Junta soldiers arrested eight people under the pretext of conscripting them and then demanded ransoms to release six of them, in four Pwintbyu Township villages in Magway Region.

The eight men were all arrested on 19 December 2024. Three were arrested in Kani Village, one in Made Village, two in Maezali Village, and two in Kyitkaing Village, all of which are in Pwintbyu Township.

A resident of Pwintbyu Township said to Than Lwin Times: "Soldiers raided a pub in the southern part of Kani Village where people were drinking. Some managed to escape. Arrests were also made in other villages.”

Junta soldiers handed over the six abducted men from the villages of Kani, Maezali, and Made to the junta-aligned Pyu-Saw-Htee militia group in Kyaungkonegyi Village, Pwintbyu Township. The junta soldiers and Pyu Saw Htee militia are now demanding a ransom of 7.5 million MMK for each abducted man to release them.

The remaining two abducted men from Kyitkaing Village were taken to the Pwintbyu Township Police Station. Currently, their fate remains unknown.

A villager from Kyaungkonegyi suggested that the reason junta soldiers have resorted to such abductions is because they want to make money but are no longer receiving money from villagers because the villagers can no longer afford to pay the money demanded from them to avoid conscription.

He said: “In Kyaungkonegyi Village, the junta troops demanded that each household pay 40,000 MMK for each conscription batch to avoid the call-up. After multiple demands, villagers could no longer afford the payment. The junta troops then forced them to draw lots to determine whether they would be conscripted if they were unable to pay. Meanwhile, the soldiers are making money by abducting people.”

In villages across Pwintbyu Township, each household is required to contribute between 30,000 MMK and 1.5 million MMK to the conscription fund if they want their household members to avoid conscription. This puts an additional burden on families already suffering economic hardships. Many of them are now unable to continue making such payments.

On 19 December, Pwintbyu Township resistance forces issued a statement advising young adults to proactively avoid junta troops and Pyu-Saw-Htee members and if they see them in the area to stay indoors as much as possible.

Previously in September 2024 also in Pwintbyu Township, junta soldiers abducted several young men at the Mone River Bridge. They were only released after the soldiers received payments of 2 million MMK for each abducted person.