Political prisoners and other violations in Burma - reports

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Title: NLD party stalwart Win Htein sentenced to 20 years in prison for sedition
Sub-title: The 79-year-old was arrested days after the February coup for remarks he made condemning the military’s power grab
Description: "A tribunal in Naypyitaw on Friday handed a 20-year prison sentence to National League for Democracy (NLD) party stalwart Win Htein, who was arrested in early February after condemning coup leader Min Aung Hlaing’s power grab during media interviews. The 79-year-old former military captain, who is in poor health, appeared for the verdict at a court inside the Naypyitaw Detention Center, where he has been on trial for sedition under Section 124a of the Penal Code. The two-judge tribunal, presided over by judge Ye Lwin, handed down the maximum sentence allowed under the law at around 3pm. Defence lawyer Myint Thwin said Win Htein was ready for a harsh sentence. “He is firm in beliefs and resilient so he was not fazed at all. Since the time he was detained and charged, he has told the court to hand down the sentence as it sees fit, no matter how many years it may be.” Chit Suu, Win Htein’s youngest daughter, told Myanmar Now the sentence was not surprising but was an “injustice.” “This is as we expected. It's not a surprise but it's a sad and outrageous thing to hear about the ridiculous sentencing. The perpetrators of this injustice will be held accountable,” said Chit Suu, who lives in Australia and spent most of her childhood separated from her father. Win Htein was among the few top NLD leaders who was not detained in the early hours of February 1 as the military toppled his party’s elected government. Later the same morning he used his freedom to excoriate the military during interviews with journalists. Min Aung Hlaing acted “without thinking of what is right and wrong,” he told reporters, “I feel pity for him.” He was arrested at his home in Yangon three days later. Myint Thwin said that Win Htein made the comments on the day of the coup because, as a leader of the ruling party that was being toppled, he felt responsible for communicating the unfolding situation to the country. Win Htein was forced to retire from the military in 1976 after being accused of involvement in a plot to assassinate then dictator Ne Win. He went on to work as a businessman until 1988, when he became close with democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi after an introduction from Tin Oo, the former military commander-in-chief who was also forced to retire in the late 1970s and later helped found the NLD. As Suu Kyi emerged as the most prominent leader of the democratic uprising in 1988, Win Htein took responsibility for her security at protests. He was arrested for his political activity in 1989 and spent the majority of the next two decades in prison before being freed in 2010. In July Nyan Win, another senior NLD leader who was detained following the coup, died in junta custody after contracting Covid-19 at Insein Prison. The junta has also detained most of the country’s NLD-appointed state and regional chief ministers, charging them with incitement and corruption. Several NLD office buildings, including its Yangon headquarters and its regional branch in Mandalay, have been targeted in bomb or arson attacks in recent months. Senior NLD figures believe that the junta is trying to destroy the party. After appointing himself the prime minister of the “caretaker government” in early August, Min Aung Hlaing has stepped up efforts to change Myanmar’s electoral system to one of Proportional Representation. The new system would make it harder for any party to secure a crushing landslide victory like that enjoyed by the NLD in last year’s election. Win Htein will now be transferred to a different prison to serve his sentence, but it is unclear which one..."
Source/publisher: "Myanmar Now" (Myanmar)
Date of entry/update: 2021-10-29
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Title: 297 Reported Attacks and Threats to Health Care During Eight Months of Myanmar Military’s Brutal Crackdown
Description: "At least 297 attacks and threats against health workers, facilities, and transports in Myanmar were perpetrated from February 1 to September 30, 2021, according to an analysis based on open-source reports compiled by Insecurity Insight, Physicians for Human Rights (PHR), and the Johns Hopkins University Center for Public Health and Human Rights (CPHHR). Myanmar’s armed forces and police reportedly committed the vast majority of attacks amid resistance to the military takeover. The Myanmar military’s (“Tatmadaw”) wanton violence against health workers and facilities is fueling the collapse of the country’s health sector and its COVID-19 response, as the emergency in Myanmar devolves into a protracted conflict. Within the 297 total incidents that took place across Myanmar during the first eight months of the military’s coup and crackdown (February 1 to September 30, 2021), Insecurity Insight, PHR, and CPHHR highlight reports of: 210 health workers arrested 40 health workers injured 29 health workers killed Hospitals raided at least 87 times Hospitals occupied at least 56 times 25 incidents impacting COVID-19 response measures “The Tatmadaw uses restrictions on health services as a tool of repression and control,” said Christina Wille, director of Insecurity Insight. “Many people are denied health care. Amazingly brave health workers continue to provide care in clandestine ways but frequent raids and curfews, medical shortages, and power outages jeopardize health facilities and put patients’ lives at risk. The international community needs to take bolder steps to address Myanmar’s tragedy. “The humanitarian tolls have increased as COVID-19 spreads largely unchecked. The recent military build-up in Myanmar’s border areas portends additional atrocities and the displacement of more people,” said Wille. “Myanmar’s catastrophe won’t remain inside the county’s borders.” The incidents referred to are based on the dataset 01 February – 30 September 2021 Violence Against Health Care in Myanmar Data, which is available on the Humanitarian Data Exchange (HDX). For the purposes of this research brief, one incident can comprise multiple types of violence or threats such as those above. The brief does not include incidents of violence against patients. Selected events can also be viewed on the global map on threats and violence against health care. The new research brief highlights several alarming developments in the military’s ongoing crackdown on the medical profession and the anti-coup movement. The military has used health facilities to arrest civilians suspected of participating in the anti-coup movement. For example, an elderly pro-democracy activist received a call about his eligibility for a COVID-19 vaccine. Upon arrival at a COVID-19 vaccination center on August 4, he was reportedly arrested by armed forces and remains detained in the county’s capital. The Tatmadaw often denies medical care to detainees in its custody. Health workers continue to be targeted for providing care, with detainees coerced into confessing to falsified charges, such as possession of weapons or links to anti-junta terrorism. In one instance on September 25, a doctor and nurse who volunteered to treat COVID-19 patients were reportedly dragged out of their homes in the middle of the night, tortured, and killed by the military-run State Administrative Council (SAC). The COVID-19 response has been derailed by the military’s violence against health care. For example, four NGO workers for an organization that transports COVID-19 patients and delivers medical supplies were arrested by the SAC, who also reportedly seized two of the group’s ambulances. The military has blocked numerous international and local aid groups from reaching people in need. Patients are also routinely blocked from accessing care. State and non-state actors continue to use explosive weapons around health facilities. In one case, on September 22, a car bomb exploded outside the military-occupied Public Hospital in Mandalay region, killing one person and injuring two others. “There is no doubt that the emergency has spiraled into a protracted humanitarian crisis,” said Sandra Mon, a PHR expert and epidemiologist from Myanmar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Public Health and Human Rights. “The military junta continues to intimidate and threaten health workers, even during the third wave of COVID-19 that devastated the country. The collapse of Myanmar’s health care system and the evolution of the conflict has now led to health being used as a political bargaining chip. Conflict should never justify inaction, especially where public health is concerned. Myanmar’s international allies must continue to press for unhindered delivery of medical and humanitarian aid to the people. Global health diplomacy must be invoked.” While the vast majority of attacks and threats against health care have been perpetrated by Myanmar’s armed forces, non-state actors also reportedly committed violence against health care in May and June. Of the 297 total incidents, at least 267 are attributed to Myanmar’s armed forces (State Administrative Council/SAC or the Tatmadaw) and 14 to non-state actors. The perpetrators are unclear in 16 incidents. The increase in attacks by non-state actors was driven in part by escalating conflict between the military and local ethnic militias in recent months, particularly in the Chin and Kachin states, as well as the shadow government’s September declaration of a “People’s Defensive War.” The research brief also includes testimonies from nurses in Myanmar, collected by Insecurity Insight with support from the Tropical Health and Education Trust in September 2021. “We are not criminals,” said one nurse, whose identity is concealed due to extreme security risks. “We are caring and compassionate nurses who want to help reduce pain and suffering. We just want to give care to our people.” Another nurse told researchers: “This is not the first time in our history that we suffer from dictators. Back then, we couldn’t let the world know what was happening. Today, we are globally connected and want to raise our voices. We don’t want our country and health system to deteriorate. It is our human right to speak out and say where we stand on this.” Insecurity Insight, PHR, and CPHHR used an open-source methodology to compile incidents noted in local, national, and international news outlets, online databases, and social media reports. The incidents reported are neither a complete nor a representative list of all incidents. Most incidents have not undergone verification by Insecurity Insight, PHR, and CPHHR. Data collection is ongoing and data may change as more information is made available. However, the data offers a snapshot of how Myanmar’s military is persecuting health workers and targeting facilities amid its broader crackdown on dissent. “Myanmar’s military must immediately cease hostilities and allow prompt, equitable, and unhindered delivery of COVID-19 vaccines and lifesaving aid to the country’s besieged civilians,” said Susannah Sirkin, director of policy at Physicians for Human Rights. “UN member states must use all tools at their disposal to pressure and influence the Myanmar military to abide by international humanitarian and human rights law. In a year that has seen rampant conflict- and COVID-19-related violence against medical professionals, Myanmar may be the worst place on Earth to be a health worker today due to the onslaught from the military. The global community cannot let this stand.” The research brief makes several recommendations to UN member states, urging the international community to ensure the full implementation of UN Security Council (UNSC) Resolution 2286, adopted in May 2016, which strongly condemns attacks on medical personnel in conflict situations, as well as UNSC Resolution 2565, which calls for a global ceasefire during the COVID-19 pandemic..."
Source/publisher: Physicians for Human Rights (New York)
Date of entry/update: 2021-10-28
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Title: Junta files terrorism charges against three detained journalists - lawyers
Sub-title: Family and friends had recently expected the reporters to be released as part of an amnesty
Description: "Three journalists jailed by the junta after reporting on the fallout from its February 1 coup are now facing terrorism charges that could see them sentenced to several years in prison, lawyers have told Myanmar Now. The journalists are Win Naing Oo, a senior Channel Mandalay reporter, D Myat Nyein, a reporter with the now defunct Zayar Times in Sagaing Region, and Pyae Phyo Aung, who worked for the same outlet. All three were initially charged under Section 505-A of the Penal Code for incitement. A Mandalay-based lawyer familiar with Win Naing Oo’s case said more details of the new charge against him would be released at his next hearing on November 5. “I learnt from the court that his Section 505 charge had been changed to one under the Anti-Terrorism Law,” he said. Win Naing Oo was due to appear at a hearing relating to his 505-A charge on Tuesday but did not show up even though other co-defendants in the case did, the lawyer added. “Only the others charged with him under the same case file were… indicted with Section 505 charges. Win Naing Oo didn’t appear at the court,” he said. Family members and friends of the three journalists had expected them to be released as part of a recent junta amnesty after it was announced that people charged under 505-A were due to be set free. Another lawyer said police and court sources had revelaed that the Zayar Times reporters would face terrorism charges, but no detailed information was available yet. “Only one charge has been filed to the court so far,” the lawyer said. “The terrorism charge is still being filed at the police station, according to my sources.” D Myat Nyein, 25, has been in detention at Obo Prison in Mandalay since July 26 and has been attending hearings at a court set up inside the prison. His lawyer could not be reached for further details about the case against him. Pyae Phyo Aung, 30, was arrested on October 11 and is due to attend his first hearing under the 505-A charge at a court in Sagaing Township on October 29. Myanmar Now was unable to contact the No.1 police station in the town of Sagaing, where Pyae Phyo Aung is being held. The Zayar Times was forced to stop publishing in late July after the junta began targeting its journalists. Its chief editor Saw Yan Paing and two other reporters there have gone into hiding to avoid arrest. It is unclear if the three journalists in hiding will also face terrorism charges. “As journalists we have to have connections with both sides so we can hear both sides of the story. It’s really sad that we have to face such major charges,” said one of the Zayar Times journalists who is in hiding and did not want to be named. The junta has arrested roughly 100 journalists since its February coup and at least 53 of them were still in detention as of October 1, according to Reporters Without Borders. Around 20 journalists were released as part of the amnesty in mid-October..."
Source/publisher: "Myanmar Now" (Myanmar)
Date of entry/update: 2021-10-28
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Title: New Reports of Torture in Myanmar
Sub-title: Stronger International Pressure Needed to End Abuses
Description: "“They placed a plastic bag over my head to suffocate me. They did this three times…. They held mock executions.… They pointed a rifle at me and pulled the trigger repeatedly.” This is how a detainee in Myanmar, recently released after arrest for anti-junta protests earlier this year, described to Human Rights Watch some of the torture tactics that Myanmar soldiers used during an interrogation session in a military facility. The detainee suffered extensive beatings even before the interrogation. “My back felt broken,” the former detainee said. “I was on my knees and they had kept kicking my head… There was so much blood. I really didn’t think I was going to come out alive.” Reports of torture by Myanmar’s long-abusive security forces are being increasingly well-documented. An expose by the Associated Press on October 28 includes credible and consistent accounts of torture of 28 detainees released in recent months, with information from victims, medical forensic analysts, and military defectors who witnessed abuse. Myanmar’s junta announced a partial prisoner amnesty on October 18. The announcement said 1,316 people would be pardoned and charges dropped against 4,320 people who “participated in protests.” But many of these people have yet to be released, and some of those freed have given harrowing accounts of their mistreatment. Several women released described to Myanmar media abuse they suffered at an interrogation center in Yangon, including mock executions and sexual assault. Human Rights Watch documented similar accounts at the same facility and elsewhere since the February 1 military coup that overthrew the democratically elected government. Consistent accounts of torture of those critical of the junta, as well as widespread and systematic killings and other atrocities by Myanmar’s security forces, has led Human Rights Watch to conclude that abuses since the February coup amount to crimes against humanity. Concerned governments need to increase pressure on Myanmar to end this brutal crackdown. Targeted sanctions on the military leaders overseeing abuses have not been enough. Governments should block foreign currency transactions to overseas banks controlled by the junta, including billions of dollars in revenues from oil and gas, mining, and timber ventures that are paid to junta-controlled entities. The United Nations Security Council should impose an arms embargo and refer the country’s situation to the International Criminal Court. Failure to act will only invite more impunity, and more torture..."
