The Central Committee for Summoning People’s Military Servants has announced that reports claiming university students must temporarily suspend their studies for two years to undertake military service are false.

According to the committee, a Facebook page named Yangon Media has been circulating fake news under the headline that university students must temporarily suspend their studies to perform military service.

The false report claimed that anyone selected through the conscription lottery must serve regardless of their circumstances, including university students, who would allegedly be required to suspend their studies for two years without the possibility of deferment. It also claimed that township-level military service summoning committees had issued such instructions. In addition, the report alleged that national registration cards and UID Smart Cards were being confiscated to prevent selected young people from fleeing.

The Central Committee for Summoning People’s Military Servants has clarified that the report claiming university students must suspend their studies for two years to perform military service is fake news. It has urged the public not to believe misinformation concerning the summoning of people for military service.

The committee also pointed out that Section 15(a)(3) of the People’s Military Service Law explicitly includes students among those eligible for temporary deferment from military service. Information about this provision has also been regularly published in daily newspapers, according to the committee.