Fear of forced recruitment changes daily life in Hpa-An

Young men in Hpa-An, the capital of Myanmar’s Karen State, say they are avoiding travel after dark and worrying about routine trips to work amid reports that people in civilian clothes are detaining youths for military service. The accounts, reported by the BBC and based on interviews and leaked documents, point to pressure on local authorities to meet recruitment quotas—but the full extent of the alleged arrests cannot be independently established from the information made public.

Residents described young men in their teens, twenties and thirties being stopped or detained by plain-clothed members or supporters of the military authorities.

The reported fear has altered ordinary routines. Some young men have left for Thailand or gone to stay with relatives elsewhere, according to residents cited by the BBC. Those who remain may be told by their families to return home before dusk, while workers such as drivers still face a difficult choice between earning a living and limiting their exposure on the streets.

The BBC said it reviewed leaked documents indicating that authorities had been ordered to meet military recruitment quotas across local jurisdictions. A former officer now associated with the anti-coup Civil Disobedience Movement told the broadcaster that security forces track young people, detain them during checks and threaten detention to extract money. These are allegations from sources interviewed by the BBC; the documents and individual accounts have not been independently verified here.

Myanmar’s military authorities activated a conscription law in 2024. It applies to men aged 18 to 35 and women aged 18 to 27, with service generally set for at least two years; people who refuse a summons can face imprisonment. The existence of the law, however, does not establish whether any particular detention or recruitment was lawful.

The BBC estimates that about 100,000 young people have been conscripted since early 2024, many allegedly through coercion, extortion or abduction. Myanmar Witness, an open-source research group, separately reported that missing-person notices it analysed on Facebook rose from four in January 2021 to 82 in January 2025. The figures describe different measures and do not, on their own, establish how many people were forcibly recruited.

A heavy cost for families

The risks extend beyond the young men approached for recruitment. Families may lose income when a worker disappears or flees, and relatives may not know where someone has been taken. In a separate case described by the BBC, a woman said her husband was taken to a recruitment centre after being moved between ward offices; a local administrator acknowledged his role in sending the man to recruitment authorities but denied that money had changed hands. The BBC said it could not reach another relative alleged to have been involved.

The recruitment pressure also appears to create openings for exploitation. The BBC reported that police in Yangon arrested a fire-service employee and his son-in-law in August over the alleged abduction of four young men under the pretext of offering jobs. The employee was charged with kidnapping or abduction for wrongful confinement, according to the BBC; a charge is an allegation, not a finding of guilt.

Asked by the BBC about reported forced recruitment and abductions, the government body responsible for conscription said it had no comment. That leaves important questions unresolved, including how many people have been detained in Hpa-An, whether they received formal call-ups, and what process exists for families seeking information.