Source/publisher: Human Rights Watch (USA)
Date of entry/update: 2021-10-28
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Title: Statement on Data Collection of Political Prisoner Releases: Continued Lack of Transparency by Junta Since 18 October - နိုင်ငံရေးအကျဉ်းသားများကို လွှတ်ပေးမှုအပေါ် အချက်အလက်ရရှိမှုဆိုင်ရာ ထုတ်ပြန်ချက်
Description: "26 October 2021 On October 18, the military junta announced they would release 1,316 sentenced detainees and 4,320 more facing trial, i.e., a total of 5,636 civilians were promised to be released. However, according to AAPP documentation, as of October 25, only 4,065 victims have been released, 480 of whom have been identified. In the past, the military junta has refused to release official data on arbitrary detentions, nor published lists of those being released. The exact number and identification of prisoners must be publicly announced. AAPP is now collecting and verifying data on those detainees being released. Therefore, we invite the public holding any further information about the release of survivors to contact the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners. We will continue to confirm the recently released after having verified. Once again, we call on the military junta to immediately and unconditionally release all political prisoners, including Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and President U Win Myint. We request the international community’s support, to put pressure on the military junta and hold accountable the arbitrary detentions and all other inhumane acts.....အောက်တိုဘာလ ၂၆ ရက်၊ ၂၀၂၁ ခုနှစ် အောက်တိုဘာလ ၁၈ ရက်နေ့မှစတင်၍ အကြမ်းဖက်စစ်အုပ်စုမှ နိုင်ငံရေးနှင့်ဆက်နွယ်သော ပြစ်ဒဏ်ချမှတ်ခြင်းခံရသူ (၁၃၁၆)ဦး၊ တရားရင်ဆိုင်နေရသူ (၄၃၂၀)ဦး၊ စုစုပေါင်း (၅၆၃၆) ကို လွှတ်ပေးမည်ဟု ထုတ်ပြန်ကြေညာခဲ့သည်။ နိုင်ငံရေးအကျဉ်းသားများ ကူညီစောင့်ရှောက်ရေးအသင်း (AAPP) မှ မှတ်တမ်းပြုချက်များအရ အောက်တိုဘာ ၂၅ အထိ အရေအတွက်အားဖြင့် (၄၀၆၅) ဦးမှာ လွတ်မြောက်လာခဲ့ပြီး ထိုအထဲမှ နာမည်နှင့်တကွ အတည်ပြုနိုင်သည့် လွတ်မြောက်သူ (၄၈၀) ဦး ရှိသည်။ စစ်အုပ်စုအနေဖြင့် ယခင်ကတည်းက မတရားဖမ်းဆီးထိန်းသိမ်းခံရသူများ၏ အချက်အလက်များကို တရားဝင် ထုတ်ပြန်လေ့မရှိသလို လွှတ်ပေးသည့်အခါတွင်လည်း မည်သူတို့ကို လွှတ်ပေးလိုက်သည်ဆိုသည့် စာရင်းကို တရားဝင် ထုတ်ပြန်ကြေညာခြင်းမရှိခဲ့ပေ။ ထိုကဲ့သို့ မတရားဖမ်းဆီးခံရသူများနှင့် ပြန်လည်လွှတ်ပေးခြင်းခံရသူများ၏ အချက် အလက်များကို အများပြည်သူ သိရှိနိုင်စေရန် အလို့ငှာ တရားဝင်တိတိကျကျ ထုတ်ပြန်ကြေညာရမည်ဖြစ်သည်။ ထို့ကြောင့် လွတ်မြောက်လာသူဦးရေအတိအကျနှင့် အမည်စာရင်းမှာ ချက်ချင်းရရှိရန် လက်လှမ်းမမီနိုင်သလို လွတ်မြောက်လာသူ တစ်ဦးချင်းစီ၏ အချက်အလက်များအား စုဆောင်းအတည်ပြုမှုများကို AAPP အနေဖြင့် အချိန်ယူ၍ ဆက်လက်စိစစ်နေဆဲဖြစ်သည်။ သို့ဖြစ်ပါ၍ လွတ်မြောက်လာသူများ၏ အချက်အလက်များနှင့် ဖမ်းဆီးထိန်းသိမ်းခံ ရသူများ၏ အချက်အလက်များ ရရှိပါက မိမိတို့ နိုင်ငံရေးအကျဉ်းသားများကူညီစောင့်ရှောက်ရေးအသင်းထံသို့ ပေးပို့ပေးရန်အတွက်လေးစားစွာဖြင့် မေတ္တာရပ်ခံလိုပါသည်။ အတည်ပြုနိုင်သည့် အမည်စာရင်းများကို ဆက်လက် ဖော်ပြပေးသွားပါမည်။ လက်ရှိ အထိန်းသိမ်းခံနေရဆဲ ဒေါ်အောင်ဆန်းစုကြည်နှင့် သမ္မတကြီးဦးဝင်းမြင့်အပါအဝင် မတရားဖမ်းဆီးခံထားရသူ နိုင်ငံရေးအကျဉ်းသားအားလုံးကို စစ်အုပ်စုအနေဖြင့် ချွင်းချက်မရှိ အမြန်ဆုံးပြန်လည်လွှတ်ပေးရန်၊ နိုင်ငံတကာ အသိုင်း အဝိုင်းအနေဖြင့်လည်း တရားလက်လွတ်ဖမ်းဆီးထိန်းသိမ်းခံနေရသူများအရေးအပါအဝင် စစ်အုပ်စု၏ လူမဆန်သော လုပ်ရပ်များအတွက် တာဝန်ယူမှု၊ တာဝန်ခံမှု ရှိလာစေရေး ပိုမိုဖိအားပေးဆောင်ရွက်ရန် မိမိတို့မှ အလေးအနက် တိုက်တွန်းအပ်ပါသည်။ နိုင်ငံရေးအကျဉ်းသားများ ကူညီစောင့်ရှောက်ရေးအသင်း..."
Source/publisher: Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP)
Date of entry/update: 2021-10-27
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Title: 2021-10-26-10-AAPP-Released-on-Oct-18-and-19-bu
Source/publisher: Online Burma/Myanmar Library (obl)
Date of entry/update: 2021-10-26
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Title: 2021-10-26-10-AAPP-Released-on-Oct-18-and-19
Source/publisher: Online Burma/Myanmar Library (obl)
Date of entry/update: 2021-10-26
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Title: Myanmar prison release falls short with over 20 journalists still behind bars
Description: "Bangkok, October 25, 2021 – Myanmar’s military junta should immediately follow up its recent release of at least 15 jailed journalists by freeing all those still wrongfully held in detention, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. On October 18, the country’s military government announced the release of over 5,600 prisoners in an amnesty on humanitarian grounds, according to news reports. At least 15 journalists were subsequently freed, according to local news reports and CPJ’s communication with editors and executives at their respective news organizations. “Myanmar’s release of at least 15 journalists while leaving over 20 others to languish behind bars is a cynical attempt to alleviate rising international pressure against its repression,” said Shawn Crispin, CPJ’s senior Southeast Asia representative. “Partial measures simply aren’t good enough: Myanmar’s junta must free all of the journalists it is holding wrongfully in detention.” A CPJ special report in July documented the situation of journalists jailed in the wake of the military’s democracy-suspending February 1 coup, and found that at least 32 journalists were imprisoned due to their work as of July 1. Many were held on charges under Article 505(a) of the penal code, a broad and vaguely worded provision that penalizes incitement and the spreading of “false news” with maximum three-year prison penalties, according to CPJ research; four of those recently released had been sentenced to prison terms under the provision. The journalists, who were freed October 18 and 19, included: Local independent media outlet Democratic Voice of Burma journalists Min Nyo, Kaung Myat Hlaing (Aung Kyaw), and Thet Naing Win, according to DVB editor-in-chief Aye Chan Naing, who communicated with CPJ via email. All three had been handed prison sentences under Article 505(a), according to CPJ research. Mizzima news website co-founder Thin Thin Aung, reporter Zaw Zaw, and office assistant James Pu Thoure, according to news reports and Mizzima founder and chairman Soe Myint, who communicated with CPJ by email. Zaw Zaw had been handed a two-year prison sentence under Article 505(a), according to CPJ research. Independent news outlet Myitkyina News Journal reporters Myo Myat Myat Pan, Tu Lawt (Christopher), and Ah Je, who were released in Kachin State, the local publication’s chief executive Brang Mai told CPJ via email. Kachin Wave News website photographer La Raw, according to Htoi Awng, an editor at the local publication who communicated with CPJ via messaging app. The 74 Media news website reported on its Facebook page that its reporter Chan Bu was released. Voice of Thanbyuzayat news website photographer Htet Myat Thu, according to the publication’s editor-in-chief Paing Htoo, who communicated with CPJ via messaging app. Tachileik News Agency reporter Kyaw Zin Hein, according to the agency’s editor Cherry Htike, who communicated with CPJ by messaging app. Dakhina Insight reporter Naing Linn Tun, Thanlyin Post editor Tu Tu Thar, and freelance reporter Aung Kyaw Oo, according to local reports and the Detained Journalists of Myanmar private Facebook group administrator Han Zaw, who communicated with CPJ via email. CPJ emailed Myanmar’s Ministry of Information for comment, but did not receive an immediate response. In an open letter in April, CPJ called on coup maker Senior General Min Aung Hlaing to release all of the journalists jailed by his military regime..."
Source/publisher: Committee to Protect Journalists (New York)
Date of entry/update: 2021-10-26
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Title: AAPP statement on the ruthless arrest of 88 student leader, Ko Jimmy aka Kyaw Min Yu - ၈၈ မျိုးဆက်ကျောင်းသားခေါင်းဆောင် ကိုဂျင်မီ (ခ) ကိုကျော်မင်းယုအား အကြမ်းဖက်ဖမ်းဆီးမှုနှင့်ပတ်သက်၍ ထုတ်ပြန်ချက်
Description: "Today, AAPP learnt Kyaw Min Yu (a.k.a Jimmy), a leading member of the ’88 Generation Students Group, was ruthlessly arrested by the junta on 23 October. Ko Jimmy was severely injured in his head during arrest and remains in critical condition at a military hospital. We have witnessed this illegitimate military junta arrest political activists and anyone against them in brutal crackdowns. Many have been shot dead or brutally tortured to death. It is clear, the military is unlawfully committing crime against civilians as they wish. The military junta is the one fully responsible and accountable for whatever happens to Ko Jimmy (a.k.a Kyaw Min Yu). We humbley request the international community apply pressure to protect political detainees from any torture committed by the unlawful military group. Fundamentally, we urge the immediate release of all political detainees.....၂၀၂၁ ခုနှစ်၊ အောက်တိုဘာလ ၂၃ရက်နေ့ ညပိုင်းတွင် ၈၈ ငြိမ်းချမ်းရေးနှင့်ပွင့်လင်းလူ့အဖွဲ့အစည်း၏ ခေါင်းဆောင်တဦးဖြစ်သူ ကိုဂျင်မီ(ခ) ကိုကျော်မင်းယုအား အာဏာသိမ်းစစ်အုပ်စုမှ အင်အားအလွန်အကျွံသုံးပြီး အကြမ်းဖက်ဖမ်းဆီးခဲ့ကြောင်း သိရှိရသည်။ ထိုသို့ ဖမ်းဆီးစဉ်အတွင်း ဦးခေါင်းတွင် အသက်အန္တရာယ် စိုးရိမ်ရသည်အထိ ထိခိုက်ဒဏ်ရာရရှိကြောင်း သိရှိရသည်။ အာဏာသိမ်း စစ်အုပ်စုသည် ၎င်းတို့နှင့် အယူအဆမတူသူများအား ဖမ်းဆီးရာတွင် မလိုလားအပ်ဘဲ ကြမ်းတမ်းစွာဆက်ဆံခြင်းများကို ပြုလုပ်နေသည်ကိုလည်း တွေ့ရှိနေရပါသည်။ ဖမ်းဆီးစဉ်ပစ်ခတ်ခံရပြီး သေဆုံးမှုများ၊ စစ်ကြောရေးတွင် ညှဉ်းပန်းနှိပ်စက်မှုကြောင့် သေဆုံးမှုများလည်း ရှိနေသည်ကို တွေ့ရှိရပါသည်။ ထိုကဲ့သို့သော လုပ်ရပ်များသည် အာဏာသိမ်းစစ်အုပ်စုသည် ၎င်းတို့အာဏာတည်မြဲရေးအတွက် တရားဥပဒေကို မထေမဲ့မြင်ပြုပြီး အပြစ်မဲ့ ပြည်သူများကို စိတ်ထင်တိုင်း တရားမဲ့ပြုကျင့်နေကြောင်း ပေါ်လွင်စေသည်။ ထို့ကြောင့် ကိုဂျင်မီ(ခ) ကိုကျော်မင်းယု နှင့်ပတ်သက်၍ ဖြစ်ပေါ်လာမည့် အကျိုးဆက်များအားလုံးသည် မတရားဖမ်းဆီးခဲ့သည့် စစ်အုပ်စုတွင် တာဝန်အပြည့်အဝရှိပြီး စစ်အုပ်စုအနေဖြင့် တာဝန်ယူ၊ တာဝန်ခံရမည်ဖြစ်သည်။ နိုင်ငံတကာအသိုင်းအဝိုင်း အနေဖြင့်လည်း ကိုဂျင်မီအပါအဝင် မတရားဖမ်းဆီးခံထားရသူများအား ညှဉ်းပန်းနှိပ်စက်မှုများမှ ကာကွယ်ပေးရန်နှင့် လွတ်မြောက်ရေးအတွက် အားထုတ်ဆောင်ရွက်ပေးပါရန် မိမိတို့ နိုင်ငံရေးအကျဉ်းသားများကူညီစောင့်ရှောက်အသင်း (အေအေပီပီ) မှ အလေးအနက် မေတ္တာရပ်ခံအပ်ပါသည်။..."
Source/publisher: Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP)
Date of entry/update: 2021-10-25
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Title: Myanmar Must Turn Sorrow into Strength: Wife of Detained Activist
Description: "Myanmar’s junta seized veteran political activist Ko Jimmy, also known as Kyaw Min Yu, a prominent 88 Generation Student leader, on Saturday night in Yangon for his anti-regime activism. Ko Jimmy, 52, sustained a severe head injury during the arrest at Pin Lon Hnin Si villa in North Dagon Township. His wife Daw Nilar Thein, another leading 88 Generation Students figure who also took part in the 1988 pro-democracy movement as a university student, has been in hiding elsewhere for her anti-junta activism. She is worried about her husband’s health and says, “the regime must take all responsibility for whatever happens to him”. Ko Jimmy has been evading arrest since February. The junta issued arrest warrants for him along with Ko Min Ko Naing, another prominent 88 Generation figure, and a few others on Feb. 13 for alleged incitement. The junta has killed nearly 2,000 people, detained more than 9,000 others and tortured those in captivity and committed gross human rights violations against civilians resisting military rule. By THE IRRAWADDY 25 October 2021 Myanmar’s junta seized veteran political activist Ko Jimmy, also known as Kyaw Min Yu, a prominent 88 Generation Student leader, on Saturday night in Yangon for his anti-regime activism. Ko Jimmy, 52, sustained a severe head injury during the arrest at Pin Lon Hnin Si villa in North Dagon Township. His wife Daw Nilar Thein, another leading 88 Generation Students figure who also took part in the 1988 pro-democracy movement as a university student, has been in hiding elsewhere for her anti-junta activism. She is worried about her husband’s health and says, “the regime must take all responsibility for whatever happens to him”. Ko Jimmy has been evading arrest since February. The junta issued arrest warrants for him along with Ko Min Ko Naing, another prominent 88 Generation figure, and a few others on Feb. 13 for alleged incitement. The junta has killed nearly 2,000 people, detained more than 9,000 others and tortured those in captivity and committed gross human rights violations against civilians resisting military rule. The Irrawaddy spoke to Ma Nilar Thein, who was also a political prisoner under a previous military regime, about Ko Jimmy, her concerns and her message to those opposing the regime. How much do you know about Ko Jimmy since his arrest? I have heard that he is in Mingaladon Military Hospital. He is being watched. Do you know about his head injury? I’m not sure how he got his head injury. You said two people escaped. What did they say about his arrest? Two young people escaped while junta forces were breaking down the door. They do not know what happened after that. They said there were a lot of troops. There was a rumor Ko Jimmy was arrested with weapons. I do not know. Why was he still in hiding in Yangon? There are a lot of people in hiding in Yangon knowing they face arrest any day. People are in hiding, avoiding arrest and trying to keep anti-regime activities going. It has been eight months. People in Yangon move around. We knew the risks when we joined the pro-democracy movement. We are doing our best. Not only people inside the country but those aboard are also fighting the dictatorship. People are doing different things in different ways. It is important to try to stay safe while doing what you can. But we all know we are no longer safe anywhere. Some think it is safer in liberated areas [controlled by ethnic armed groups]. But people there are fleeing the war. They face different problems. How worried are you about Ko Jimmy and yourself? If we are arrested by the junta, we know we will be tortured and maybe killed as we have heard many stories over the past eight months. We are all worried about everyone in captivity. Our concerns reduce slightly when we hear someone has arrived alive in prison. We are worried about him. We heard many things but we can’t confirm anything. I’m worried about him. Does he have a lawyer? No. We won’t hire any lawyer because we will not cooperate with those who arbitrarily arrest people, act with injustice and manipulate cases. People are saddened by the arrest of Ko Jimmy. You have been involved in this revolution and been freed from detention. Would you like to share any message with the people? Ko Jimmy has been arrested. Before that, our beloved and respected Generation Z, our other dear comrades and student unions members have been arrested in many places. There are deaths. We have to turn these sorrows into strength and we will continue to work to overthrow the dictator. The more we face such difficulties and pain, the more determined we are to work harder to overthrow this dictator..."
