Mizzima

Revellers on their way home late at night from bars and clubs in Yangon and Mandalay report that junta soldiers are extorting them.

One group returning from a night out in Mandalay said that they were followed by a car full of junta soldiers who demanded money from them.

“When we left the club in Mandalay two soldiers in civilian clothes appeared in the middle of the road to stop us. they asked us if we were aware that we were not allowed to be out at night and asked for money to settle [the matter]. They demanded 500,000 Kyat or about $250 USD. But we negotiated them down to 300,000 Kyat or $150 USD”, said another person from Mandalay.

Recounting a similar experience, a Yangon resident said: “When we left the club on 5 July, we were stopped by the Military Council. Then they started telling us that we couldn't hang out at this time, especially since there was a curfew. They were seriously threatening us, so we negotiated carefully with them.”

According to the victims, both uniformed soldiers and soldiers in civilian clothes are extorting people on the streets late at night.

Curfews have been implemented in Yangon and Mandalay between the hours of 12:00 a.m. and 4:00 a.m. and groups of five or more people are banned in public.

Despite this, nightclubs and bars have remained open and popular. Many stay open all night with the authorities turning a blind eye to, and even being complicit in, drug dealing. 

It is claimed that the club owners have to bribe junta soldiers and the army to be allowed to stay open. Despite this, the soldiers are still extorting their clientele after they leave the clubs.

Despite this military-controlled Telegram channels say that extorting revellers is unacceptable and should be reported to the police whenever it happens.