Local administrators in central Myanmar are extorting exorbitant fees from families seeking to shield their relatives from forced military conscription, according to local sources.

Village administrators in Meiktila, Thazi, and Pyawbwe townships have doubled the exemption fees collected under the military junta’s National Service Law. Families with one draft-eligible male are now forced to pay 120,000 kyats, while households with three or four eligible men face demands of 300,000 and 400,000 kyats, respectively.

The new rates, implemented in mid-August, must now be paid every four months.

“These administrators are extorting money even from widows who have no draft-eligible male relatives, demanding up to 400,000 kyats,” a Thazi resident told Mizzima.

The extortion network operates uniformly across the contiguous district, as confirmed by residents from more than 10 villages, including Buyone, Thamankan, Chauk, and Makyikan. Authorities announced the updated 2025 fee structures via loudspeakers, threatening families with arrest if they fail to comply.

To meet the military's quotas or buy collective exemptions, some local authorities are demanding between 30 million and 50 million kyats per village to hire substitute conscripts. Previously, villages were taxed based on household numbers, with a 600-household village paying an average of 720 million kyats annually to local administrators.

Despite widespread economic hardship, locals say they are forced to pay the steep bribes to protect young men, who are frequently targeted for forced recruitment in crowded public spaces.

However, paying the bribes does not guarantee safety. In several cases, villages that successfully paid the exemption fees to local military units were still forced to surrender new conscripts.

The junta’s controversial conscription drive, which has now reached its 27th intake of boot camp training, continues to drive fear and displacement across the country.