Source/publisher: "The Irrawaddy" (Thailand)
Date of entry/update: 2021-10-25
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Title: Myanmar junta arrests 88 Generation leader Ko Jimmy
Sub-title: A warrant for the former student leader’s arrest had been issued in February, shortly after the military seized power
Description: "Kyaw Min Yu, a veteran pro-democracy activist also known as Ko Jimmy, was arrested by junta forces on Saturday night in Yangon’s North Dagon Township, according to his wife. Nilar Thein confirmed to Myanmar Now that her husband had been arrested and wrote on Facebook that his life was in danger. “The military council must take responsibility for anything that may happen to him after the arrest,” she wrote. It was unknown at the time of reporting where he was being held. Spokespersons for the military junta could not be reached for comment on Sunday. According to the pro-regime news outlet People Media, Ko Jimmy was arrested in connection with a shootout that took place in a residential neighbourhood in North Dagon on Saturday night. Citing a resident of the area, People Media said the clash began when regime forces entered Pinlon Housing to conduct a raid. Several other people were also arrested, and a number of weapons were seized, it added. The military issued an arrest warrant for the 52-year-old activist on February 13 for allegedly inciting unrest and threatening “public tranquillity” for writing social media posts critical of the February 1 military coup. A warrant was also issued at the same time for Min Ko Naing, another prominent figure involved in the student-led “four-eights” uprising of August 1988. Ko Jimmy, who is also a writer, was imprisoned that year for his political activities and not released until 1996. In 2007, following the Saffron Revolution, he was arrested again and held until 2012. As of Saturday, Myanmar’s military junta had arrested a total of 9,175 opponents of the coup, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners. Of these, 7,016 are still in regime custody..."
Source/publisher: "Myanmar Now" (Myanmar)
Date of entry/update: 2021-10-24
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Title: Journalists Among Thousands to Be Freed in Myanmar Amnesty
Description: "At least 50 journalists were among the thousands of people due to be freed from prison in Myanmar this week after the military announced an amnesty. The military-installed government announced an amnesty for 5,600 people on Monday. The figure includes over 1,300 who had been convicted, and 4,320 who were awaiting trial. Among those named on the list are three journalists from the independent broadcaster Democratic Voice of Burma (DVB); two journalists from the VOA affiliate Mizzima; and Sithu Aung Myint, a veteran journalist who contributes to VOA and who has been jailed since August 15. The DVB journalists were freed Monday but as of Thursday Sithu Aung Myint remained in custody. A team of lawyers representing the journalists on a pro-bono basis welcomed the announcement but said it would continue to assist the dozens still behind bars. "We are relieved and happy to know that three DVB journalists, including Aung Kyaw, from Myeik, and Min Nyo, from Pyay, were released. We have to wait and see whether all 50 journalists are released. If not, we'll continue to represent them,” the legal team’s spokesperson, Khin Maung Myint, told VOA Burmese. Most of those released had faced charges under Section 505a, which criminalizes content deemed to cause fear or spread false news about the government, but it was unclear if those accused under other sections of the penal code would be freed. Incitement charges filed against Htet Htet Khine, who freelances for the BBC, were dropped under the amnesty, but a charge under the Unlawful Association Act remains active, the spokesperson for the legal team said. On Wednesday, the Facebook group Myanmar Press Freedom In-Depth, which tracks jailed journalists, said at least 17 journalists have left prison since the start of this week. But dozens more remain in custody. One of those is American journalist Danny Fenster, whom Myanmar has charged under its laws on incitement and the Unlawful Associations Act. Fenster, who is managing editor of Frontier Myanmar, was not named in the amnesty and remains in custody. Originally from Detroit, Fenster has been jailed since May 24 for offenses allegedly carried out by Myanmar Now, months after Fenster resigned from the news outlet, his lawyer says. Frontier Myanmar has said it will end its print publication and temporarily cease its online and social media operation. In a message emailed to subscribers, editor-in-chief Thomas Kean cited political instability and risks to staff from possible arrest or the coronavirus. “The conditions for journalists working inside the country have gotten progressively worse over the past few months as the regime gets more desperate to crush resistance,” Kean said. His message added that many of the outlet’s reporters are in hiding and that it has become harder for the photographers to work. Mixed feelings The amnesty brought mixed emotions for those freed, including DVB reporter Min Nyo, who was arrested in March while covering a protest over the military takeover, and later sentenced to three years in prison. The reporter said that 170 people were detained under incitement charges in Pyay, in Myanmar’s Bago region, but only eight of those have been freed. "Many youth remain in prison. We are not happy to be released, because we feel uncomfortable looking at those left behind in jail. They have hopes and vision for future,” Min Nyo told VOA. “We left prison with sadness, and we want them to be released as soon as possible." Also freed were Mizzima co-founder Thin Thin Aung and one of her staff, James Pu Thoure. Both were arrested on April 8 on charges of incitement. Since the February 1 coup, arrest warrants have been issued for at least 10 Mizzima journalists, including the managing director and editor-in-chief Soe Myint and managing editor Sein Win. The amnesty deal was announced three days after the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) declined to invite Myanmar’s military leader to a summit. ASEAN cited a lack of progress on plans the junta had agreed to in April to restore peace in Myanmar. Myanmar's military government blamed "foreign intervention" for the decision. The Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP) tied the prisoner release to the junta’s attempts to blunt international criticism. The military announcement “must not be met with applause. It is a tactic of the junta to stop international condemnation. These releases will not end the coup,” the AAPP said. The group said that as of Monday, 7,355 people were detained, including 354 who have been sentenced. A further 1,989 are under arrest warrant and Myanmar has sentenced over 100 in absentia. Tom Andrews, the United Nations special rapporteur on human rights in Myanmar, said that while the prisoners' release was welcome, it came "not because of a change of heart, but because of pressure." In a statement posted to Twitter, Andrews added that they had been detained "illegally for exercising their fundamental human rights."..."
Source/publisher: "VOA" (Washington, D.C)
Date of entry/update: 2021-10-22
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Title: Myanmar: over 100 political prisoners re-arrested after release by military
Sub-title: Activists say issuing further charges to freed prisoners was ‘mental torture’ for families
Description: "More than 100 political prisoners freed following a supposed amnesty in Myanmar were re-arrested shortly after their release according to a rights group, in what activists have likened to “mental torture” for the detainees and their families. Some relatives, who had waited outside prisons expecting to be reunited with their loved ones, managed to catch a glimpse of them at the gates, before they were handcuffed and taken away. Others spent hours together, only to be separated again. The Myanmar junta, which has been repeatedly condemned for detaining thousands of its critics, including children, promised a major release of political prisoners on Monday. It stated it would pardon 1,316 people and drop charges against 4,320 people who had “participated in protests”. The military, however, gave no details of who would be freed, or what the terms of release would be. Human Rights Watch has since described the releases, which have taken place over the past week, as “limited in scope”. The Assistance Association for Political Prisoners Burma (AAPP), an advocacy group, has confirmed that 324 people have been freed. More than 7,031 political prisoners are still being held in detention, according to AAPP Burma. This includes anyone suspected of criticising or questioning the February military coup – from medics, to journalists, politicians and activists. AAPP said it was aware of 110 cases where people were issued with further charges and re-arrested after their supposed release. Ma Zin Mar, who lives in central Myanmar and spoke under a fake name, was told by a lawyer that her sister would be among those released this week. She waited outside the prison and saw her sister walk free. Then, she watched as her sister was handcuffed and placed in a car by plainclothes officers. “When this car drove outside of the prison compound, I ran after the car and asked them what happened. They said that they were bringing her to the police station. We followed to the police station and asked to meet my sister, but we were not allowed. We were so worried about her health,” she said. Ma Zin Mar had spent that day cheering up her mother, telling her that her sister would soon be free. She had been so happy to see her walk out of prison. “We are so depressed now. It is now even hard to breath.” Her mother, she added, was depressed and lying in bed. Thinzar Shunlei Yi, a prominent democracy activist, described the re-arrests as “complete mental torture of the family members and for the political prisoners.” There have been widespread reports of torture inside Myanmar prisons, and some of those who have been released this week have described harrowing treatment at the hands of security forces. A young democracy activist, who also spoke anonymously, said that during interrogations, which took place before he was transported to prison, detainees had no choice but to use toilet water to drink or wash their faces. He was arrested for possessing banners and posters opposing the military coup. “They [the military] even put guns in our mouths. And they threatened us a lot. They asked us to dig graves for ourselves. Also, I have seen other people get tortured and they were even vomiting because of the severity of the torture. Some people lost their teeth,” he said, speaking anonymously for fear of arrest. Prison, he said, had felt like paradise in comparison. He added that he cannot feel happy, even though he has been released. He lives in fear of being arrested again. He also worries for the many others left behind in prison. “Some of them got arrested for sharing a Facebook post, or they beat pots and pans [a protest act], or they got arrested as their phones were searched by the soldiers on the road. They did no crimes,” he said. The junta appeared to be releasing prisoners who had been charged under section 505a, a sweeping law that is used by the junta to punish anyone who criticises the coup or the military. However, many face multiple charges, and so remain in prison. The announcement of the prisoner release came just days after Min Aung Hlaing, the junta chief, was excluded from a regional summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) over his failure to commit to de-escalating the country’s crisis. Shunlei Yi said that she believed the announcement had been in response to the pressure from neighbouring countries. “They see these leaders as their like minded people,” she said, referring to Asean, which has a tradition of non-interference and rarely condemns its members over human rights issues. David Mathieson, an independent analyst formerly based in Myanmar, said that regardless of whether the release had been planned for some time or driven by the Asean decision, the snub by neighbouring countries would have stung. “They’re status-obsessed people, the leaders of the SAC [State Administrative Council junta],” he said. However, he added that the prisoner releases, which appear far more limited than promised, were unlikely to impress anyone in the international community. “A lot of diplomats [should say]: ‘you said that you were going to release all these people – where are the lists and where is this happening? … You’re promising something like this and completely reneging on it. We can’t trust anything that you say from now on, which really limits the ability to construct mediation with you.’”..."
Source/publisher: "The Guardian" (UK)
Date of entry/update: 2021-10-22
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Title: Myanmar: Prisoner Releases Fall Short
Sub-title: Deposed Political Leaders and Journalists Remain Detained
Description: "The Myanmar junta’s recent prisoner releases are limited in scope and do not reflect a broader change in the military’s respect for human rights, Human Rights Watch said today. On October 18, 2021, the State Administrative Council junta announced that it was pardoning 1,316 people and dropping charges against 4,320 who “participated in protests.” The junta provided no details about the terms of the releases or how they were being carried out. Concerned governments should increase pressure on the junta to release all political prisoners, end abuses against protesters and others, and commit to promptly restore democratic rule. “The partial release of wrongfully held detainees should not distract from the junta’s egregiously abusive rule, which hasn’t changed,” said Linda Lakhdhir, Asia legal adviser at Human Rights Watch. “Some of those released have already been rearrested. The junta should release all those unjustly held since the coup, including high-profile political figures, and end all arbitrary arrests.” The junta did not provide a list of those being released or their locations. As of October 19, the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP), a local nongovernmental organization that has documented arrests, prosecutions, and releases since the February 1 coup, had only been able to confirm the release of 189 prisoners, including 14 journalists. Several of those released have reported torture and other ill-treatment in detention. The junta’s announcement suggests that the authorities are dropping charges of “incitement” under Section 505A of Myanmar’s Penal Code, a vague new law promulgated by the junta to punish comments critical of the coup or the military government. However, many of those charged with incitement are facing other charges as well and may continue to be detained on those charges. Eleven of the 38 people released in the city of Meiktila, including a National League for Democracy member of parliament, were rearrested immediately after their release and are now facing possible charges under Myanmar’s Counter-Terrorism Law. The authorities are also requiring all those released to promise not to participate in further anti-coup activities, in violation of their basic rights. A military spokesman warned that anyone rearrested would serve the remainder of their original sentence in addition to any new sentence. The AAPP reported that while the junta claimed to have released over 2,000 prisoners in June, they were only able to verify the release of 372. “The authorities’ lack of transparency and immediate rearrest of some released prisoners reinforce the need to keep the pressure on to release all political prisoners,” Lakhdhir said. “As with the prisoner release in June, the actual numbers released may prove to be far lower than claimed.” In the eight months since the coup, the junta has arrested more than 9,000 people, with more than 7,100 still in detention as of October 19, the AAPP said. Nearly 2,000 more are known to be evading junta arrest warrants. Those still detained include the senior leadership of the National League for Democracy, including its de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi, the deposed president Win Myint, elected members of parliament, and dozens of journalists. Security forces made at least 24 new arrests on the same day the junta announced the prisoner releases. Since the coup, the junta has committed widespread and systematic abuses against the civilian population that amount to crimes against humanity, including murder, enforced disappearance, torture, rape and other sexual violence, severe deprivation of liberty, and other inhumane acts causing great suffering. Many of those detained have said that security personnel tortured and otherwise ill-treated them and others in custody. Methods of torture reported include beatings, mock executions with guns, burning with cigarettes, and rape and threatened rape. Security forces have killed at least 1,181 people, including some who appear to have been tortured to death in detention. Concerned governments should impose tougher economic measures against the military, its leadership, and its vast business activities to cut off the military’s sources of foreign revenue, most of which are kept outside of Myanmar in foreign banks. The United Nations Security Council should impose a global arms embargo on Myanmar. “Governments should not mistake these releases as a sign that the junta is taking a new approach,” Lakhdhir said. “Instead, the releases appear to be a cynical gesture to blunt growing international pressure to sanction the junta and its generals.”..."
Source/publisher: "Human Rights Watch" (USA)
Date of entry/update: 2021-10-22
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Title: AAPP Statement on Re-Arrested Political Prisoners Since Junta Announced “Amnesty”
Description: "Since the military February 1, 2021, coup the junta has been brutally cracking down, arbitrary detaining thousands, relentlessly torturing, and ruthlessly killing civilians against an illegitimate coup attempt. Most of the political prisoners are mentally and physically tortured, and do not even have access to a fair trial. The military junta released some political detainees on October 18, 2021, with the promise of retrospective sentences. It was never an absolute amnesty for political detainees. However, some were even released then cynically re-arrested as soon as they arrived home. Some others were told they were on the released list, taken to the jail entrance, only to be taken back to prison in the face of additional charges. These actions, of re-arresting soon after supposed released, having met with family for some hours or even arriving at jail gates only to be taken back to prison, are a form of physical and mental torture, not only to the political detainees, but their families. According to AAPP documentation, 110 political prisoners were re-arrested soon after release since 18 October’s announcement. And yet, there will be more arrests as some are in hiding or have been in lost contact. The hope is for every detainee to be released. These re-arrests destroy this desire. It is clear, the military junta is targeting the mental wellbeing of not only the political prisoners, but their children and family members. We, AAPP, condemn these cruel acts committed by the military junta. We also urge the immediate release of Burma’s elected President, State Counsellor, and all political detainees. AAPP will continue our efforts against the military perpetrated arbitrary detentions, torture, and barbaric killing. Yet we urge the international community to put further pressure on this illegitimate junta group..."
Source/publisher: Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP)
Date of entry/update: 2021-10-21
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Title: Junta hits Magway Region chief minister with new corruption charge
Sub-title: Dr Aung Moe Nyo is facing two charges of corruption, each accompanied by up to 15 years in prison if he is convicted, after already being sentenced to two years for incitement
Description: "The military council filed a second corruption charge against Dr Aung Moe Nyo, the detained Magway Region chief minister under the National League for Democracy (NLD) government, on Monday. Facing the same charge are Magway’s minister for social welfare, Dr Khin Maung Aye, and Tin Nwe Oo, the regional minister for transportation and construction, according to their lawyer. “The military filed charges against the three of them for alleged misconduct in the tenders regarding the construction of Magway Education College in 2020,” Aung Naing, the group’s lawyer, said. The junta accused the trio in June of costing the government nearly 54m kyat ($28,727) when they allegedly selected a company for the project in a manner that was not in accordance with tender regulations. “We still haven’t received copies of the documents or the evidence submitted by the prosecution for the new corruption charge. Our request is that his trial continue only after the court has approved [our request] to obtain those documents,” the lawyer said. Another charge was filed against the 63-year-old chief minister and NLD central executive committee member under Section 55 of the Anti-Corruption Law on June 23. The statute states that those in political office who are convicted of bribery face a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison, as well as a fine. The junta’s previous corruption charge is linked to the allegation that Aung Moe Nyo accepted 50m kyat (US$26,540) from the Denko Petrol Company and subsequently provided the company with land on which to construct a petrol station, according to Aung Naing. On June 8, the chief minister was also given a two-year prison sentence for incitement charges filed against him by the junta for allegedly violating Section 505b of the Penal Code. Multiple NLD chief ministers who are also members of the party’s central executive committee have been charged by the junta with corruption and incitement in recent months. Aung Moe Nyo’s legal team has only able to meet with him during his court hearings, since they have not been granted permission to speak with their client privately, Aung Naing said. The lawyer explained that during his brief discussions with the chief minister at the hearings, his client had told him that the money in question—50m kyat—was spent on the development of Magway Region. “He is not guilty as he did not use the money for his own personal use. He only used it for the wellbeing of the community,” Aung Naing told Myanmar Now. Aung Moe Nyo was placed under house arrest after the February 1 coup that ousted the elected NLD administration. He was moved to Magway Prison after he livestreamed his opposition to the coup on social media from house arrest. Although there have been rumours that Aung Moe Nyo was also facing charges under Section 25 of the Disaster Management Law, his lawyer told Myanmar Now that he had not been charged under the statute in court..."
