Ko Ko Latt (27), also known as Amanullah (Muslim) , hailed from Mee Laung Sakhan village in Taikkyi Township, Yangon Region, and was drafted on March 28 to a battalion headquarters in Mingaladon Township, where he died on Sunday. According to the junta’s spokesman, Major General Zaw Min Tun, Ko Ko Latt was reportedly unhealthy before his conscription. Allegedly, his family has been instructed not to speak out about the incident.
Muslim activists say that his death was premeditated. They contend that the Myanmar regime is targeting the religious minority for conscription, as evidenced by the alleged murder of Ko Ko Latt at a military training camp in Yangon.
It is believed that Amanullah was the only villager chosen through a lottery for conscription. He was taken prisoner by the military and village officials. A family-affiliated source claimed that while he had been asking for food without pork, every meal that the military served him had pork. The military then told Amanullah's family that he was being treated at Mingaladon Military Hospital and that he had passed away; no further information was given.
Amanullah's funeral took place on Sunday evening in the village cemetery. Amanullah leaves a wife, a four-year-old and three-month-old. According to a friend, his face appeared injured with blood around his mouth, indicating possible physical abuse.
The junta activated the Conscription Law on February 10, initially exempting women but summoning enlisted men to training schools and army camps across various regions, including Yangon, Naypyitaw, Mandalay, and Magwe, starting in late March.
A Muslim activist, known as Ko Nyan Hein, reached out to Amanullah's family, stating that Amanullah's case sheds light on the junta's treatment of Muslims. He said a healthy man in his 20s should not die after four days of military training.
The junta in Rakhine State is facing defeat by the Arakan Army following renewed hostilities on November 13. The AA has taken control of 10 towns, with ongoing fighting in Buthidaung, Maungdaw, and Ann Township. Around 1,000 Rohingya men, half of them displaced, have been forcibly recruited, leading to at least 97 casualties in clashes with AA. The regime has revoked Rohingya citizenship rights, making conscription illegal. AA discovered Rohingya men in military attire after a battle in Rathedaung Township.
The junta forcibly conscripted approximately 125 Kaman Muslims from a displacement camp in Kyaukphyu Township, Rakhine State, on February 28, as reported by the Burma Human Rights Network and residents. Kaman Muslims, recognized as one of Myanmar's ethnic minorities since 1982, are not exempt from military service, unlike members of Christian and Buddhist orders. Despite requests from the Jamiat Ulama El-Islam to exempt young Muslim scholars from military service, the junta has not granted this request, according to sources in Yangon.
A man from a Yangon mosque said: “Conscripts in their early 20s are the same ages as Buddhist monks who are also learning religious teachings. They will become Islamic teachers. But the junta denied the request.”
BOB Post
