has banned motorcycles with passengers,” a resident told The Irrawaddy.
In a recently issued statement, the Pakokku People’s Revolution Committee said personnel at military checkpoints in the township were abusing women both mentally and physically over the way they dressed.
“Regime troops are violating human rights and the junta government must take responsibility for these violations,” a committee spokesperson told The Irrawaddy.
