“My husband was forcibly drafted.” Then he died’

The last time Chaw Su saw her husband was in March, when he was forcibly drafted into military service in Myanmar’s civil war.

Four months later she learned that he had been killed at the front.

“We were always poor and had problems,” she says. “But life was much more bearable with him.”

The 25-year-old widow, who previously relied on her husband as a breadwinner, now has to care for three small children.

*Names have been changed to protect the identities of the sources.

In February, Myanmar’s military regime, the so-called junta, announced conscription, meaning all men aged 18 to 35 and women aged 18 to 27 would have to do military service for up to two years.

Since the 2021 coup that overthrew the democratically elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi, the junta has faced insurgencies on multiple fronts – including from the People’s Defense Forces (PDFs) volunteers and ethnic armed groups. This uprising has since escalated into a full-scale civil war.

Things changed last year when the junta faced a new wave of attacks from insurgents that has since pushed the military government to the breaking point. As a result, up to two-thirds of the country, which had been under military rule and oppression for decades, came under the control of resistance groups.

The increasingly beleaguered junta responded in part by introducing compulsory military service, despite experts warning that it could worsen the country’s civil war. The first training began in April.

In July, Chaw Su received a call from her husband, who was one of two men from their village sent for training.

He told her he had been deployed to Karen state, where some of the fiercest fighting was taking place between the junta and ethnic armed groups.

“He said he was being sent to the front for two weeks and that he would call me when he got back to the base,” Chaw Su told the BBC. “It was the first and last message I received from him.”

In late July, a military officer called Chaw Su to tell her that her husband was dead.

“I was completely crazy. The officer tried to comfort me with his words, but I felt like my life was over.”

Like many others, Chaw Su was promised a salary for her husband’s service, but claimed she received only 70,000 kyats (about US$21) from the village official when her husband was first drafted.

After the first payment, months passed without financial support.

The military says conscripts are entitled to pay and compensation if they die in the line of duty, just like regular soldiers. But junta spokesman Major General Zaw Min Tun told the BBC: “There could be delays if the required documents are incomplete.”

Across Myanmar, conscripted soldiers – often untrained and unprepared – are sent into conflict zones with little support. Their families are often left in the dark about their whereabouts.

Soe Soe Aye, a widow in her 60s, has not received any news from her son, who was drafted six months ago. She says he had no desire to serve in the military.

“[My son] “I joined the military to support his mother,” she added tearfully. “I regret letting him go.”

Now she struggles with poor health and relies on her youngest daughter to support the household. But she tries to remain hopeful.

“I just want to see my son. I don’t have enough strength to keep this up.”

Many young Burmese have taken drastic measures to resist conscription.

Kan Htoo Lwin, a 20-year-old from Yangon, Myanmar’s commercial hub, was conscripted and trained for three months along with 30 others.

He says the training was strenuous and they were threatened that their houses would be burned down if anyone escaped.

“After training, I hated the army even more,” he says.

During a trip to the front line in the east of the country, Kan Htoo saw a chance to escape with two others when their convoy stopped halfway.

“We ran when it got dark while they were busy with security checks. We didn’t stop until nightfall,” he remembers. “At some point we were exhausted and took a break. We took turns sleeping and waking.”

At dawn, the three young men were picked up by a truck driver and reached Aung Ban, a community in southern Shan State. Here Kan Htoo joined a PDF, one of the many 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 doesn’t want to reveal what they’re doing now.

While men were the focus of conscription efforts, women were also affected.

Zue Zue, a 20-year-old from Yangon, gave up her dream of becoming a Chinese translator and joined the Special Operation Force (SOF), a unit within the PDFs.

“My goal now is to end this era of military dictatorship and create peace for our generation,” she told the BBC.

While Zue Zue chose to stay, others fled the country.

Engineer Min Min traveled to Thailand when conscription began. He is now staying there on an education visa, but says he has had difficulty finding legal work in Bangkok that matches his qualifications.

Many who, like Min Min, flee to Thailand 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 he will have to stay in the country illegally after his visa expires.

“I’m worried about the cost of living,” says the 28-year-old. “I have no choice but to find manual labor jobs.”

He also says priority is given to Thai nationals whose rights are protected, while Thai business owners often exploit illegal migrants.

“I have also seen Burmese engineers working illegally and being paid only around 12,000 Thai baht (US$355), similar to the salary of migrant workers,” he says.

Back in Myanmar, Chaw Su now works odd jobs in the village and barely earns enough to feed her children.

“It’s hard to explain to other people the struggle I’m going through,” she says.