Myanmar’s military regime said it has released 93 children from its ranks, days after a United Nations report last month accused the regime and its affiliate groups of enlisting over 400 children, some of whom were employed in combat.
In a uncommon admission in a state-owned newspaper, the junta announced that it conducted a verification process last year which resulted in the release of the 93 confirmed minors, and they were also compensated.
The government committee reported, “To date, only 18 suspected minor cases remain pending verification,” a statement carried by the Global New Light of Myanmar.
UN Report Details Widespread Child Recruitment
The UN Secretary-General’s report on Children and Armed Conflict reported that Myanmar’s military and its associated armed groups recruited 467 boys and 15 girls during 2023, with more than 370 children deployed in combat.
The report noted also that anti-junta forces recruited children, though in significantly lesser numbers than the military.
The most intense child recruitment took place in western Myanmar’s Rakhine state, the UN said. There, the military and two affiliated groups reportedly recruited approximately 300 children.
Reuters last year reported children as young as 13 were discovered serving on Rakhine’s frontlines, according to the testimony of a UN official and two Rohingya fighters.
Myanmar has been in turmoil ever since the 2021 military coup that overthrew the democratically elected government of Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi. The takeover led to mass protests, which transformed into a nationwide armed campaign against the military.
Long-standing ethnic militaries and new organizations created in the wake of the coup have taken control of much of Myanmar’s border territory since then, effectively locking the junta into the central plains. Under constant losses, the junta this year enacted a compulsory military service law to recruit more soldiers into its ranks.
UNICEF statistics indicate that close to 3.5 million individuals have been internally displaced in Myanmar, with over a third of them being children as of 2024.
Rohingya Sufferings and Cross-Border Issues
Millions of Rohingya who were forced out of Myanmar’s military crackdowns are stuck in refugee camps in Bangladesh. The camps last year saw an escalation of militant recruitment and violence, further putting pressure on an already deplorable humanitarian crisis.
