Junta soldiers are lying to residents of Kunhing Township in southern Shan State and saying that they have to pay support to the army and then pocketing any collected money themselves.
The soldiers are constantly collecting money from locals and each time they collect money they give a different ‘official’ reason as to why the money is being collected, for instance to support the lower rank soldiers because they are not properly paid.
But, in reality any money soldiers get from residents goes straight into their pockets, irrespective of what they claim the money will be used for.
The soldiers first began collecting money from Kunhing Township residents in mid 2024. At that time, they claimed that the money was needed to pay for people from other areas to be conscripted, instead of locals named on conscription lists. They have continued to ask the residents for money since then, but now they claim that the money is needed for military costs such as transport, because the junta does not pay them enough, according to a woman from Kunhing Town, in Kunhing Township.
She said to Shan Herald: “The soldiers were collecting money saying that it was needed to support the army. Our household had to contribute 30,000 MMK. This practice of collecting money happens almost every month, and they give various reasons for why they need it. Some households were pressured to contribute as much as 70,000 MMK. Every month, they give different reasons for why they are extorting money and we, the people, are under constant pressure to contribute.”
This extortion combined with rising food prices is causing financial hardships for the residents of Khunhing Township.
The aforementioned woman said: “Every month, soldiers demand money under various pretexts. Everyone is complaining about this extortion, especially at this time, when jobs are scarce, and income is low. Being pressured to contribute around 100,000 MMK each month is a heavy burden for everyone.”
In January 2025, a junta-appointed township administration official collected between 30,000 and 50,000 MMK from households in Kunhing Township, claiming it was for a fund that would help pay the Restoration Council of Shan State/Shan State Army (RCSS/SSA).
But this was denied. An RCSS/SSA official said: “The junta is collecting money under various pretexts, such as for conscription, military spending, and other funds, but none of this is linked to us. I can't say for certain if the junta is misusing our organisation's name because it is concerned that people won’t contribute if they say the money is for the junta army.”
There has been no fighting in Kunhing Township, but the junta, RCSS/SSA, and Shan State Progress Party/ Shan State Army (SSPP/SSA) are all active there.
