As armed conflict continues to intensify in Kachin State’s Hpakant Township, both the coup junta and the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) are reportedly increasing detentions of local people.
According to residents, junta forces have abducted at least 40 men in recent months, forcing them to serve as human shields and subjecting them to arbitrary detention, torture, and even killings.
“The soldiers just capture whoever they run into, or whoever happens to stumble upon the hidden guards the junta has deployed. Some people have reportedly died from torture. Others are taken away and used as human shields in battles. Once they’re arrested, they almost never get released,” said a local man from Hpakant.
Junta troops began the abductions in May, targeting civilians from both urban Hpakant and nearby villages, including Hmaw Wan Gyi, Hmaw Wan Kalay, Sharaw Hka, and A Hmite Pone. Locals said arrests are now also occurring along the Hpakant–Myitkyina road, putting travelers at constant risk.
Meanwhile, the KIA has also been detaining civilians since July, reportedly to forcibly conscript them into its ranks.
“People here are living in fear. There’s no work, and no one dares to go outside. Many are starving. The rich can sometimes pay to avoid being conscripted, but for most people, once they’re caught, they’re taken away right away,” another Hpakant resident said.
On September 30, around 20 men searching for jade near a mining site close to Nammaw village were reportedly detained by the KIA and taken away in four vehicles. During the incident, 27-year-old Myo Hlaing Win from Nammaw Village fell into a pit and died while fleeing in fear of arrest.
DMG tried to reach KIA spokesperson Colonel Naw Bu for comment but received no response.
While the KIA once mainly conscripted Kachin and related ethnic groups, locals now say it is recruiting people indiscriminately, regardless of ethnicity, a shift that has eroded public support for the group in Hpakant, according to resistance supporters.
“It’s not right to force everyone into this revolution. People here aren’t turning their backs on the struggle, but honestly, support for the KIA in Hpakant has really gone down,” said a local man familiar with the matter.
Since May, fighting between the junta and allied forces of the KIA and Kachin People’s Defense Force (KPDF) has intensified in Hpakant. Local civil society groups estimate that at least 150 civilians have been killed by junta airstrikes, artillery shelling, and small-arms fire.
In late September, renewed clashes near Sharaw Hka, Nyaungpinkone, Sankywei, and Mawmawlayan villages forced thousands of residents to flee toward Myitkyina, Mohnyin, Mogaung, and other Kachin State townships.
Hpakant, known for its jade and gold mining industries, is home to hundreds of thousands of locals and migrant workers from across Myanmar. Now, civilians there face twin threats, airstrikes and artillery from the junta, and arrests and forced recruitment by both sides of the conflict.
