War Office Council’s instruction No. 13/73 / Defence Directive Order 13/73

War Office Council’s Instruction No. 13/73—dated January 3, 1974—aims to prevent the recruitment of child soldiers under the Myanmar Defence Services Act. It stipulates that new recruits into military service must attain the age of 18.^[1]

In line with the Forced Labour Convention, 1930 (No. 29), the instruction also requires that military recruits enroll of their own volition, free from any form of coercion. Myanmar, a member of the International Labour Organization (ILO) since 1948, ratified the Forced Labour Convention, 1930 (No. 29) in 1955. Article 2(1) of Convention No. 29 defines forced or compulsory labour as “all work or service which is exacted from any person under the menace of any penalty and for which the said person has not offered himself voluntarily.”^[2]

Military personnel who fail to adhere to orders are subject to disciplinary measures under Section 65 of the Defence Services Act and Defence Services Rules, 1960.^[3]

However, Article 359 of the Myanmar Constitution may undermine the prohibition of involuntary recruitment in this military Instruction/Directive, as it exempts “duties assigned by the Union in accord with the law in the interest of the public” from the prohibition of forced labour (Chapter VIII).^[4] The ILO warns that this Article may be interpreted as permitting the generalized exaction of forced labour and recommends an amendment to comply with Convention No. 29.^[5]

Despite the prohibition of child recruitment under this Instruction/Directive, the Myanmar armed forces, along with related forces and affiliated militias^[6], have been listed in the Annual Report of the Secretary-General on Children and Armed Conflict for recruiting and using children since 2003, with the exception of 2004, 2008, and 2020. Furthermore, the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar has indicated receiving various reports that the recruitment and use of children by the Myanmar military has increased since the military’s coup on February 1, 2021.^[7] The 2024 United Nations Secretary-General’s annual report on children and armed conflict reported 1,102 incidents of recruitment and use of children in the previous year by the Myanmar armed forces, including related forces and affiliated militias.^[8]

While noting the issuance of such military Directives, the United Nations Secretary-General has expressed concern over their limited impact on the reduction in the use of children.^[9] Additionally, Human Rights Watch (HRW) interviews conducted in 2007 with former soldiers, including commanders and a military clerk, revealed no awareness of military directives on the issue of child recruitment.^[10]

The provisions prohibiting child and forced recruitment under this Instruction / Directive have also been undermined by the actions of the Myanmar armed forces following the activation of the People’s Military Service Law in February 2024. While the law does not allow the conscription of individuals under 18, HRW has reported over 1,000 Rohingya Muslim men and boys being abducted and forcibly recruited in Rakhine State since February 2024.^[11] In March 2024, the Secretary-General of the United Nations also expressed concerns over the reports of forced recruitment of youths in Rakhine State, including Rohingya, and the potential impact that forced conscription can have on communities and human rights.^[12]

^[1] United Nations Security Council, Letter Dated 19 January 2004 from the Permanent Representative of Myanmar to the United Nations Addressed to the President of the Security Council, S/2004/51, January 20, 2004, 1, https://digitallibrary.un.org/record/515049/files/S_2004_51-EN.pdf.

^[2] International Labour Organization, Forced Labour Convention, 1930 (No. 29), June 28, 1930, https://www.ohchr.org/en/instruments-mechanisms/instruments/forced-labour-convention-1930-no-29.

^[3] Child Soldiers International, Under the Radar: Ongoing Recruitment and Use of Children by the Myanmar Army, January 2015, p. 13, sec. 3.1, https://themimu.info/sites/themimu.info/files/documents/Report_Child_Soldiers_Intl_-_Ongoing_Recruitment_Mar2015.pdf.

^[4] Constituent Assembly, Constitution of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar, September 2008, Chapter VIII, Article 359, https://www.myanmar-law-library.org/IMG/pdf/constitution_de_2008.pdf.

^[5] Committee on the Application of Standards, Individual Case (CAS) – Discussion: 2019, Publication: 108th ILC session,  2019, https://normlex.ilo.org/dyn/nrmlx_en/f?p=1000:13101:0::NO:13101:P13101_COMMENT_ID:2132983.

^[6] Listed as “Tatmadaw Kyi” from 2003 until 2010 (except 2004 and 2008), and “Tatmadaw Kyi, including integrated border guard forces” from 2011 until 2022, “Myanmar armed forces” in 2023, and “Myanmar armed forces, including related forces and affiliated militias” in 2024, to align with other United Nations reporting.

^[7] Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Conference Room Paper of the Special Rapporteur, “Losing a Generation: How the military junta is attacking Myanmar’s children and stealing their future,” A/HRC/50/CRP.1, June 13, 2022, para. 61, https://www.ohchr.org/en/documents/thematic-reports/ahrc50crp1-conference-room-paper-special-rapporteur-losing-generation

^[8] United Nations, Annual Report of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict, A/78/842-S/2024/384, June 3, 2024, p. 20, para. 149, https://undocs.org/en/S/2024/384.

^[9]United Nations, Annual Report of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict, A/75/873–S/2021/437, May 6, 2021, p. 18, para. 131, https://undocs.org/en/S/2021/437.

^[10]Human Rights Watch, Sold to Be Soldiers: The Recruitment and Use of Child Soldiers in Burma, 2007, https://www.hrw.org/reports/2007/burma1007/burma1007.htm.

^[11] Human Rights Watch, Myanmar: Military Forcibly Recruiting Rohingya, April 9, 2024, https://www.hrw.org/news/2024/04/10/myanmar-military-forcibly-recruiting-rohingya.

^[12] United Nations, Secretary-General Deeply Concerned by Deteriorating Situation, Escalating Conflict in Myanmar, Condemns All Violence, Reiterates Call for Civilian Protection, SG/SM/22167, March 18, 2024, https://press.un.org/en/2024/sgsm22167.doc.htm.