Military conscription law in Cambodia has once again come under global media attention after Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet stated that the Cabinet had approved a draft conscription law at the Peace Palace on 23 April 2026. All Cambodian citizens aged 18–25 will be required to serve in the military, while women may be recruited on a voluntary basis under the new law. A Thai activist calls it a threat to democracy.

The Constitutional Court ruled on Tuesday (12 May) that Sections 27 and 45 of the Military Service Act do not violate the Constitution, after a petition was filed by the Samut Prakan District Court on a request from activist and conscientious objector Netiwit Chotiphatphaisal.

A 26-year-old man staged a solo protest on 11 April at a military conscription centre in Sa Kaeo’s Wang Nam Yen district against compulsory military conscription in Thailand.

The family of a Royal Thai Air Force conscript who died last July remains suspicious about the circumstances surrounding his death after the Air Force claimed he died from a brain abscess.

The Army has said that it will launch an investigation into the death of Private Phetcharat Kamlangying, who died while in detention at the 12th Military Circle prison on 11 November 2025.

Even as a border conflict with Cambodia has fuelled an unprecedented surge of nationalism, restoring the military’s public reverence ahead of the 2026 election, Thailand continues to face mounting long-term pressure to modernise its armed forces. Efforts to downsize the military are already under way, with even some senior officers acknowledging the need for reform despite persistent internal resistance. Calls to reform the military recruitment system have likewise not disappeared, as the structural causes driving discontent remain unresolved.

A conscript was found dead at a military camp in Phitsanulok, according to the Cross-Cultural Foundation (CrCF) on Tuesday (11 November).

The trial has begun of activist and conscientious objector Netiwit Chotiphatphaisal, charged with draft evasion for refusing to take part in military conscription as an act of protest against compulsory military service. At the end of witness examination, Netiwit requested that the Samut Prakan District Court petition the Constitutional Court to rule whether the Military Service Act is unconstitutional.

Two army instructors have been given a prison sentence, along with 11 other conscripts acting as the instructors’ assistants, for the beating and death of an 18-year-old military conscript in Chonburi.

Activist and conscientious objector Netiwit Chotiphatphaisal has been indicted for draft evasion for protesting military conscription by refusing to participate in the draft in April 2024.

Activist and conscientious objector Netiwit Chotiphatphaisal has been charged with draft evasion after he refused to participate in the military conscription process.

After the Myanmar military announced the mandatory conscription of men aged 18 - 35 years old and women aged 18 - 27 years old, many young people fled to Thailand to avoid being drafted.