Mong Nai Man Vanishes Following Forced Conscription by Myanmar Junta

Sai Murng, also known as Sai Lin, has been missing since he was detained for military conscription in Mong Nai on September 3, 2026.

Eighteen days after 35-year-old Sai Murng was detained for forced military conscription, his family remains without news of his location or safety, local sources report.

On September 3 at approximately 9:00 AM, Sai Murng (also known as Sai Lin) left his home in Loi Pyay Ward, Mong Nai Township, Southern Shan State, to forage for mushrooms nearby.

Shortly after his departure, local junta-aligned administrators arrived at his home, confiscated his National Registration Card (NRC) and Smart Card, and informed his family that he had been selected for compulsory military service.

“They intercepted and arrested him on the road under the pretext of military conscription. They neither sent a formal notice nor informed us beforehand—they simply grabbed him off the street,” a family member told SHAN.

Sai Murng is the sole provider for his household, working as a daily wage laborer to support his two-year-old child and his 67-year-old mother, who suffers from a severe heart condition.

Nearly three weeks after his abduction, authorities have refused to confirm where he is being held or allow communication.

“We went to see the relevant village and township administrators, but they refused to meet us. To this day, we haven’t been able to contact him. We don’t even know if he is alive,” his relative added.

Residents report that junta forces in Mong Nai have been arbitrarily rounding up young men on the streets long before Sai Murng’s abduction.

Families attempting to secure the release of detained relatives face extortion demands ranging between 30 million and 40 million kyats (approx. $ 8,000 to $10,000 USD) per person.

Local sources also noted that households in Mong Nai have been forced to pay monthly "conscription levies" of 20,000 to 50,000 kyats since the regime enforced nationwide military service. However, these extortion payments have failed to protect local men from street-level roundups.

Under the regime’s Military Service Law, mandatory conscription applies to men aged 18 to 35 and women aged 18 to 27.

Military training cohorts are processed in batches of roughly 5,000 recruits. By September 2026, the regime had launched its 28th conscription batch—bringing the estimated total to nearly 140,000 draftees over a two-year period.

According to the Myanmar Defense & Security Institute (MDSI), severe battlefield casualties and shrinking troop numbers have forced the regime to reactivate long-abandoned facilities. Starting with Batch 27, Advanced Military Training School No. 10 in Kalay and Advanced Military Training School No. 13 in Singu Township resumed intake, bringing 24 of the country's 27 military training centers back into active operation.