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Myanmar’s junta has implemented harsh new measures in resistance strongholds, including the use of military courts to try people accused of treason and “spreading false news,” according to state media on Friday.
No appeals would be accepted for military tribunal convictions in the 37 townships impacted by the measures, with the exception of the death penalty, which requires the approval of junta leader Min Aung Hlaing, according to the state-run Global New Light of Myanmar newspaper.
Myanmar has been in turmoil since a coup in 2021 deposed Aung San Suu Kyi’s government, and a subsequent crackdown on dissent has sparked fighting across large swaths of the country.
The latest announcement indicates that the junta is looking for new ways to crush opposition in areas where anti-coup fighters are active.
According to the Myanmar publication Global New Light, the extension was carried out in order to “perform more effective endeavors for safeguarding security, the rule of law, and local peace and tranquility.”
The 37 townships are spread across eight states and regions: Sagaing, Chin, Magway, Bago, Mon, Karen, Taninthayi, and Kayah.
Junta troops have frequently clashed with anti-coup “People’s Defence Forces” as well as established ethnic rebel groups in those areas.
At least another 11 townships, six in commercial hub Yangon and five in second city Mandalay, were already subject to similar legislation.
The decision came a day after state media announced a six-month extension of the state of emergency, delaying elections that the junta had promised to hold by August.
In comments reported by state media on Wednesday, Junta chief Min Aung Hlaing acknowledged that more than a third of the country’s townships are not fully under military control.
According to a local monitoring group, the military’s crackdown on dissent has resulted in the deaths of over 2,900 people and the arrest of over 17,000 others.
