Myanmar junta bans all men from working abroad

Myanmar’s junta has banned all men from working abroad amid widespread public concern over the implementation of a military draft law.

Since Myanmar’s conscription law was announced by junta chief Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing on Feb. 10, troops nationwide have attempted to press-gang large numbers into the military, which is seeking to shore up its ranks after a series of battlefield defeats. 

It requires men and women aged 18 to 35 to serve in the junta’s armed forces for two years – prompting more than 100,000 to flee their homes to avoid the draft, the Burmese Affairs and Conflict Study found last month.

The ban on men working abroad, which went into effect on May 1, is “temporary” and will remain in effect “as needed,” Ministry of Labor Permanent Secretary Nyunt Win told RFA Burmese on Thursday.

Nyunt Win said that men who had registered to work abroad by the end of April will be exempt from the ban, as will “a small number” of workers who made arrangements through intergovernmental employment agencies.

The labor secretary provided no reason for the suspension or indication of its duration.

The International Labor Organization estimates that more than 4 million Myanmar nationals work overseas with the largest number – approximately 2 million – in neighboring Thailand. It’s not clear what percentage of overseas workers are men.