Inside Myanmar, rebels are losing ground as military forces men into army

The four young men in the rebel camp hidden deep in jungle-covered mountains never wanted a part in Myanmar's civil war.

One had been a chef on his way home from work when he was grabbed off the street. His lack of ID was enough for the military to detain him and force him to sign up. Another was taken on his way back from a late-night karaoke session; a third had been working for the forestry department when he was arrested. The fourth man says on being arrested, drugs were slipped into his shoe, and he was framed and made to enlist.

"Before we even understood what was happening, we were sent straight to the front lines," one of the men – all between the ages of 19 and 25 – tells the BBC.

"They made us do all kinds of things we didn't want to do," another adds. "We never got any real rest, not in the morning, not during the day, and not even at night.

"The conscripts had to do everything. While the regular soldiers hardly had to work."

They spent four months in basic training and then were sent to the front in Karen state - one night, on their way to get washed, they decided to make a run for it.

But after escaping they walked into a nearby rebel patrol of People's Defence Force (PDF) fighters, and were detained.

They are happier here, they say, being treated "like brothers, not strangers".