Source/publisher: "Myanmar Now" (Myanmar)
Date of entry/update: 2021-10-20
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Title: Ethnic Minority Student Killed in Myanmar Junta Custody
Description: "A final-year engineering student who led anti-regime protests in Naypyitaw and Mandalay has died in military custody, his friends told The Irrawaddy. Ko Lin Paing Soe, a Buddhist Gurkha student from Kyaukse Technological University, was tortured because of his ethnicity and died on his first night in custody, said his friend, who is a member of Mandalay Yadanabon University student union. “We only just learned that he died. He died soon after he was detained on Sept. 30. He was beaten because he was non-Burmese and died in interrogation. The regime said he was sent to Obo Prison in Mandalay, which was a lie,” he told The Irrawaddy. Ko Lin Paing Soe led protests in Mandalay and Naypyitaw and was detained with two classmates and a striking nurse when junta forces in Mandalay raided the houses of protest leaders on Sept. 30. They were beaten by junta soldiers while being taken away, said another friend. He said a military source says they were taken to Mandalay Palace and interrogated the whole night. “I was told [soldiers] used racially and religiously offensive language against Ko Lin Paing Soe during interrogation and he was beaten inhumanely,” said his friend. His death was only revealed on Monday. “It is the inhumanity of the fascist military. Besides jailing civilians, they are killing people and covering up the deaths. Ko Lin Paing Soe’s family should have been told about his death,” said his friend. The military regime has used live ammunition on peaceful protesters and rammed them with vehicles. It has detained thousands of anti-regime activists and striking government employees. Non-Buddhists, LGBT people, student union members and National League for Democracy supporters were reportedly subjected to harsher torture during interrogation..."
Source/publisher: "The Irrawaddy" (Thailand)
Date of entry/update: 2021-10-19
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Title: Political Prisoners Freed by Myanmar Junta Rearrested on Same Day
Description: "Some political prisoners freed by the junta on Monday were rearrested on the same day and charged under the terrorism law, their colleagues said. Myanmar’s regime released over 5,600 people, most of whom were arrested and facing trial for participating in anti-junta protests. As of Saturday, more than 7,300 people had been detained by the junta since the coup. In Mandalay Region’s Meiktila town, 11 of 38 political prisoners released were apprehended by police after walking out of Meiktila Prison. Those rearrested were an elected lawmaker from the National League for Democracy (NLD), other NLD members, and political activists including members of the ’88 Generation students movement. NLD sources said on Tuesday morning that the 11 would be charged under sections 50A and 52J of the Counterterrorism Law for attempted terrorism and having contact with terrorist groups. If found guilty, they could be sentenced to up to seven years in prison. Sources at the Mandalay branch of the NLD said U Lwin Maung Maung, who was elected to the Mandalay regional parliament in 2020 on the NLD ticket, was taken by the police at around 6 p.m. in Mandalay. “I saw Ko Lwin [U Lwin Maung Maung] at the prison gate but police took him to the No. 1 Police Station near Meiktila Prison right after his release and some were arrested before arriving home,” said a source who was in front of the prison at the time. U Lwin Mg Mg was first arrested in late April and charged with sedition under Section 505-A of the Penal Code, which carries a maximum sentence of three years’ imprisoment. The Irrawaddy could not reach police for comment. Monday’s amnesty came right after ASEAN’s exclusion of junta leader Min Aung Hlaing from the group’s upcoming summit for his regime’s failure to collaborate with the regional bloc’s efforts to resolve Myanmar’s post-coup political crisis. The junta said the prisoners were freed on humanitarian grounds, but many believe the amnesty on Monday was the regime’s attempt to appease 10-member ASEAN, of which Myanmar is a member. Previously, the regime announced mass amnesties in February and April..."
Source/publisher: "The Irrawaddy" (Thailand)
Date of entry/update: 2021-10-19
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Title: Senior NLD Official, Prominent Myanmar Comedian Freed Alongside Activists, Journalists
Description: "A National League for Democracy (NLD) official and other party members, around a dozen journalists, student activists, a writer, a comedian and a few striking civil servants were among those released under Monday’s amnesty order. Coup leader Min Aung Hlaing on Monday announced the regime’s decision to free over 1,300 people jailed for participating in anti-coup protests and more than 4,300 detainees who were facing trial on incitement charges for their anti-regime activism. The amnesty followed an announcement by ASEAN that Min Aung Hlaing would not be invited to its annual summit later this month after the regional bloc’s call to end the ongoing violence in Myanmar in April was ignored. NLD information secretary released Monywa Aung Shin’s wife, Daw Kay Thwe Moe, told The Irrawaddy the detained politician returned to the family on Monday evening. Monywa Aung Shin was arrested by regime forces at his home in Yangon’s Tamwe Township at around 4:30 a.m. on Feb. 1, the day the junta overthrew the democratically elected NLD-led government. He was one of around 150 senior NLD leaders and Central Executive Committee members, prominent activists, writers and monks who were arrested on the first day of the coup. Since then, the whereabouts and condition of the 76-year-old politician had remained unknown to the family until his release. In an interview with local media outlet DVB news, Monywa Aung Shin said he was kept at a military interrogation center in Mingalardon Township and no charge was filed against him, despite his being detained for over eight months. Several NLD members and elected lawmakers remain in detention. And some of those who were included on the release list on Monday were rearrested for allegedly having connections with the parallel National Unity Government, its parliamentary committee and the People’s Defense Force, according to sources. The junta has brought several charges, from bribery to incitement, against NLD leaders including State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, President U Win Myint, chief ministers and the party’s elected parliamentary speakers. Some journalists freed As of late Tuesday afternoon, the release of around a dozen journalists had been confirmed. Those included three journalists from Myitkyina Journal, one each from 74 Media and Kachin Wave, three from DVB who were sentenced to prison terms, and three from Mizzima including its co-founder Ma Thin Thin Aung and one reporter from Mon State. Ko Aung Kyaw, the recently released DVB reporter, said that during his detention he was interrogated and tortured, and also forced to labor in prison, according to DVB. He was violently arrested on March 1 after he livestreamed police and soldiers shooting at houses and destroying possessions of civilians during their crackdown. He also reported that a pregnant woman in Myeik had been beaten and her home looted by security forces. He was convicted of incitement and sentenced to two years in June. He said that more than a hundred dissidents remained in Myeik Prison. Writer, comedian released Well-known comedian U Zaganar was also released on Monday, according to his friends. The comedian, who was in and out of prison under the previous military regime for his pro-democracy activism following the 1988 uprising, was detained at his home in Tamwe Township, Yangon Region in April. No reason has been given for his abduction this time. Writer and media trainer Ma Tu Tu Tha and a member of her family who were arrested at their home in Thanlynn Township in Yangon were released on Tuesday. According to local residents, soldiers and police searched her house and arrested four, including her son, brother and one of their friends during an overnight guest inspection. Activists among the released According to a local media report, two ethnic Kachin youth political activists, Lum Zawng and Seng Nu Pan, were released from Myitkyina Prison on Tuesday. Ma Shwe Yupar Linn, Ko Lin Htet, Ko Kyaw Min Tun and Ko Soe Htet Oo from the University Students Unions Alumni Force were also freed from Insein Prison on Tuesday after six months of detention for their anti-regime activism. Junta tactic According to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP), an activist group recording killings and arrests of junta forces, more than 9,000 people have been arrested since the coup. The group described the detainees’ release as a tactic of the junta to stop international condemnation. “These releases will not end the coup,” the AAPP said in a recent report. The group called for the unconditional release of State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, President U Win Myint and all political prisoners, and the restoration of the democratically elected leaders to their positions. As of Oct. 18, at least 1,181 people had been killed by junta forces and 131 had been tortured to death, according to the AAPP. “Action must be taken against those who committed arbitrary arrests and torture. Moreover, the junta must take full responsibility as perpetrators, apologize and institute reparations for those arbitrarily detained and physically and mentally tortured,” the AAPP said. The 5,600-odd people freed under Monday’s amnesty were warned that if they are rearrested they will have to serve the rest of their original sentences, as well as any additional sentence. “If they commit crimes again, they will have to serve the remaining sentences in addition [to the old one],” said a junta statement accompanying the prisoner release. UN Special Rapporteur Tom Andrews said in a statement released after the announcement of the amnesty that the release of detainees is clearly not because the junta has had a change of heart, but because of the pressure on it. He urged sustained pressure to deny the junta money, weapons and legitimacy, saying this is the best way the international community can support the people of Myanmar, as the arbitrary arrest and persecution of those exercising their fundamental human rights continues..."
Source/publisher: "The Irrawaddy" (Thailand)
Date of entry/update: 2021-10-19
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Title: Introducing Lu Nge Khit
Description: "Lu Nge Khit, the era of youth, is a small media organisation formed by young journalists in Myanmar on Monday, 13 September, when they held their very first newsroom meeting. The founding group of journalists, from a variety of backgrounds, all shared a desire to unite and create a new platform to fill the huge information void left by the military coup on 1 February. A string of subsequent measures inflicted on the people by the Tatmadaw, first as the “State Administration Council” and now as a “Caretaker Government” have stymied access to information across the country. Soon after Senior General Min Aung Hlaing fronted the cameras on 8 February, seemingly confused at the millions-strong rejection of his poorly thought-out grab, the Tatmadaw began increasing murders, detentions and other attacks on civilians and peaceful protesters, and banned existing media houses, starting with those most extensively covering the anti-coup protests. The Tatmadaw raided offices, explicitly targeted journalists for abduction and tortured them on the street and in shadow detention centres. The Detained Journalists Information Group and Reporting ASEAN has counted a total of 102 journalists arrested, of whom 48 are still detained, including American Danny Fenster. Four media houses have been charged under Section 505 (a) of the Penal Code and seven media houses have had their publishing licenses revoked. Although some organisations have managed to relocate staff to areas in the country outside of the Tatmadaw’s control and continue reporting, others, such as 7 Day News Journal and The Voice Daily, have completely ceased their operations. Myanmar is now “the country without newspapers”: for the last seven months since March 17, 2021, Myanmar has not had a single independent print newspaper in publication. Since 1 February, as the Tatmadaw’s horrific subjugation of the nation’s people has increased, so has public access to information decreased. After initially imposing nationwide internet blackouts, the Tatmadaw has shifted to employing strategic township-level blackouts, with 25 townships still affected this month. Some of the military’s most egregious crimes and massacres in rural areas take place under these blackouts. One consequence of increasing challenges to accessing information is a rise in the spread of propaganda, “fake news”, disinformation and misinformation. Access to accurate and balanced information is crucial in this time of crisis. In such an unsafe reporting environment, media organisations are now––more than ever–– dependent on citizen journalists. Organisations struggle every day to verify sources and claims from these brave people on the ground, who are shot at, beaten and arrested by security forces and their proxies if caught filming newsworthy events. At the same time, many young journalists have lost their jobs and others are in hiding, with either no income or with meagre support from the Civil Disobedience Movement (CDM). Even though activists have been shouting out loud that “Journalism is Not a Crime”, reporters are being treated as criminals under the military regime. The story of one of our own reporters, pseudonym Ko Y, illustrates this. Ko Y was arrested earlier this year while reporting on mass street protests in Yangon. He was held in Insein prison for three months. When released, the newspaper he worked for had stopped publishing due to having its license revoked by the military. “While I was in prison in March, I heard the news that my newspaper had stopped printing and I felt helpless. For me, it is not only about me losing my job, but also about losing press freedom in our country,” he said. Nevertheless, Ko Y is eager to continue reporting under the military regime and went into hiding after joining Lu Nge Khit. As a newsroom team member of Lu Nge Khit, he risks his life along with the rest of the team and Myanmar’s thousands of citizen journalists every day. Ko Y says, “I’m glad that I can continue my work reporting conflicts over the country. It makes me feel confident that I’m reporting right and accurate news for the people who need it”. Lu Nge Khit was formed to be a bridge between the people of Myanmar­­––who deserve easier access to journalism of the highest standard––and journalists with the passion and skills to pursue the verification and reporting of news needed to meet this essential right to information. As part of this goal, one of Lu Nge Khit’s missions is to target and support youths with information useful for them and their generation. The majority of the Lu Nge Khit team lived their childhood and adolescence under the military regime before the changes of the decade from 2010-2020, but we were also shaped by that decade and its opportunities, helping us to understand the profound concerns facing Myanmar’s youth of today. Many of my own childhood memories are filled with military propaganda. It is a shame, but I believed it all then. It was hard for me in my young age to find job and opportunities. Access to information is a basic human right and we do not want today’s youth to suffer from a lack of information like we did. Lu Nge Khit is also intended to be a platform for youth, enabling and supporting young people to raise and express their own voices. As a first step, we are developing an online program for youth to share their experiences, their concerns and opinions. The program will be open to all young people in the country, and more information will be available soon. Another mission of Lu Nge Khit is to create opportunities for journalists and try to rebuild the devastated media industry in Myanmar. Lu Nge Khit cannot hire all the journalists who have been forced out of work by the Tatmadaw, but it can create opportunities for those journalists who are particularly energetic and keen to continue their career during this terrifying crisis. At present, a team of seven reporters and three editors are running the newsroom in collaboration with a video editor and a translator. Please visit Lu Nge Khit and like/follow its Facebook page, which is currently the best way to stay engaged with the organisation. We are currently in the process of setting up a website and other secure media channels to reach the people of Myanmar, but for now, Facebook remains our central distribution service..."
Source/publisher: "Tea Circle" (Myanmar)
Date of entry/update: 2021-10-18
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Title: Myanmar protesters freed as military says 5,600 prisoners will be released
Sub-title: Announcement follows junta chief being barred from summit over failure to commit to de-escalation
Description: "Myanmar’s military has announced plans to release more than 5,000 prisoners, days after the junta chief was blocked from attending an upcoming regional summit over his failure to commit to de-escalating the country’s crisis. A total of 5,600 people arrested or subject to arrest warrants for taking part in anti-coup protests since the military seized power in February would be released, it was announced on state TV on Monday. Late into the evening the first of the prisoners were released. It was not immediately clear how long it would take for all those scheduled for release to be freed. More than 7,300 political prisoners – including medics, elected politicians, journalists and protesters – are being held, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP) Burma, an advocacy group that tracks the arrests. In cases where the military’s targets cannot be found, security forces have instead abducted their relatives, including children, the UN special rapporteur for the country, Tom Andrews, said last month. Many rushed immediately to find out if their relatives or friends would be released following the announcement. A woman from Yangon, who spoke anonymously, was among those who went to the prison to search for information about her sister, a journalist detained in August. The family had not been able to visit her sister since the arrest, she said. “We received a letter that says she is healthy and OK. We didn’t hear any other news.” The letter had asked for the family to send her a newspaper to read; they tried to pass one to prison staff, but are unsure if she received it. “We hope for her freedom. But we can’t expect too much,” she added. Another woman whose two younger brothers were arrested separately, in May and July, said she too was trying to find out if they would be released. Both were in their 20s, she said. “There is no reason to thank [the military]. We even want to curse them. Many of my friends and two brothers are arrested, so there is no reason to thank them.” At least 1,178 have been killed in the military’s deadly crackdowns, according to AAPP Burma, including 131 people who were killed in detention. There have been widespread reports of torture in prisons. The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean), which has led international efforts to negotiate, agreed a five-point plan with the military to de-escalate the crisis in April. This included an agreement that Asean would send an envoy, Brunei’s second foreign minister, Erywan Yusof, to the country to mediate. However, he cancelled his trip this week after the military announced he would not be permitted to meet Aung San Suu Kyi. The bloc decided to exclude the junta chief, Min Aung Hlaing, from its upcoming summit, which will be attended by Joe Biden, due to the lack of progress. The decision was a rare rebuke from Asean, which maintains a non-interference policy, and is a major blow to the junta’s hopes of gaining greater legitimacy internationally. Minn Khant Kyaw Linn, a 23-year-old student activist whose friends were killed during the spring revolution protests this year, said the international community should not be fooled into believing the military’s pledges. “This army also tortured and arrested innocent people. We demand the international community to take action on this army,” he said. Among those being held is the American journalist Danny Fenster, who has been in detention since his arrest on 24 May. AAPP said in a statement that the prisoner release was intended as “a form of distraction for the foreign governments” and that it was no coincidence that the announcement came days after Asean’s decision to exclude Min Aung Hlaing from its gathering. “The junta will continue to refuse to be transparent about the individual persons released, and who remains detained. Released prisoners from 18 October may include some political prisoners but the intention is not to relax repression,” AAPP said. “If the junta wanted to make concessions, State Counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and President U Win Myint and all political prisoners would be released unconditionally, and the democratically elected leaders reinstalled.”..."
