Junta conscripted over 60,000 recruits in 2025, report says

By Admin 13 Jun 2026

DMG Newsroom

13 June 2026, Yangon

Myanmar's military junta forcibly recruited more than 60,000 people in 2025 through the implementation of its military service law, according to a report released on Friday by the Myanmar Defense and Security Institute (MDSI).

MDSI, a research group founded by military defectors involved in the Civil Disobedience Movement (CDM), said the junta has carried out 25 rounds of conscription since the law came into force. Of those, 23 training batches have completed training and been deployed to frontline areas.

According to the report, the military's annual recruitment figures before the 2021 coup were significantly lower. Following political reforms after 2011, annual voluntary recruitment reportedly fell below 15,000 and dropped to around 10,000 after 2017.

During that period, the military also faced personnel losses due to desertions, casualties and retirements, resulting in an estimated annual shortfall of more than 12,000 personnel, the report said.

MDSI stated that local military units increasingly relied on recruitment brokers and coercive tactics to meet manpower demands before the military service law was enforced.

Following the activation of the law, the junta was able to recruit an average of about 4,700 conscripts and 400 regular recruits each month, bringing the total number of new recruits in 2025 to more than 60,000, according to the report.

The report also noted growing concerns among civilians, particularly in Yangon, where military personnel, police and local authorities have reportedly conducted overnight guest list inspections and detained military-age men.

MDSI said the number of recruits obtained through conscription in 2025 was six times higher than the military's recruitment level in 2020, adding that many of the junta's recent military operations have relied heavily on conscripted personnel.

The regime activated the Military Service Law in February 2024 following a series of territorial losses in multiple parts of the country. According to the report, the increase in manpower enabled the junta to launch counter-offensives in northern Shan, Chin and Kayin states, as well as Sagaing, Mandalay and Tanintharyi regions.

Meanwhile, data compiled by Unlawful Conscription Watch (UCW) showed that 3,993 people from Arakan State were forcibly recruited between May 2025 and May 2026.

According to UCW, Mandalay Region recorded the highest number of conscription cases with 9,434, followed by Ayeyarwady Region with 3,649. Arakan State recorded 3,993 cases during the same period.