Military training for the fifth batch of draftees recruited under the newly activated conscription law began at seven regional commands of the Myanmar military on Monday as the regime struggles to shore up its seriously depleted army.
The instruction is taking place at military training schools under Yangon Command, South Eastern Command, Eastern Command, Eastern Central Command, Southern Command, North Western Command, and Triangle Region Command, according to the junta media. The regime, however, did not mention the number of draftees.
The regime previously said that 5,000 conscripts would be trained in each batch with women to be conscripted starting from the fifth round, but no female conscripts were seen in photos released by the junta media.
The regime introduced mandatory military service in February after suffering heavy defeats and losing large swathes of territory in northern Shan State to the Brotherhood Alliance of three ethnic armies during three months of fighting from late October to mid-January.
The regime began basic military training for draftees in April. If the regime has drafted 5,000 people per batch as it claims, that would amount to 25,000 recruits in just six months.
Tuesday’s editions of the junta’s newspapers said those who have completed military training are already serving national defense and security duties at various battalions and units.
In an exclusive interview with The Irrawaddy recently, Major General Tun Myat Chief, the chief of the Arakan Army (AA), which is fighting the military regime in Rakhine State, said many of the new draftees have been dispatched to Rakhine State, and the regime has suffered heavy casualties in recent clashes there.
The conscription law was promulgated under then-dictator Than Shwe in 2010. It was, however, never enforced under his regime, Thein Sein’s quasi-civilian government, or the since-ousted National League for Democracy government.
The law requires men aged 18-35 and women aged 18-27 to serve at least two years. Evading conscription is punishable by up to five years in prison. The law has resulted in a mass exodus of young people to foreign countries, mostly to Thailand, while some have opted to join anti-regime forces.
The regime recently introduced what it calls the People’s Security System, forming People’s Security and Anti-Terrorism Groups at the village and ward levels comprising men older than 35.