Source/publisher: "The Guardian" (UK)
Date of entry/update: 2021-10-18
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Title: Brief 3: Myanmar at War: D-Day and Its Repercussions
Description: "This brief, the third in a series, reviews Myanmar’s conflict trends for the month of September 2021. It focuses on the significance of the National Unity Government’s (NUG) September 7 declaration of “resistance war” against the junta, e.g., the long-rumored ‘D-Day.’1 This brief builds upon analysis presented in Brief 2: Myanmar’s Shifting Military Balance, which described how armed resistance to military dictatorship continued to expand in scope during July and August 2021. Particularly significant, by the end of August a total of 250 out of the country’s 330 townships had experienced at least some conflict incidents since 1 February. Key to armed resistance has been the increasing assertion and steady expansion of self-defense groups. Since the coup, approximately 240 such groups have declared themselves in one way or another. It is likely that at least 180 of them have been active to some extent. The NUG’s September 7 declaration was a major milestone in the country’s history.2 Since then, there has been a notable increase in attacks across the country on Tatmadaw forces and other State Administration Council (SAC) apparatuses. Self-defense groups and key EAOs are active in resistance actions across the length and breadth of the country aside from Rakhine.3 A strong argument can be made that resistance to military rule is now self-sustaining in terms of resourcing, safe havens, and personnel, and cannot be easily extinguished by the Tatmadaw.4 The Tatmadaw has had no success forcing key EAOs to sign ceasefires or to break their burgeoning relationships with the NUG and peoples’ defense forces (PDFs). Resistance forces now have established safe havens with both the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) and Karen National Union (KNU) where they can safely train and equip fighters.5 Raids on villages are ineffective at killing PDF fighters. Tatmadaw ‘clearance operations’ in remote townships are costly and ineffective at controlling territory for the long-term. There are simply not enough security forces to move around. It is not assured that SAC will lose, but a month after D-Day, it certainly does not have the military initiative. The Tatmadaw is increasingly having to react to events driven by the resistance.6 As before, the analysis in this brief is underpinned by a ‘conflict incidents’ dataset compiled by the author. This dataset comprises approximately 3,400 incidents from 1 February to 30 September but focuses specifically on ‘conflict incidents’ from May onwards when the nature of resistance shifted towards nationwide armed revolt. This dataset draws on Exera daily briefs but is complemented by other sources, such as 74 Media, Khit Thit Media, and Mizzima’s daily updates. The author notes up front his own doubts about trying to quantify a highly fluid situation. Such datasets are useful for highlighting general trends and trajectories and the analysis below should be understood accordingly.7 Lastly, the brief intentionally provides a wide range of references to support policymakers interested in specific topics. Did D-Day have any effect? The September 7 announcement by NUG interim president Duwa Lashi La provoked a lot of interest around the world and a palpable sense of excitement within the country. After a month, it is possible to make some preliminary observations about whether it had any significance to the military situation on the ground. Over September there were approximately 779 conflict incidents, compared to 523 in August and 443 in July.8 This represents a 49 percent increase month-on-month.9 A review of the most conflict-affected townships, both overall and during September, highlights they are all over the country, including in major urban townships in Yangon and Mandalay. September saw new townships all over the country emerge as hotspots, such as: Ye Township, Mon State; Launglon Township, Tanintharyi Region; Thantlang Township, Chin State; and Ayadaw Township, Sagaing Region. Examined from another angle, daily national averages of conflict incidents increased from 16.9 in August to 26 in September.10 Mandalay saw the steepest change, nearly doubling its average with several townships in Mandalay city seeing sharp rises in conflict incidents (see Annex 1). Magway was also notable, increasing from 1.55 to 2.64 conflict incidents per day, driven by resistance attacks in Yesagyo, Gangaw, Pauk, Saw and Taungdwingyi Townships. Yangon and Sagaing Regions were already high in August but still increased over September; from 3.61 to 5.4 and 3.84 to 6.8 incidents per day respectively. Overall, Sagaing, Magway, Yangon, and Mandalay Magway Regions represented 68 percent of all conflict incidents in September. The widespread presence and quickening pace of armed resistance and conflict incidents in Bamar Regions is unprecedented. While the remaining three regions are not at the same levels, Bago, Ayeyarwady and Tanintharyi Regions also saw their daily averages of conflict incidents increase over September compared to August (see Annex 1). This was due to increased actions in townships with existing concentrations of conflict incidents – for instance Pathein, Bago, and Dawei – but more significantly by rapid increases in other townships that did not have extensive conflict histories. For instance, Thayetchaung Township in Tanintharyi Regions escalated markedly in September as did Kyaukkyi Township in Bago Region. Seven townships also became active for the first time in September in these three Regions, namely Einme and Ngaputaw Townships in Ayeyarwady Region; Daik-U, Gyobingauk, Kawa, and Monyo Towships in Bago Region; and Tanintharyi Township in Tanintharyi Region. The D-Day announcement did not significantly change the strategy and tactics used by self-defense groups. Rather, it signaled a distinct escalation in attacks utilizing available resources. Self-defense groups are utilizing the gamut of tactics applied to date, including IED and mine attacks, assassinations, arson attacks, attacks on police stations, and bombings of strategic routes, offices, and infrastructure. Several new tactics have also emerged, such as the routine sabotage of MyTel telecom towers. During September there was a clear escalation of bombings in both Yangon and Mandalay. By example, from September 1 to 22, there were at least 39 explosions in Yangon Region alone.11 Sabotage of MyTel telecom towers escalated significantly over September and by the end of the month over a hundred had been destroyed since the coup.12 As mentioned, conflict incidents have been consistently present in the States since the coup except for Rakhine. However, Shan State was relatively calm over September aside from consistently high levels of conflict incidents in Muse Township in the northeast and Phekon Township in the south, which has been the case for several months now. Overall, conflict incidents decreased across the State from 48 in August to 33 in September. That Shan State is relatively calm is a historic anomaly, but the ongoing fighting between the Restoration Council of Shan State (RCSS) and the Shan State Progress Party (SSPP) -- Ta'ang National Liberation Army (TNLA) coalition persists at comparatively low numbers of conflict incidents, albeit at high intensity as they are significant military forces engaging in battles. The Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA), an EAO from the Kokang community, has been active in Muse but was also increasingly active in Lashio Township during the last week of September. There were also notable attacks on Tatmadaw-allied forces in Kalaw Township.13 Although Chin State saw an overall increase in conflict incidents, both Kayah and Karen States saw slight decreases. Fighting over September was particularly pronounced in Chin State’s Thantlang, Hakha and Tedim Townships in the north and Kantpetlet Township in the south. September was also significant for the amount of coordination by Chin self-defense groups and those in nearby Sagaing and Magway 0 50 100 150 200 250 Conflict Incidents Per State/Region MonthConflict Incidents Per State/Region MonthConflict Incidents Per State/Region MonthConflict Incidents Per State/Region Month Conflict Incidents Per State/Region MonthConflict Incidents Per State/Region MonthConflict Incidents Per State/Region Month Conflict Incidents Per State/Region MonthConflict Incidents Per State/Region MonthConflict Incidents Per State/Region MonthConflict Incidents Per State/Region MonthConflict Incidents Per State/Region MonthConflict Incidents Per State/Region MonthConflict Incidents Per State/Region MonthConflict Incidents Per State/Region Month Conflict Incidents Per State/Region MonthConflict Incidents Per State/Region Month Conflict Incidents Per State/Region MonthConflict Incidents Per State/Region Month Conflict Incidents Per State/Region Month Conflict Incidents Per State/Region MonthConflict Incidents Per State/Region MonthConflict Incidents Per State/Region MonthConflict Incidents Per State/Region MonthConflict Incidents Per State/Region MonthConflict Incidents Per State/Region MonthConflict Incidents Per State/Region Month Conflict Incidents Per State/Region MonthConflict Incidents Per State/Region MonthConflict Incidents Per State/Region MonthConflict Incidents Per State/Region Month May June JuneJune July JulyJuly AugustAugustAugustAugustAugustAugust SeptemberSeptemberSeptemberSeptember September SeptemberSeptember 4 Regions. Mon State also saw notable increases in conflict incidents over September, more than doubling compared to August. This was driven by marked increases in Ye, Bilin and Thaton Townships..."
Source/publisher: Matthew B. Arnold, Ph.D.
Date of entry/update: 2021-10-12
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Title: The mother who lost her sons to the coup
Sub-title: With three of her sons in prison and the fourth in hiding, Khin Kyi finds herself alone and struggling in precarious times
Description: "Until four years ago, 63-year-old widow Khin Kyi made a living selling used books in the Myaynigone commercial district in Yangon's Sanchaung Township. Then she started selling noodle salads to make ends meet. Now she has nothing to rely on, not even her four sons. First the pandemic, then the coup, robbed her of her livelihood. Of the two, the latter has done far greater harm. She may have been strong enough to survive a recent bout of Covid-19, but recovering from the coup may prove far more difficult. Thanks to a niece, she has food to eat. But that is far less support than she would have had if her four adult sons were still around. Before the coup, they often visited her home. Now she has no idea when they will return. “My niece has been sending me food these days. I feel quite small since I don’t have my sons with me anymore, but I’m trying my best to stay strong as I want to see them all again,” she said. Her oldest son, 34-year-old Thu Zaw Kyi Win, has a family of his own, with two young sons, aged three and four, and a third child on the way. It has been months since he saw them last. He longs to reunite with his family—not only with his wife and children, but also with his mother and brothers. But as the only son who is not in the custody of the coup regime, he doesn’t dare return to any of the homes he has known, lest he, too, ends up sharing his brothers’ fate. “The only way all of our families will ever be able to reunite is if we win this revolution,” he says in a determined voice. The solitary son Now in hiding, Thu Zaw Kyi Win plays down the price he and his brothers have had to pay for opposing Myanmar’s dictators: “I knew I would have to face these things if I did this, so it wasn’t unexpected when my brothers got taken.” In his eyes, however, there is a look of deeper concern. Perhaps he is thinking of his mother, and the mother of his sons. But rather than dwell on this, he returns to the subject of his brothers. Naing Zaw Kyi Win, the next in line, was arrested on April 10 for taking part in a workers’ strike in Yangon’s Shwepyithar Township. He is currently being held in Insein Prison, where the two brothers previously served 14 months for their involvement in a similar strike in February 2015. Twenty-seven-year-old Naing Zaw Kyi Win was working as a driver at a factory before the coup. A loner who kept largely to himself, he was also known for helping his co-workers with their problems. Thu Zaw Kyi Win acknowledged that his brother had drifted away from the rest of the family before the coup. “He lived alone and never really talked to any of us,” he said. Ironically, before the coup tore the family apart, it brought the two brothers together again. United in their commitment to fighting the regime that seized power on February 1, they were both quick to join the Spring Revolution. Thu Zaw Kyi Win has heard that his brother was among those who took part in a protest inside Insein Prison in July. As punishment, he was reportedly beaten and placed in an isolation cell. Although this could not be confirmed, it has added to the emotional burden of both his mother and the only brother still in a position to know anything about the rest of his family. The twins When Thu Zaw Kyi Win and Naing Zaw Kyi Win joined forces in the early days of the anti-coup movement, they also counted a third brother among their closest comrades. Yan Naung Kyi Win was working as a tattoo artist near Shwepyithar’s Amoe Gyi bus station before the turmoil began. Just 22 years old, he already had a history as a student activist. According to a former central committee member of the All Burma Federation of Student Unions (ABFSU), Yan Naung Kyi Win served as chair of the Shwepyithar Township Student Union from 2017 and became president of the township’s executive team of the Basic Education Students Union in 2018. “He was dead set on destroying the dictatorship from the time he started working with us. I’m very worried about him now that he’s being detained,” the former ABFSU official said. Yan Naung Kyi Win was arrested in Bago on April 16 and is currently being held in Bago Prison. Despite being his identical twin, Yan Naing Kyi Win, the fourth brother, could not have been more different from Yan Naung Kyi Win, at least in terms of his political orientation. Unlike his brothers, Yan Naing Kyi Win kept himself aloof from the unrest that has swept across the country since February. He preferred to focus on his phone and computer repair business in Hlaing Tharyar Township. But his apolitical attitude did little to protect him when, in July, he was arrested while visiting his mother. As Thu Zaw Kyi Win later learned, he has since been charged with incitement under Section 505a of the Penal Code. “They accused him of taking part in the protests and arrested him. I think they mistook him for one of us,” said his oldest brother. Targeting families According to Bo Kyi, the associate secretary of the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP), such unjustifiable arrests are not simply a matter of guilt by association. Targeting family members has always been one of the military’s ways of punishing its opponents, he explained. “The military has not changed. In the past, they would often arrest the father if they could not find the son. But now they’re doing it even more than before,” he said. But the regime doesn’t just lock up relatives of activists—it also ensures that families suffer in other ways, as well. “Sometimes they fire family members from government jobs if someone in the family is politically active. And they will make it impossible for children of activists to study abroad,” he said. As a mother deprived of the support of her sons in a time of desperate need, Khin Kyi is like millions of others in Myanmar who are struggling to survive under the rule of an army indifferent to the needs of ordinary citizens. For Thu Zaw Kyi Win, who is as powerless to help his mother as her other three sons who are now behind bars, knowing how much she must be suffering is perhaps the bitterest pill he has had to swallow. But even now, he remains convinced that the day will come when the people will prevail over their oppressors, and his family will be reunited. “We will make sure to meet up at Mom’s house again, just like old times,” he says, with hope in his eyes..."
