Myanmar’s Military Council has ordered all the state departments in southern Shan State to collect a list of civil service personnel under the regime to form auxiliary forces in preparing for a militia strategy, according to a leaked document dated 9 August just released.

The order said that the data is to be collected by 17 August from government staff from state-level offices in East Military Command, Taunggyi district, Kalaw district, PaO Self-Administered Zone and Danu Self-Administered Zone.

“Auxiliary forces of the Tatmadaw will be formed into militia groups. They will be assigned for military duties depending on the number of force and the duty plan for these auxiliary forces must be reported for the emergency situation,” says the report signed by Colonel Sein Win, Minister for Security and Border Affairs of Shan State, under the Military Council.

A local source in Ywangan township remarked that the military is working to recruit its auxiliary force from non-CDMers (those not in the Civil Disobedience Movement) as they do not have enough manpower to control southern Shan State while there are raging battles throughout the country. However, this order has reportedly caused annoyance to civil service personnel.

An official of the recently-formed Danu People’s Liberation Front (DPLF), speaking to Mizzima, has warned that it is time for non-CDMers under the regime to decide whether they will stand for the people or work for the junta regime.

“Non-CDMers are not too late to join the civil disobedience movement. This is the right time for them to make a clear decision,” he told Mizzima.

Although there were no major clashes between the resistance forces and the military in Taunggyi, Kalaw, the PaO Self-Administered Zone and the Danu Self-Administered Zone in the East Military Command until now, the military has increased its security and set fire to houses and arrested civilians in Ywangan and Pindaya townships, after the establishment of the DPLF was announced on 29 July.