Reuters
The military junta announced compulsory military service in February
The last time Chaw Su saw her husband was in March, when he was forcibly conscripted to fight in the army in Myanmar's civil war.
Four months later, she learned that he had been killed at the front.
“We have always been poor and struggling,” she says. “But life was much more bearable with him.”
The 25-year-old widow, who depended on her husband as a breadwinner, now has three young children to support.
*Names have been changed to protect the identity of the sources.
In February, Myanmar's military regime, known as the junta, announced compulsory conscription, meaning all men aged 18 to 35 and women aged 18 to 27 would be forced to serve until at two years old.
Reuters
At least 50,000 people have been killed since the coup
Since the launch of the 2021 coup that toppled the democratically elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi, the junta has faced a multi-front uprising, including from the volunteer People's Defense Forces (PDF). and ethnic armed groups. This uprising has since turned into a full-blown civil war.
Last year marked a reversal of the trend, with the junta experiencing a new wave of attacks by insurgents that have since pushed the military government to the breaking point. As a result, almost two-thirds of the country, which experienced decades of military rule and repression, fell under the control of resistance groups.
The increasingly embattled junta has responded in part by pushing mandatory conscription, despite warnings from experts that it could exacerbate the country's civil war. The first training started in April.
“I was completely crazy”
In July, Chaw Su received a call from her husband, one of two men from their village sent for training.
He told her he had been deployed to Karen state, where some of the heaviest fighting between the junta and ethnic armed groups was taking place.
“He said he would be sent to the front for two weeks and would call me when he returned to base,” Chaw Su told the BBC. “That was the first and last message I received from him.”
In late July, a military officer called to inform Chaw Su that her husband was dead.
“I was completely mad. The officer tried to console me with his words, but I felt like my life was over.”
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Military spokesman Gen. Zaw Min Tun says conscripts are entitled to full pension
Like many others, Chaw Su was promised a salary for her husband's service, but she said she only received 70,000 kyat (about $21) from the village official when her husband was conscripted for the first time.
After the initial payment, months went by without any financial assistance.
The military says conscripts are entitled to pay and compensation if they die in the line of duty, like full-rank soldiers. But junta spokesman General Zaw Min Tun told the BBC “there could be a delay if the necessary documents are incomplete.”
Across Myanmar, conscripted soldiers – often without training or preparation – are sent to conflict zones with little support. Their families often do not know where they are.
Soe Soe Aye, a widow in her sixties, has had no news of her son, who was enlisted six months ago. She said he had no desire to serve in the military.
“(My son) joined the army to feed his mother,” she adds in tears. “I regret letting him go.”
Today, she suffers from poor health and depends on her youngest daughter to support her household. But she tries to remain hopeful.
“I just want to see my son. I don't have enough strength to deal with this.”
“I hated the army even more”
Kan Htoo Lwin doesn't follow anyone Autodesk_new.
Kan Htoo Lwin was sent to the front after three months of training
Many young Burmese people took drastic measures to resist the conscription order.
Kan Htoo Lwin, a 20-year-old from Yangon, Myanmar's commercial hub, was enlisted and trained for three months with 30 others.
He said the training was grueling and they were threatened with burning down their homes if anyone tried to escape.
“After the training, I hated the army even more,” he says.
While traveling to the front line in the east of the country, Kan Htoo saw an opportunity to escape with two others when their convoy stopped midway.
“We ran after dark, while they were busy at security checks. We didn't stop until nightfall,” he recalls. “At one point we were exhausted and stopped to rest. We took turns sleeping and keeping watch.”
At dawn, the three young men hitched a ride with a truck driver to Aung Ban, a township in southern Shan state. Here, Kan Htoo joined a PDF, one of several resistance groups that have grown as more young people, disillusioned with the military junta, take up arms.
The other two men are currently in hiding, says Kan Htoo. For security reasons, he does not want to reveal what they are currently doing.
“It’s difficult to explain my struggle”
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People queued outside the Thai embassy to obtain visas after Myanmar's military government announced the conscription order.
While men were the primary target of conscription efforts, women were also affected.
Zue Zue, a 20-year-old from Yangon, gave up her dream of becoming a Chinese translator to join the Special Operation Force (SOF), a PDF unit.
“Now my goal is to end this era of military dictatorship and make peace for our generation,” she told the BBC.
While Zue Zue chose to stay, others fled the country.
Engineer Min Min left for Thailand at the start of the conscription. He is now staying there on a study visa, but says he is struggling to find legal work that matches his qualifications in Bangkok.
Many of those who flee to Thailand, like Min Min, end up in low-wage jobs. Thai authorities have also become stricter in arresting illegal migrants, and many now face deportation if caught.
Min Min fears that when his visa expires, he will have to stay in the country illegally.
“I worry about the cost of living,” says the 28-year-old. “I have no choice but to find manual jobs.”
He also says priority is given to Thai nationals, whose rights are protected, while Thai business owners often exploit migrants working illegally.
“I also found that Burmese engineers work illegally and only pay around 12,000 Thai baht ($355), a similar salary to migrant manual workers,” he says.
Back in Myanmar, Chaw Su now does odd jobs in the village, barely earning enough to feed her children.
“It’s hard to explain to others the struggle I’m going through,” she says.
