NAYPYIDAW, Myanmar — The hope of returning home is becoming an increasingly distant dream for low-ranking soldiers in Myanmar, even as the country’s military leader edges closer to his personal ambition of the presidency, according to a prominent defector support group.
People’s Goal, an organization assisting those who leave the military, released a scathing report during the second week of March 2026. The group highlighted the stark contrast between the luxury of the high command and the grim reality of those on the frontlines.
In its latest statement, People’s Goal questioned the human toll of Senior General Min Aung Hlaing’s pursuit of power.
“How many lives have been sacrificed, how many homes burned to ashes, and how much blood and tears have been shed just for the coup leader’s dream of becoming president to come true?” the group asked. “For the leadership, the cost of a soldier’s life is secondary to political survival.”
The report confirmed that during the second week of March alone, seven conscripts and two police officers defected to join the resistance, while two regular soldiers were captured as prisoners of war.
The sense of desperation within the ranks is fueled by the military’s failure to adhere to its own laws. Under the national conscription law activated in 2024, the earliest batch of recruits was scheduled for release in April 2026 after completing a mandatory two-year term.
However, there is no sign that the sham government intends to let them go.
“According to their own rules, those who were first drafted should be finishing their two-year service next month,” a CDM (Civil Disobedience Movement) officer based on the border told MPA. “But we haven’t heard a single word about discharge procedures. It is highly unlikely they will be released. For these men, defecting is the only real way home.”
Data compiled by People’s Goal paints a picture of a struggling infantry. Between January 2025 and the second week of March 2026, a total of 2,976 personnel—including both defectors and prisoners of war—have been removed from the military’s active strength.
While the sham government continues to fill its ranks through aggressive forced recruitment, the high rate of desertion suggests that the military’s most significant challenge remains the morale of its own men. As the civil war intensifies, the distance between the soldiers in the trenches and their families continues to grow, serving as a silent testament to the cost of one man’s ambition.
