Locals report that the military junta has conducted several arrests of young people, including minors, for military training in Kale town, Sagaing Region.
Between 5 and 10 March, the military junta arrested nearly 30 young people from various locations across the town, with some youths being detained while participating in sports activities, according to a person close to those arrested.
“A child next door was arrested by soldiers while playing chinlone (cane ball) with his friends. About 10 people were taken that day. Since he’s underage, I don’t know if they can get him released. His family went to the Regional Operations Commands (ROC). Others are still waiting to see what can be done,” said a person close to those who were arrested.
“Before that, I heard that about ten boys, around 13 years old. I don’t know if they were recruited as underage soldiers. I haven’t heard anything more about them yet,” the person continued.
According to locals, the military junta is conducting daily arrests in Kale’s neighborhoods using a white Probox car. In some quieter neighborhoods, they are entering homes under the pretext of checking household registration and arresting people inside their houses.
A person monitoring the junta’s activities in the town said arrests are occurring in various neighborhoods including Aung Thitsar, Aung Mingalar, Mingala Garden, Chan Myae Aung Si, Thazin, Taung Zalat, and Tar Han, with increasing frequency compared to before.
“For military conscription, they arrested a young boy the other night who had come back from the industrial zone into town—they even went to his place and took him. Later that night, they came back again and took his belongings. Someone close to him said that when they followed him to the police station in the eastern part of the town, they saw many young men there. Moreover, there were piles of motorcycles that had been confiscated because they were collecting soldiers for the draft. They took the motorcycles too. It seems like quite a lot of people were arrested—on the scale of the entire town,” said the person who has been observing the situation.
According to those familiar with the situation, people arrested for military training in Kale are being held at government office compound in the town, with nearly 60 men detained so far.
On 3 March, the military junta also arrested more than 30 civilians who had come to the town from southern villages of Kalay Township to shop at markets, detaining them at checkpoints on Kyauk Gu-Set Kant road.
Sent by KMG.