Source/publisher: "Myanmar Now" (Myanmar)
Date of entry/update: 2021-10-11
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Title: Ousted Rakhine chief minister sentenced to two years in prison for incitement
Sub-title: Nyi Pu is also facing corruption charges carrying 15 years’ imprisonment if he is convicted
Description: "A junta court in Sittwe sentenced Nyi Pu, the detained former chief minister of Rakhine State, to two years in prison with hard labour for incitement on Friday, according to his lawyer. Judge Win Naing of the Sittwe Township court delivered 66-year-old Nyi Pu’s verdict at a hearing held via video conference on Friday regarding charges filed under Section 505b of the Penal Code. Section 505b outlaws “any statement, rumour or report” likely to induce people to “commit an offence against the state.” Nyi Pu is the second chief minister and central executive committee (CEC) member of the ousted National League for Democracy (NLD) to be convicted by the junta of violating the statute since Myanmar’s February 1 military coup. On June 8, Aung Moe Nyo, another NLD CEC member and former chief minister of Magway Region, was also sentenced to two years in prison for incitement. Nyi Pu was among multiple members of Union and regional cabinets detained shortly after the military seized power from the elected NLD administration. The junta initially placed him under house arrest days after the coup, but transferred him to detention on February 10 after he posted a video on Facebook in which he expressed opposition to the coup. The NLD has published statements encouraging public resistance to and the rejection of military rule as long as its leaders, including State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi and President Win Myint, are in junta custody. The military authorities accused central members of the party, including Nyi Pu, of inciting the public to violence through the statements. Myo Myat Hein, a lawyer from Thazin Legal Aid Network representing Nyi Pu, said the judge concluded that he was among those responsible even though he was in custody at the time the statements were published. “The conclusion is that whether or not he attended the party’s meetings [regarding the statements] is a separate issue, but as a CEC member, he is responsible for those statements,” said the lawyer. Kyaw Thein, the junta’s deputy township administrator of Sittwe, filed an incitement charge against Nyi Pu on February 15. The plaintiff called on five witnesses to testify against him and Nyi Pu testified on his own behalf on September 28. Nyi Pu appeared calm as the judge handed out the verdict on Friday, Myo Myat Hein added. The former chief minister will be transferred to Sittwe prison from a detention centre at the township’s military cantonment, the lawyer said. He said he will consult with Nyi Pu regarding whether to file an appeal against the verdict. Kyi Kyi Oo, Nyi Pu’s daughter, said she had not been able to meet with her father since he was arrested in February and has demanded that she be granted a visit with him. She did not offer comment on Friday’s verdict. “We all know that [the military] arrests people unjustly and frames and convicts people unfairly,” she told Myanmar Now. Her sister, Moe San Suu Kyi, an NLD youth leader, was arrested by the junta authorities in Yangon on May 9 and has since been detained in Insein Prison. In addition to the incitement conviction, Nyi Pu is also facing three corruption charges filed at the Rakhine State High Court for which hearings are ongoing. Rakhine State’s municipal minister Min Aung, industry and transportation minister Aung Kyaw Zan, planning and finance minister Kyaw Aye Thein, and forestry and mining minister Kyaw Lwin are also named in the corruption charge levied against Nyi Pu. He stands accused of abusing his power during his tenure as chief minister and personally profiting while overseeing the implementation of land development projects in Rakhine State’s Gwa Township. Each charge carries 15 years’ imprisonment if he is found guilty..."
Source/publisher: "Myanmar Now" (Myanmar)
Date of entry/update: 2021-10-09
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Title: Fifteen-year-old student leader arrested in Naypyitaw
Sub-title: The military council units also raided the boy’s house two days after he was detained
Description: "Junta authorities arrested the teenaged president of the Basic Education Students’ Union of Naypyitaw’s Zabuthiri Township at his home earlier this week, according to the group. Tun Aung Kyaw, age 15, was taken into detention by two police officers and two local administrators, a spokesperson for the Naypyitaw Students’ Union said. It is said that the military units arrested Tun Aung Kyaw, the president of the basic education students’ union of Zabuthiri township, Naypyidaw, at his home on October 3 evening. “He is technically a minor, so they said that they just had some questions to ask and that they’d let him go soon,” he told Myanmar Now. At the time of reporting, the boy was still being held at the No. 3 police station in Zabuthiri and had not been allowed contact with his family, the student union representative said. At 10pm on Tuesday, military troops reportedly ransacked his house. Myanmar Now called the police station for comment on Tun Aung Kyaw’s arrest but the calls went unanswered. Another Naypyitaw student leader, Yan Paing, was arrested by the military on May 2 and died on October 1 during an interrogation, according to a statement released by the Naypyitaw Students’ Union. According to the statistics reported by the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP), there have now been at least 7,104 civilians detained by the junta since the February 1 coup and at least 1,158 civilians killed during that same period. As they have been active in participating in anti-coup demonstrations, student union members have been frequent targets of military arrests, but the exact number of students in detention is not known. Most recently, four students preparing to protest against the junta were arrested near the Pathi dam in Taungoo Township, Bago Region on the evening of September 19..."
Source/publisher: "Myanmar Now" (Myanmar)
Date of entry/update: 2021-10-07
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Title: Myanmar Junta Takes Family Member as Old as 94 Hostage
Description: "The 94-year-old mother of a former lawmaker from the ousted National League for Democracy (NLD) in Mon State and the son of a wanted protest leader in Mandalay Region are among the latest family members of regime opponents to be detained by junta forces. U Myo Win’s 94-year-old mother and his daughter were arrested on Saturday when junta troops failed to find the former NLD MP in Ye Township, Mon State. The mother was later released but the daughter remains in custody. Their detention followed the arrest and release by junta troops of U Myo Win’s wife earlier in the day. He has been in hiding since March to evade arrest, as the junta has targeted elected lawmakers and members of the NLD across the country with detention, torture and lawsuits. On Monday, the MP wrote on his Facebook page that his mother was released after being detained, but his daughter was being kept in custody for interrogation. The regime has adopted the tactic of arbitrarily arresting and detaining family and friends of activists, protesters and opposition members as hostages in order to force its wanted opponents to surrender. More than 170 civilians including children are being held hostage by Myanmar’s military regime in place of wanted opponents, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP). Of those who have been detained, only a few have been released. Among the children held as hostages was Su Htet Wyne, the 5-year-old daughter of Ko Soe Htay, a protest leader in Mogoke, Mandalay Region. She was held for two weeks after being arrested together with her mother and sister on June 13 after junta troops failed to find her father at their home on the day. A warrant has been issued for Ko Soe Htay on an incitement charge for organizing anti-regime protests. While Su Htet Wyne was released, her mother and sister were sentenced to three years’ imprisonment each on incitement charges. Neither defended themselves against the charge, saying they don’t trust the judiciary under the junta. Ko Soe Htay told The Irrawaddy on Tuesday that his older son, Ko Okkar Soe, 24, was again arrested at around 4 a.m. on Sept. 29 at his office in Mogoke, for using his delivery service business to earn extra income to support the jailed mother and sister, something that had become necessary as his father is also in hiding. Eight other young men employed at the office were also arrested. Ko Soe Htay said the families of the detained young men have not yet been told the reasons for their arrests and have not been allowed to visit them. “We heard they were tortured in military interrogation,” he said. “As they can’t find me, they are arresting all my family members. It is what dictators do, how they bully civilians. There are other families who face a worse fate than us. Only when our revolution prevails will we be able to end such incidents,” the protest leader added. Currently, Ko Soe Htay and two remaining family members—his youngest daughter and younger son—are in hiding. According to the AAPP’s most recent report, more than 8,700 people including elected leaders, politicians, protesters, student activists and striking civil servants have been arrested. Of them, 7,079 were still detained as of Monday, the AAPP stated in the report..."
Source/publisher: "The Irrawaddy" (Thailand)
Date of entry/update: 2021-10-05
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Title: Violence Committed by the Terrorist Junta in September - စက်တင်ဘာလအတွင်း အကြမ်းဖက်စစ်အုပ်စု၏ ကျူးလွန်မှုများ
