Lack of registration cards limits mobility of youth from PDF-controlled villages in Myaing and Pauk
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Phyo/Thant Zin (NP News) - February 4
In many villages in Myaing and Pauk Townships, Magway Region, local youth want to go to the city to find jobs, but they are facing difficulties due to the lack of citizenship verification cards (registration) and the inability to obtain the necessary documents to do so, a local man told The Statesman.
In villages in the area, PDF groups destroyed the village tract administrative stamps previously used by the villages, and NUG stamps are now being used in village administrative processes, making them illegal in other areas where the rule of law prevails.
“The young people from areas like Myaing and Pauk are in a difficult situation. They want to work, but they do not have registration cards. To obtain a registration card, they need ward or village recommendation letters, police station endorsements, and a household registration list, which must be processed by the Immigration Department. In their villages, there are groups controlling the areas. The village tract administrative stamps that were previously used have already been destroyed by the PDF. Instead, the people they appointed, village leadersare using People’s Defense Force stamps. Those stamps are not officially recognized,” said the local resident.
He also said that locals are having difficulty obtaining police station approval because there is no ward or village approval.
“You can’t obtain a police station recommendation because you don’t have a ward certificate, which is required to get it. The stamps of the people appointed by the PDF are not officially recognized,” he said.
He said that due to the difficulty in obtaining approval and registration, young people from this area are losing opportunities to work in accounting and clerical jobs in Yangon or Pakokku.
“The young people there are losing their job opportunities. They want to go to Yangon and work, or go to Pakokku to become accountants or clerks, but they can’t. This is happening throughout Pakokku Township and Myaing and Pauk areas. Even if they want to leave because they don’t want to stay, they cannot, because they don’t have registration cards. Without a registration card, they risk being arrested. So, they are stuck where they are. It’s really heartbreaking. There are many hardships caused by the lack of registration,” he said. –