MYANMAR’S military junta has activated a conscription law requiring young men and women to do at least two years of military service if called up, making a tacit admission that the army is struggling to contain a nationwide insurgency.

Under the 2010 People’s Military Service Law, passed by a previous military government, males between the ages of 18 and 45 and females between 18 and 35 can be drafted into the armed forces for two years, extendable to five years during national emergencies.

The current junta, called the State Administration Council, came to power in 2021 after ousting the elected civilian government of Aung San Suu Kyi.