Description: "စစ်တပ်မှ အာဏာသိမ်းယူသည့် အချိန်မှစ၍ စစ်အာဏာသိမ်းမှုကို ဆန့်ကျင်ကန့်ကွက်ခဲ့ကြသည့် အရပ်သားပြည်သူများအပေါ် ပြင်းပြင်းထန်ထန်နှိပ်ကွပ်မှုများကို စစ်အုပ်စုက ပြုလုပ်ဆောင်ရွက်လျက်ရှိခဲ့သည်။ စက်တင်ဘာလ (၇) ရက်နေ့တွင် အမျိုးသားညီညွတ်ရေးအစိုးရက စစ်အာဏာရှင်ကို လက်နက်ကိုင်တော်လှန်မှုများဖြင့် ပြန်လှန်ခုခံသွားရန် ကြေညာချက် ထွက်ပေါ်ခဲ့ပြီးနောက် စစ်အုပ်စု၏ အကြမ်းဖက်မှုများမှာ ပိုမို ဆိုးရွားရက်စက်လာခဲ့သည်။ စက်တင်ဘာလအတွင်း၌ မကွေးတိုင်း၊ စစ်ကိုင်းတိုင်း၊ ချင်းပြည်နယ်တို့တွင် စစ်အုပ်စု၏ လက်ပါးစေ တပ်ရင်းတပ်ခွဲများက အကြမ်းဖက်ဝင်ရောက်စီးနင်းမှုများပြုလုပ်ကာ မီးရှို့ခြင်း၊ သတ်ဖြတ်ခြင်း၊ ပစ္စည်းဥစ္စာများကို ဖျက်ဆီးခြင်းများ ပြုလုပ်ခဲ့ ကြသည်။ ထို့အပြင် ရွာလုံးကျွတ် ထွက်ပြေးတိမ်းရှောင် ကြရသည့် အရပ်သားပြည်သူများမှာ တစ်နေ့ထက်တစ်နေ့ ပိုမို များပြားလာလျက်ရှိနေသည်။ တရားလက်လွတ်ဖမ်းဆီးမှုများပြုလုပ်ရာတွင် လူကိုသာအကြမ်းဖက်ဖမ်းဆီးခြင်းမျိုးမကဘဲ ပိုင်ဆိုင်မှုများကိုပါ သိမ်းဆည်း ခြင်း၊ ဖျက်ဆီးခြင်း၊ မီးရှို့ခြင်း ဖြစ်ရပ်များအပြင် ဖမ်းဆီးပြီးနောက် ညှဉ်းပန်းနှိပ်စက်၍ သတ်ဖြတ်ခြင်းများကိုပါ စနစ်တကျ ကျယ်ကျယ်ပြန့်ပြန့် ကျူးလွန်လျက်ရှိနေသည်။ စစ်ဘေးရှောင်များကို စားနပ်ရိက္ခာ၊ ဆေးဝါး၊ ကျန်းမာရေးစောင့်ရှောက်မှုနှင့် လိုအပ်သော အခြေခံအထောက်အပံ့များ ကူညီ ပံ့ပိုးပေးနေသည့် လူသားချင်းစာနာထောက်ထားမှုပေးနေသော စေတနာ့ဝန်ထမ်းများမှာလည်း စစ်အုပ်စု၏ ပစ်မှတ်ထား တိုက်ခိုက်ခြင်းကို ခံနေရသည်။ လွတ်လပ်စွာထုတ်ဖော်ပြောဆိုခွင့် အခွင့်အရေးများမှာ စစ်အုပ်စုလက်ထက်တွင် ဆိုးရွားစွာချိုးဖောက်ခံနေရသည့် အခြေအနေတွင်ရှိနေပြီး သတင်းအချက်အလက်ဆက်သွယ်မှုပြတ်တောက်စေရန် ရည်ရွယ်၍ မန္တလေးတိုင်း၊ မကွေးတိုင်း၊ စစ်ကိုင်းတိုင်း၊ ကချင်ပြည်နယ်နှင့် ချင်းပြည်နယ်ရှိ မြို့နယ်ပေါင်း (၂၀) ကျော်တွင် အင်တာနက်ဖြတ်တောက်မှုများကိုလည်း စနစ်တကျ ပြုလုပ်ထားသည်။ ယခင် အရပ်သားအစိုးရ လက်ထက်က ပယ်ဖျက်ခဲ့သည့် မည်သည့်အချိန်တွင်မဆို အကြောင်းပြချက်မရှိဘဲစိတ်ထင်တိုင်း နေအိမ်များသို့ အချိန်မရွေး ဝင်ရောက်စစ်ဆေးနိုင်သည့် ဧည့်စာရင်းဥပဒေကို စစ်အုပ်စုက ပြန်လည်အသက်သွင်းလာပြီး ပြည်သူတို့၏ လုံခြုံဘေးကင်းရေးနှင့် အသက်အိုးအိမ်စည်းစိမ်များမှာ ပိုမို၍ ကြီးမားကျယ်ပြန့်စွာ ခြိမ်းခြောက်ခံနေရလျက် ရှိနေသည်။ စစ်အုပ်စု၏ အကြမ်းဖက်မှုတိုက်ဖျက်ရေးဗဟိုအဖွဲ့က နေအိမ်၊ တိုက်ခန်းငှားရမ်းသူအိမ်ရှင်များကို နေအိမ်၊ တိုက်ခန်းများအား ငှားရမ်းမည်ဆိုပါက ငှားရမ်း နေထိုင်သည့် သူများနှင့်ပတ်သက်၍ သက်ဆိုင်ရာ အုပ်ချုပ်ရေးမှူးရုံးများသို့ ငှားရမ်းနေထိုင်သူများ၏ ကိုယ်ရေးအချက်အလက်၊ အထောက်အထားပြည့်စုံစွာဖြင့် တင်းကြပ်သည့် သတ်မှတ်ချက်များနှင့်အတိုင်း ဧည့်စာရင်း တိုင်ကြားရန်နှင့် မိမိငှားရမ်းထားသောသူများသည် သံသယ ဖြစ်ဖွယ်ရှိကြောင်း တွေ့ရှိရပါက သက်ဆိုင်ရာ တာဝန်ရှိသူများကို အချိန်မီသတင်းပို့ အကြောင်းကြားခြင်းရန် ကြေညာချက်ကို စက်တင်ဘာလအတွင်း ထုတ်ပြန်လာခဲ့သည်။ ထို့အပြင် ငှားရမ်းထားသည့်နေအိမ်တိုက်ခန်းများတွင် နေထိုင်သူများသည် အကြမ်းဖက်မှုများ ကျူးလွန်ကြောင်း ဖော်ထုတ် ရရှိပြီး ဧည့်စာရင်းတိုင်ကြားထားခြင်းမရှိကြောင်း စိစစ်တွေ့ရှိရပါက ငှားရမ်းသည့် ပိုင်ရှင်များတွင် တာဝန်ရှိသည့်အတွက် သက်ဆိုင်ရာ တည်ဆဲဥပဒေအရ အရေးယူခံရမည့်အပြင် အဆိုပါငှားရမ်းထားသည့် နေအိမ်၊ တိုက်ခန်းများကို အကြမ်းဖက်မှု တိုက်ဖျက်ရေးဥပဒေအရ သက်သေခံအဖြစ် သိမ်းဆည်းခံရမည်ဖြစ်သလို တရားရုံးတွင် စစ်ဆေးပေါ်ပေါက်ချက်အရ နိုင်ငံတော် ဘဏ္ဍာအဖြစ် သိမ်းဆည်းခံရမည်ဖြစ်ကြောင်းလည်း ထိုကြေညာချက်တွင် ပါဝင်သည်။ စက်တင်ဘာလအတွင်း၌ ဖြစ်ပွားခဲ့သော စစ်အုပ်စု၏ ကျူးလွန်မှုများ အကျဉ်းချုပ်ဖော်ပြချက် ဖမ်းဆီးမှု AAPP မှ လက်လှမ်းမီသမျှ ကောက်ယူရရှိထားသည့် အချက်အလက်များအရ စက်တင်ဘာ ၁ ကနေ ၃၀ ရက်နေ့အထိ စစ်အုပ်စု ၏ တရားလက်လွတ်ဖမ်းဆီးမှုကြောင့် ထိန်းသိမ်းခံခဲ့ရသူပေါင်း (၅၅၅) ရှိခဲ့သည်။ အမျိုးသမီး ဦးရေ (၉၅)၊ အသက် (၁၈) နှစ်အောက် ကလေးသူငယ်ဦးရေ (၁၇) နှင့် ဓားစာခံအဖြစ် ဖမ်းဆီးခံရသူ (၂၅) ဦး ပါဝင်သည်။ သတ်ဖြတ်မှု စစ်အုပ်စု၏ အညှိုးထားတိုက်ခိုက်မှုများကြောင့် အရပ်သားပြည်သူ (၉၆) ဦး အသက်ဆုံးရှုံးခဲ့ရသည်။ ထိုအထဲတွင် ညှဉ်းပန်းနှိပ်စက်မှုကြောင့် သေဆုံးခဲ့ရသူ (၈) ဦးနှင့် အသက် (၁၈) နှစ်အောက် ကလေးသူငယ် (၈) ဦး ပါဝင်သည်။ အကြမ်းဖက်ဖျက်ဆီးမှု စစ်ကိုင်းတိုင်း စစ်အာဏာသိမ်းမှုကို ပြင်းပြင်းထန်ထန်ဆန့်ကျင်ကန့်ကွက်သော ဒေသတစ်ခုအဖြစ် ထင်ရှားသည့် စစ်ကိုင်းတိုင်းအတွင်းရှိ ပုလဲမြို့နယ်၊ တန့်ဆည်မြို့နယ်၊ ကလေးမြို့နယ်၊ ကနီမြို့နယ် အစရှိသည့် မြို့နယ်များနှင့် ကျေးရွာများတွင် အကြမ်းဖက် စစ်တပ်က စီးနင်းဝင်ရောက်မှုများ၊ နယ်မြေရှင်းလင်းရေးအကြောင်းပြုကာ ရှာဖွေဖမ်းဆီးခြင်း၊ ပစ္စည်းဥစ္စာများကို လုယက်ဖျက်ဆီးခြင်းများ ဆက်လက်ကျူးလွန်နေဆဲဖြစ်သည်။ အကြမ်းဖက်စစ်တပ်မှ လက်နက်ကြီး၊ လက်နက်ငယ်များ အသုံးပြု၍ တရစပ်ထိုးစစ်ဆင်မှုများကြောင့် စစ်ကိုင်းတိုင်းအတွင်းရှိ ကျေးရွာများမှ ဒေသခံထောင်ပေါင်းများစွာတို့မှာ ဘေးလွတ်ရာသို့ ထွက်ပြေးတိမ်းရှောင်နေရလျက်ရှိသည်။ ထို့အပြင် ကနီမြို့နယ်၌ အသက် ၁၃ နှစ်အရွယ်သာရှိသေးသည့် အရွယ်မရောက်သေးသော မိန်းကလေးတစ်ဦးမှာ စက်တင်ဘာလ (၁၆) ရက်နေ့က စစ်အုပ်စုလက်ပါးစေ တပ်ဖွဲ့ဝင်များ၏ အဓမ္မပြုကျင့်မှုကို ခံခဲ့ရကြောင်း ဒေသခံများ၏ ပြောကြားချက်အရ သိရ သည်။ စစ်ကိုင်းတိုင်းဒေသကြီး၊ မြောင်မြို့နယ်အတွင်းရှိ ကျောက်ရစ်ကျေးရွာ၊ ကလေးမြို့နယ်အတွင်းရှိ ရေရှင်ကျေးရွာ၊ လယ်ခြားကျေးရွာ၊ ဒိုးနွယ်ကျေးရွာ၊ ကျောက်ပြုတ်ကျေးရွာ၊ တန်ဆည်မြို့နယ်ရှိ ကျီကုန်းကျေးရွာ၊ ယင်းမာပင်မြို့နယ်ရှိ ကံစုကျေးရွာများတွင်လည်း မီးရှို့ဖျက်ဆီးမှုများ ကျူးလွန်ခဲ့ကြသည်။ ရန်ကုန်တိုင်း စက်တင်ဘာလ ၇ ရက်နေ့၌ မှော်ဘီမြို့နယ်၊ စမ်းကြီးကျေးရွာရှိ ပြည်သူ ၃၀ ဦးကို လုပ်အားပေးရန်ပေါ်တာအဖြစ် စစ်အုပ်စု ၏လက်ပါးစေ တပ်ဖွဲ့များက အတင်းအကျပ် ခေါ်ဆောင်သွားခဲ့သည်။ စက်တင်ဘာ ၂၅ ရက်နေ့ နံနက် ၁နာရီခွဲ အချိန်ခန့်တွင် စမ်းချောင်းမြို့နယ်၊ မြေနီကုန်း တံတားအဆင်း၌ လူငယ် ၃ ဦးကိုဖမ်းဆီးပြီးနောက် သေနတ်ဖြင့်ပစ်ခတ်ခဲ့သလို သွေးအိုင်ထဲ လဲနေသည့် ထိုလူငယ် များကို ဝိုင်းဝန်းကန်ကျောက်သတ်ဖြတ်ခဲ့ကြပြီး ရုပ်အလောင်းများကို တင်ဆောင်သွားခဲ့ကြသည်။ မကွေးတိုင်း ဆောမြို့နယ်၊ ရေစကြိုမြို့နယ်၊ ဂန့်ဂေါမြို့နယ်၊ မြိုင်မြို့နယ် အစရှိသည့် မကွေးတိုင်းအတွင်းရှိ မြို့နယ်များတွင် စစ်အုပ်စုက လက်နက်ကြီးများနှင့် အဆက်မပြတ်ပစ်ခတ်မှုများ၊ နေအိမ်အတွင်းဝင်ရောက်စီးနင်းမှုများ ဖြစ်ပွားခဲ့ရာ ဒေသခံများ ထွက်ပြေး တိမ်းရှောင်နေကြရသည်။ ထို့အပြင် စစ်အုပ်စုက လူနာတင်ကား၊ ပရဟိတကားများကို အသုံးပြု၍ ရွာများကို စီးနင်းမှုများ ပြုလုပ်ခဲ့ကြသည်။ ဂန့်ဂေါမြို့နယ်၊ မွေ့လယ်ကျေးရွာအနီးတွင် မွေ့လယ်ကျေးရွာမှ ဒေသခံရွာသား သုံးဦး နှင့် လယ်ရှည် ကျေးရွာမှ ဒေသခံရွာသား နှစ်ဦးတို့၏ ရုပ်အလောင်းများကို စက်တင်ဘာလ ၁၃ ရက်နေ့ နှင့် ၁၄ ရက်နေ့တို့တွင် တွေ့ရှိခဲ့ရပြီး သေဆုံးသူများတွင် နောက်စေ့ကို သေနတ်ဖြင့် ပစ်ခတ်ခြင်းခံထားရပြီး ခန္ဓာကိုယ်နှင့် ဦးခေါင်း၊ မျက်နှာတို့တွင် ရိုက်နှက်ခြင်း ခံထားရသည့် ဒဏ်ရာများ၊ ခြေထောက်နှင့်လက်ကို ဓားဖြင့် မွှန်းထားသော ဒဏ်ရာများ၊ လိင်အင်္ဂါဖြတ်တောက်ခြင်းခံထား ရသည့် ဒဏ်ရာများကို မြင်တွေ့ခဲ့ကြရသည်။ အလားတူ မြိုင်မြို့နယ်တွင်လည်း မီးရှို့သတ်ဖြတ်မှုများ၊ လူမှုကူညီရေးကားအပါအဝင် ဆိုင်ကယ်အစီးရေ ၃၀၀ ကျော်ကို မီးတင်ရှို့မှုများကို စစ်အုပ်စုက ကျူးလွန်ခဲ့ကြသည်။ စက်တင်ဘာ ၉ ရက်နေ့ နံနက်ပိုင်းတွင် ဂန်ဂေါမြို့နယ် အတွင်းရှိ မြင်သားကျေးရွာကို အကြမ်းဖက်စစ်တပ်မှ မီးတင်ရှို့ ဖျက်ဆီးခဲ့ပြီး အနည်းဆုံး ဒေသခံရွာသား ၁၈ ဦးကို သတ်ဖြတ်ခဲ့ကြောင်း သိရှိရသည်။ ထို့အပြင် ဂန့်ဂေါမြို့နယ်၊ နှမ်းခါး၊ သာလင်းနှင့် ထယ်လှော်ရွာများကိုကို ဝင်ရောက် စီးနင်းခဲ့ပြီး မီးရှို့ခဲ့သည့်အတွက် အနည်းဆုံး လူနေအိမ် ၅၀ ခန့် ပြာကျခဲ့ရသည်။ ကချင်ပြည်နယ် မိုးညှင်းမြို့ပေါ်တွင် စစ်အုပ်စုမှ အိမ်ခွန်ဆောင်ရန်အတွက် အတင်းအဓမ္မလိုက်လံကောက်ခံလျက်ရှိရာ အိမ်အခြေအနေပေါ် မူတည်ပြီး သောင်းဂဏန်းမှ သိန်းဂဏန်းအထိ ငွေကြေး ပေးဆောင်နေရသည်။ တနိုင်းမြို့နယ်၊ တရုန်ကျေးရွာတွင် စက်တင်ဘာလ ၁၀ ရက်နေ့က အာဏာသိမ်းစစ်တပ်နှင့် ကချင်လွတ်လပ်ရေးတပ်မတော် (KIA) တို့ တိုက်ပွဲ ဖြစ်ပွားခဲ့ရာ စစ်အုပ်စုဘက်က တရုန်ကျေးရွာအတွင်းကို လက်နက်ကြီးများ ပစ်ခတ်ခြင်း၊ သေနတ်များ ပစ်ခတ်နေခြင်းတို့ကြောင့် တရုန်ကျေးရွာရှိ အသက် ၄၀ ဝန်းကျင်အရွယ် အမျိုးသမီးဦးခေါင်းကို ကျည်ထိမှန်ခဲ့ပြီး ဒေသခံ ၂၀၀ ဝန်းကျင်ခန့်မှာ ထွက်ပြေး တိမ်းရှောင်နေကြရသည်။ ထို့အပြင် ရွှေကူမြို့နယ်တွင် စက်တင်ဘာလ ၁၁ ရက်နေ့က စစ်အုပ်စု တပ်ဖွဲ့ဝင်များ စီးလာသည့် သင်္ဘောပေါ်မှ လက်နက်ကြီး၊ လက်နက်ငယ်များဖြင့် ပစ်ခတ်ခဲ့သဖြင့် ရွှေဘုံသာကျေးရွာမှ အမျိုးသားနှစ်ဦးနှင့် အမျိုးသမီး တစ်ဦး လက်နက်စမှန်ကာ ထိခိုက်ဒဏ်ရာရရှိပြီး နှစ်ဦးမှာ စစ်အုပ်စု၏ ဖမ်းဆီးခြင်းကို ခံခဲ့ရသည်။ ကရင်ပြည်နယ် စက်တင်ဘာလ ၁ ရက်နေ့တွင် ဒူးပလာယာခရိုင်၊ ကော့ကရိတ်မြို့နယ်၊ ပိုင်ကလာဒုံကျေးရွာတွင်လည်း အမျိုးသမီးတစ်ဦးကို စစ်အုပ်စုက ဖမ်းဆီးခေါ်ဆောင်သွားပြီး စစ်ကြောင်းအရှေ့မှ လမ်းပြအဖြစ် လူသားဒိုင်းသဖွယ် အသုံးပြုကာ KNU ထိန်းချုပ်နယ်မြေအတွင်းကို ဝင်ရောက်ခဲ့သည်။ ထို့အပြင် ကြာအင်းဆိပ်ကြီးမြို့နယ်၊ တောင်စွန်းကျေးရွာ ဘုန်းတော်ကြီးကျောင်း ပရဝဏ်မြေတွင် တပ်စွဲထားသည့် စစ်အုပ်စု၏တပ်ဖွဲ့မှ စက်တင်ဘာလ ၂၅ ရက်နေ့၊ ညနေ ၈ နာရီကျော်အချိန်တွင် ကျေးရွာများအနီး၌ လက်နက်ကြီး၊လက်နက်ငယ်များဖြင့် ပစ်ခတ်သည့်အတွက် ရွာသားအများစုမှာ ထွက်ပြေးတိမ်းရှောင်နေကြရသည်။ ရှမ်းပြည်နယ် ဖယ်ခုံမြို့နယ်အတွင်းရှိ ခေါင်းအိကျေးရွာသို့ စက်တင်ဘာလ ၁ ရက်နေ့မှ စတင်ကာ အကြမ်းဖက်စစ်အုပ်စုမှ လက်နက်ကြီးများဖြင့် ပစ်ခတ်နေပြီး စက်တင်ဘာလ ၃ ရက်နေ့တွင် ကုန်းဆုံကျေးရွာ ထိုင်တော်မူဘုရားမှ ခေါင်းအိနှင့် စက်တော်ကျေးရွာများဘက်သို့ အင်အား ၅၀၀ ခန့်ဖြင့် ထိုးစစ်ဆင် ဝင်ရောက်ခဲ့သည်။ ချင်းပြည်နယ် ဟားခါးမြို့ မြို့သစ်စီမံကိန်းဖော်ဆောင်သည့်နေရာတွင် မီးကြိုးသွယ်တန်းနေသည့် လူငယ် ၂၀ ခန့်ကို စက်တင်ဘာလ ၃ ရက်နေ့၊ နေ့လယ် ၁ နာရီခန့်က စစ်အုပ်စု၏ တပ်များမှ မြေပြင်နှင့် ရဟတ်ယာဉ်ပေါ်မှနေ၍ သေနတ်နှင့်ပစ်ခတ်ခဲ့သည်သည်။ စက်တင်ဘာလ ၇ ရက်နေ့၊ ည ၁၀ နာရီခန့်တွင် ဟားခါးမြို့တွင်း ပစ်ခတ်မှုများကြောင့် ပြည်သူအချို့ ဒဏ်ရာရရှိခဲ့ကာ နေအိမ်များမှာ လက်နက်ကြီးကြောင့် ပျက်စီး ခဲ့သည်။ ထန်တလန်မြို့တွင် စက်တင်ဘာလ ၉ ရက်နေ့၌ အကြမ်းဖက်စစ်တပ်က မြို့တွင်းသို့ လက်နက်ကြီး၊ လက်နက်ငယ်များဖြင့် ရမ်းသန်း ပစ်ခတ်မှုကြောင့် မြို့တွင်းရှိ နေအိမ်တချို့မီးလောင်ပျက်စီးခဲ့သည်။ စက်တင်ဘာလ ၁၀ ရက်နေ့၊ နေ့လယ်ပိုင်း၌လည်း ထန်တလန် မြို့နယ်ရှိ Lungler (လုံလဲရ်) ကျေးရွာကို အကြမ်းဖက်စစ်အုပ်စု၏ ဂျက်လေယာဉ် တစ်စီးမှ ဗုံးကျဲတိုက်ခိုက်ခဲ့သည်။ စက်တင်ဘာလ ၁၈ ရက်နေ့၊ နေ့လယ်ပိုင်းတွင် အကြမ်းဖက်စစ်အုပ်စု၏တပ်မှ ထန်တလန်မြို့ပေါ်ကို လက်နက်ကြီးများဖြင့် ပစ်ခတ်ခဲ့သောကြောင့် နေအိမ် ၁၉ လုံးမီးလောင်ပြာကျခဲ့ပြီး မီးငြှိမ်းသတ်ရန်သွားသည့် ထန်တလန်ရာပြည့်နှစ်ခြင်းခရစ်ယာန် အသင်းတော် (TCBC) မှ သင်းအုပ်ဆရာ ကျုံးဗျက်ဟုမ်းသည် ပစ်သတ်ခြင်းခံခဲ့ရကာ ၎င်း၏ နာရီ၊ ဖုန်း နှင့် မင်္ဂလာ လက်စွပ်ကို လက်ချောင်းကိုပါဖြတ်ပြီး စစ်အုပ်စုတပ်ဖွဲ့ဝင်များက ယူဆောင်သွားခဲ့ကြသည်။ ထန်တလန်မြို့ခံများသည် အကြမ်းဖက်စစ်အုပ်စု၏ရန်ကို ကြောက်သောကြောင့် တစ်မြို့လုံးနီးပါးထွက်ပြေး တိမ်းရှောင်နေကြရလျက်ရှိသည်။ ကယားပြည်နယ် စက်တင်ဘာလ ၇ ရက်နေ့တွင် စစ်အုပ်စုလက်ပါးစေတပ်နှင့် ကရင်နီအမျိုးသား ကာကွယ်ရေးတပ် (KNDF)တို့ တိုက်ပွဲဖြစ်ပွား ခဲ့ပြီးနောက် စစ်အုပ်စုဘက်မှ လက်နက်ကြီးများဖြင့် ပစ်ခတ်မှုကြောင့် ခြောက်မိုင်ရှိနေအိမ် သုံးလုံးခန့် မီးလောင်သွားခဲ့သည်။ ထို့ပြင် စစ်အုပ်စု တပ်ဖွဲ့ ဝင်များသည် ဒေါပိုးစီ၊ စံပြ ၆ မိုင်နှင့် ဒီးမော့ဆိုရှိ ဒေါငံခါးရပ်ကွက်မှ နေအိမ်တချို့အား ဝင်ရောက်မီးရှို့ ခဲ့သည်။ အလားတူ စစ်ကောင်စီတပ်က လက်နက်ကြီးများဖြင့် ရမ်းပစ်ခတ်ခဲ့သည့်အတွက် ဒေါစဲကျေးရွာရှိ လူနေအိမ် လေးလုံးထိမှန် ပျက်စီးခဲ့ပြီး အသက် ၈ နှစ်ဝန်းကျင်ကလေးငယ်တစ်ဦး ဒဏ်ရာရရှိခဲ့သည်။ ဒီးမော့ဆိုမြို့နယ်တွင် တိုက်ပွဲပြင်းထန်ခဲ့ပြီး ကျေးရွာ (၁၀) ရွာမှ ဒေသခံ ၃ ထောင်ကျော်သည် တောတောင်များအတွင်း ထွက်ပြေးတိမ်းရှောင်နေကြရသည်။ ထို့အပြင် အကြမ်းဖက်စစ်ကောင်စီတပ်မှ ဘောလခဲမြို့မှ နေ၍ လက်နက်ကြီးများဖြင့် ရမ်းသမ်းပစ်ခတ်မှုကြောင့် နန်းဖဲကျေးရွာရှိ တောင်ယာခုတ်တောင်သူ အမျိုးသမီးတစ်ဦး သေဆုံးသွားခဲ့ပြီး (၄) ဦး ဒဏ်ရာရရှိခဲ့သည်။ စက်တင်ဘာ ၂၅ ရက်နေ့တွင် အကြမ်းဖက်စစ်တပ်မှ ဒီးမော့ဆိုမြို့နယ်၊ သေးဆူလဲနှင့် ကုန်းသာကျေးရွာများအတွင်း တပ်စွဲပြီး အဆိုပါကျေးရွာများရှိ အများပြည်သူပိုင်နေအိမ်များအား မီးရှို့ဖျက်ဆီးသွားကြသည်။ အထက်ပါဖေါ်ပြချက်များသည် အာဏာသိမ်းစစ်အုပ်၏ စက်တင်ဘာလအတွင်း၌ ကျူးလွန်ခဲ့သော တရားမဲ့ အကြမ်းဖက် မှုများအား အကျဉ်းချုပ် ဖေါ်ပြချက်မျှသာဖြစ်ပြီး အခြားသော တိုင်းနှင့်ပြည်နယ်များတွင်လည်း ထိုကဲ့သို့ လူမဆန်သော အကြမ်းဖက်ကျူးလွန်မှုများ များစွာရှိခဲ့သည်။..."
