YANGON DIVISION – Young people have been abducted to be used as porters on battlefields by the junta council in Ngwe Than Win Ward, Thanlyin Township, according to the parents of some abducted youths.
On February 12, junta, police, and administration teams abducted the young people, saying each household must provide one person in Ngwe Than Win Ward, and it is said that there were underage children among those abducted.
“On February 12, at Thanlyin traffic lights, Ngwe Than Win Ward, boys were taken away (by the junta council) saying each house must send one person. Now, all those children are in the military base near Thanlyin Pagoda Hill. My brother was also taken, he is a heart disease patient but had to follow them as they (junta forces) threatened to take my mother in his stead. There were also underage minors among the abducted young people. Now we are not allowed to make contact with the children,” said the sister of an abducted youth.
Moreover, even though the junta council said that they would return the young people home after two weeks, the parents reportedly can no longer contact their children.
In addition, it is learned from the township and ward administration teams in Yangon that the junta council has asked for lists of 20 young people per ward in the townships of Yangon.
(Although the media has received a list of the identities of the young people abducted in Thanlyin, the loss can not be disclosed in respect of the wishes of their parents.)