Another 300 Rohingya forced to join Junta in new round of conscription

More than 300 Rohingya men from villages near Rakhine state’s capital have been forced to attend mandatory military training by Myanmar’s junta troops over the last few days, RFA reported yesterday.

This comes after about 1,000 Rohingya from elsewhere in Rakhine were also made to join the military in March, the article mentioned.

It noted that the military has been implementing a draft to bolster its ranks after suffering battlefield defeats, resulting in over 100,000 young men fleeing their homes.

The military plans to conscript 50,000 young men and women each year and is forcibly recruiting Rohingya in Rakhine state to meet quotas, the news agency confirmed citing local sources.

It added that the recent recruits were taken from over 30 villages in Sittwe township and were between 18 to 30 years old.

This comes as a stark contrast to the military’s past actions, where they tortured, raped, and killed thousands of Rohingya, forcing nearly 1 million to flee to Bangladesh.