A/HRC/42/CRP.5 accounts regarding the KIA’s child recruitment policies. A source told the Mission that, although the KIA verifies the age of potential new recruits, the minimum age for recruitment is 16.1326 Another witness told the Mission that the KIA has a policy of prohibiting the recruitment of children younger than 15. 1327 The Mission was also told that the KIA uses recruits under 18 in support functions and not in direct participation in hostilities.1328 Other sources told the Mission that no age verification process was conducted by the KIA recruiters and that potential recruits were identified based on their physical appearance.1329 556. A 16 year old boy, who fled his home to avoid KIA recruitment in 2018, told the Mission: The KIA put pressure on me… They came to see me two or three times … It would not have been good for me to tell them that I did not want to join, because we need to volunteer for the cause of our identity and our rights. For this reason, it was not good for me to refuse, but I did not want to carry weapons. I cannot say that I could not have told them that I did not want to join, but I couldn’t talk back to them, I just kept silent and decided to leave.1330 557. The KIA had previously attempted to recruit the boy’s adult brother, who told the Mission that, after he refused to join the KIA, the fighters told him “If you do not join us, we will make your brother join us”.1331 He added that there is a KIA policy by which, in households with two or more sons, at least one son should join the KIA. He also stated that his childhood friends who had joined the KIA had to discontinue their education and missed their civilian life.1332 6. Abductions, deprivation of liberty and cruel treatment 558. Abductions by EAOs continued to affect the protection of civilians. 1333 During the reporting period, in Shan State, SSA-S fighters were responsible for the abduction and arbitrary deprivation of liberty of at least 12 Ta’ang civilian men. 1334 The Mission received credible reports that some of the victims were tied up and beaten but the Mission was unable to corroborate the purpose and severity of the treatment. 1335 The Mission received information that, while some of the captives were released after varying periods of time, at least four people remained unaccounted for at the time of writing. 1336 Unverified information received by the Mission suggests that SSA-S fighters suspected some of the victims of having affiliations with the TNLA, based on their ethnic backgrounds,1337 and that at least one of the abductees was forcibly recruited into the SSA-S forces.1338 559. The Mission also received reports, but was unable to verify, that in March 2019 KIA fighters abducted four Lisu civilians, including a boy, in Hpakant Township, Kachin State.1339 Reportedly, the KIA stopped the victims while they were on their way back from gathering food in the forest. Unverified information the Mission received indicates that, 1326 1327 1328 1329 1330 1331 1332 1333 1334 1335 1336 1337 1338 1339 150 PM-010. PI-158. GI-009. GI-020, PI-158. 1074. 1248. 1248. V-352. GI-057, GI-056, GI-047, PI-101, V-347 pag. 23 and 24, V348 P.41, FFFGEN-1-85853, FFFGEN-183533, V-406, V-407. GI-047, V-347 p. 23 and 24, 2143, FFFGEN-1-85853, FFFGEN-1-83533. GI-057, GI-056, GI-047, V-347 p. 23 and 24, V-421. GI-047, V-347 p. 23 and 24. GI-056, GI-057. V-350, V-351.