Source/publisher: Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP)
Date of entry/update: 2021-10-04
[field_licence]
Type: Individual Documents
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Title: Violence Committed by the Terrorist Junta in September
Description: "Since the attempted military coup, the terrorist junta has been violently cracking down on civilians who protest the military coup. Civilians faced intense and daily repression from the terrorist junta. On September 7, the National Unity Government declared the terrorist groups’ indiscriminate violence has been deteriorating. In response a defensive war against the junta was called, and peoples support for the NUG, and PDF requested. During the month of September, the junta’s battalion troops violently raided villages, burning houses, killing civilians, and looting and destroying properties in Magway Region, Sagaing Region and Chin State. Entire villages forced to flee, with the number of abandoned villages increasing day by day. This terrorist like junta are not only arbitrarily arresting people, but also looting their property, setting fire to, and destroying buildings. After arrest, detainees are being systematically tortured and killed by the junta. At the same time, voluntary humanitarian groups providing food, medicine and other basic needs for internally displaced persons have been targeted by the junta. A civilians’ right to freedom of expression is completely disregarded by the military junta. In 20 townships over Mandalay, Magway, and Sagaing Region, and Kachin and Chin State, the junta has cut internet connection to disrupting communication and the free flow of information. The repressive Ward or Village Tract Administration Law was rejected under the previous civilian government, but in the aftermath of the coup was reinstated by the junta group. Under this law the military can enter your home at any time, for any reason. This law threatens the safety and well-being of the entire population. In September, the juntas so-called Central Committee for Combating Terrorism, announced that a house or apartment owner who rents out the property, must now report the tenants’ personal information to the relevant administrative office. At the same time, if tenants are found to be acting suspicious, the landlord has to report it immediately, to the relevant officer. In addition, the statement said that if the house/apartment owner does not report a registration list, and the tenants are found to have committed “acts of violence”, that apartment will be taken as state ownership, under the anti-terrorism law, and the property owner charged under the existing law. Summary of Junta’s September Crimes Arrests According to data collected by AAPP documentation, 555 people were arbitrarily arrested and detained between September 1 and 30, by the junta. This included (95) women, (17) children under 18 and (25) hostages. Killings This month, at least 96 civilians were killed by the junta’s targeted attacks. Among them, eight victims were tortured to death and eight were children, under the age of 18. Acts of Terrorism in Sagaing Region Pearl Township, Tangse Township, Kalemyo Township, and Kany Township have been areas of strong opposition to the military since the illegitimate coup. In disproportionate response, junta troops have raided villages, looted property, and bringing destruction to entire areas of innocent civilian populations. Junta forces have used different kinds of heavy artillery to attack villages. Thousands have been forced fleeing to their homes. According to a report from a local villager, a 13-year-old girl was raped by a member of the junta, on September 16, in Kany Township. Kyauk Yit village in Myaung Township, Yeshin village in Kalemyo Township, Lal Chya village, Doe Nwe Village, Kyauk Pyut village, Kyigone village in Tanse Township, and Kansu village in Yinmarbin Township were also set on fire to by junta troops. Yangon Region On September 7, in Sangyi village, Hmawbi Township, the junta armed forces took 30 villagers, and forcibly used them as porters. On September 25, at around 1:30 AM, at the edge of Myay Ni Gone Bridge, Sanchaung Township, three youths were detained, shot, and killed. The junta were kicking the youths, as they lay in a pool of their own blood, the soldiers later took the dead bodies away. Magway Region In Saw Township, Yezakyo Township, and Gangaw Township in Magway Division, the terrorist junta group were using artillery to enter villages and raid houses. Most of the local villagers were forced to flee their homes, whilst the junta group uses ambulances and charity cars to raid towns. Nearby Mwe Le village in Gangaw Township, the dead bodies of three locals from Mwe Le village and two dead bodies from Le Shay village were found on September 13 and 14. Gunshot wounds were found on the back of the heads of the bodies, and all over, including heads and faces displaying injuries from severe beatings. They were also found to have knife wounds on their hand and legs, and their male organsq were cut. In Myaing Township, junta troops have committed arson killings, setting fire to charity vehicles and more than 300 motorcycles. In the early morning of September 9, the junta set fire to Myin Thar village in Gangaw Township and killed at least 18 local villagers. Hnan Khar, Thaliin and Htae Hlaw villages in Gangaw Township were also raided by the junta and at least 50 houses burned to the ground. Kachin State In Mohnyin, the junta is forcibly collecting tens of thousands of Kyats in “property taxes”, depending on the condition of the house. On 10 September, in Tarong village, Tanai Township, there was a clash between the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) and terrorist junta troops. Later on, the junta were shooting artillery shells and heavy gun fire into Tarong village. A 40-year-old woman was shot in the head and some 200 locals forced to flee. On September 11, a vehicle carrying junta troops used heavy artillery on Shwe Bon Thar village. Mortar shells were also fired, two men and one woman were injured, and two others were detained. Karen State On September 1, in Pailaladon Village, Kawkareik Township, Dooplaya District, the junta abducted a woman to use as a human shield. Junta troops entered KNU controlled areas with the woman as a guide on the frontline. They then set up camp in the Taungsoon village in Kayin Seik Gyi Township. The junta were shooting artillery shells and gunfire into the village on 25 September, at around 8pm, forcing many of the locals to flee. Shan State Since September 1, the terrorist group has been firing heavy artillery shells at Khaung Ei village in Phekone Township. On September 2, approximately 500 troops entered Kone Ei and Sattaw village. Chin State Around 20 youths were detained on September 3 at the Myothit project construction site in Hakha City. At around 1pm, junta troops were shooting from both a helicopter and the ground. On September 7, by around 10pm, junta troops were firing artillery shells and gunfire in Hakha city. Some civilians were injured and many houses damage from the heavy artillery shells. On September 9, in Thantlang Township, the military fired heavy artillery, mortar shells and gunfire into the city. Some houses within the city were burnt down. At around midday, on September 10, the terrorist group were using fighter jets to bombard Lungler village in Thantlang Township. In the afternoon of September 18, the military fired into Thantlang Township. Nineteen homes were set on fire by heavy artillery shelling. A pastor from Thantlang Centenary Church (TCBC), Cung Biek Hong, was shot to death. The terrorist junta cut off his finger to take his wedding ring. His phone and watch were also stolen by the junta. Residents of Thantlang fled, from fear of the terrorist group. Kayah State On September 7, heavy fighting broke out between junta troops and the Karenni National Defense Force (KNDF). The junta used heavy artillery and three houses were burnt down within a six-mile area. In addition, the junta group set fire to buildings in Daw Poe Si village, Sanpya village and Daw Nga Kha Ward in Dimawso. Four houses in Daw Se village were destroyed by heavy artillery and an eight-year-old child was injured. There was intensive fighting in Demawso Township, and more than 3000 locals from 10 different villages fled into the mountains. On September 9, a female farmer was killed, and four others injured when artillery shells were fired from a military junta camp in Bawla Khe Township. On September 25, junta troops attacked Demawso Township, they initially entered and set up camp in Sule village and Kone Thar village, before setting fire to local homes. This is but just a summary of the human rights violations committed by the terrorist junta group in September. There have been similar atrocities across other states and divisions, in September and the months before, amounting the serious crimes against humanity..."
Source/publisher: Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP)
Date of entry/update: 2021-10-04
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Title: Almost 100 Civilians Killed By Myanmar Junta Forces in September
Description: "At least 99 more people, including a toddler and four senior citizens in their seventies, were killed by Myanmar junta forces in September. Their deaths push the number of people who have died at the hands of the military regime to 1,146 over the past eight months, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP) Myanmar has been in political and social turmoil since the junta’s February 1 coup, as the merciless military regime continues with brutal and lethal crackdowns in its efforts to suppress the nationwide rebellion against the junta. In September, the Myanmar military massacred civilians, including children, torched entire villages, fired randomly into homes and shelled residential areas in Kayah and Chin states and Magwe, Sagaing and Mandalay regions. The junta claims those areas were harboring People’s Defense Forces: bands of civilian resistance fighters opposing the regime. Among those killed in September were nine children, the youngest of whom was one and half-years-old, detainees who were tortured to death, members and supporters of the National League for Democracy (NLD) and three medics, according to the latest report from the AAPP, an activist group which monitors killings and arrests by the junta. On September 20, regime troops raided Shaw Phyu Village in Natogyi Township, Mandalay Region. During the raid, junta forces shot at the home of NLD supporters, killing five family members. Four of five were shot dead on the spot. A one and half-year-old child survived initially but died from injuries after arriving at Mandalay General Hospital, AAPP stated in their report. In northern Shan State’s Monekoe Township, nine-year-old Mah Bon suffered serious head injuries after a junta artillery shell hit his home on September 27. The boy died the following day. His mother was also injured in the artillery strike. Around a dozen detainees were tortured to death in September. Among them was Mandalay-based political activist and philanthropist Ko Than Htun Oo, aka Ko Min Ko Thein, a member of the NLD’s Mandalay branch. He died in police custody just a few hours after being arrested on September 25. The 48-year-old, affectionately known as ‘Ko Fatty’ among his friends, was arrested at his home in Aungmyaythazan Township, Mandalay Region for alleged possession of weapons. During the raid on his house, junta forces told him to get on his knees. When he said that he couldn’t kneel due to his weight, he was reportedly shot in the knee. He was arrested despite no weapons being found during the search. In the evening of the following day, his family was notified of his death. Ko Than Htun Oo’s body was not returned to the family, with regime officials claiming that they had organized funeral rites for him. Ko Zaw Linn Htet, 30, from Pyay, Bago Region also died during an interrogation after just a few hours in junta custody. He was detained with his younger brother on the afternoon of September 6, allegedly in connection with the arrest of student union members a week before. His family was also informed of his death at night. September also saw a surge in killings of youth activists and villagers from anti-regime strongholds where civilian resistance groups have inflicted heavy casualties on junta forces. In Yangon, four young people were shot dead at midnight on September 25 after regime forces raided their hideout in Sanchaung Township. Two of the four activists were identified as Dr. Zin Lynn and nurse Ma Khin Khin Kywel. The following day, the wife of Dr. Zin Lynn, who is also a medical doctor, was arrested at her home. The couple have a seven-month-old baby. On Thursday, junta spokesperson Major General Zaw Min Tun said at a press conference that the youths had opened fire on junta soldiers when they surrounded the hideout, killing and injuring a few of them. He claimed that the four activists were killed in a subsequent shootout with regime forces. However, local residents and video footage uploaded by Khit Thit Media revealed that the young people were dragged from the apartment and beaten and kicked several times, before the junta forces fired shots. Maj. Gen. Zaw Min Tun made no mention of this at the press conference. Teenagers were also rounded up and massacred in Myin Thar Village in Yaw in Magwe Region on September 9. In all, 18 people died in the village, including elderly citizens, and some 20 houses were burned down by junta forces. The Special Advisory Council for Myanmar – an independent group of prominent former United Nations human rights experts – urged the United Nations Security Council in its latest statement to declare the junta a “terrorist organization” for its atrocities against its own people including public torture, executions and the taking of hostages, including children..."
Source/publisher: "The Irrawaddy" (Thailand)
Date of entry/update: 2021-10-02
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Title: Mandalay NLD member dies in custody a day after his arrest
Sub-title: Family members say they were denied permission to see the body of Than Tun Oo, who was arrested on Saturday
Description: "A National League for Democracy (NLD) member who was arrested in Mandalay’s Aung Myay Tharzan Township on Saturday has died in custody, according to a source close to his family. Than Tun Oo, who was also known as Min Ko Thein, died within 24 hours of his arrest, the source told Myanmar Now. “His whole family, including his two children and his mother, who is in her seventies, was at home when they took him away,” the source said. The soldiers who carried out the raid shouted at his family to remain inside the house as Than Tun Oo was taken outside and forced to kneel in the yard. When he had difficulty getting down to the ground due to his weight, the soldiers fired a shot and said they would “help him get on his knees,” the source said. “He agreed to go with them and took his medication for hypertension and cramps with him when he left,” she added. A lieutenant colonel involved in making the arrest accused Than Tun Oo, who was also a well-known community volunteer, of helping to transport weapons for anti-regime forces. However, a thorough search of his home failed to yield any weapons or incriminating evidence. A day later, the family was informed that Than Tun Oo had died of a heart attack and that he had been cremated because he had also contracted Covid-19. “When his mother, two aunts and sister started crying at the news of his death, they were warned to stop or they would face arrest themselves,” said the family friend. Another woman who was a close friend of the victim condemned the military’s callous treatment of the family. “It’s really cruel that they managed to kill a person within 24 hours and then they break the news to his family with a cold heart,” she said. Apart from being overweight, Than Tun Oo did not have any underlying medical conditions, she added. According to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, since the February 1 coup at least 66 people have died in the regime’s custody within 24 hours of their arrest..."
Source/publisher: "Myanmar Now" (Myanmar)
Date of entry/update: 2021-09-28
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Title: Suu Kyi’s former bodyguard detained by junta for Facebook posts, alleged links to NUG
Sub-title: Cherry Htet has been under close surveillance since the coup and was taken for interrogation last week, sources said
Description: "The military council arrested a former bodyguard of detained State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi last week and accused her of incitement over Facebook posts supporting the ousted leader, as well as links to Myanmar’s underground government. Cherry Htet, a police sub-lieutenant at Special Branch, was detained on Thursday in Naypyitaw under section 505a of the penal code. The junta later said she has links to the National Unity Government (NUG), which it has branded a terrorist organisation. “They accused her of writing things on a Facebook account with the name Cherry Htet but that account is still posting statuses even after her arrest,” said a source close to the police. “I think it’s a fake account.” Cherry Htet has been under surveillance by the junta since the February 1 coup and was reportedly coerced into working at the Myanmar Police Force Headquarters office on Zayahtani road in Naypyitaw, a friend of hers told Myanmar Now. She served on Suu Kyi’s personal security team during foreign and domestic trips under the National League for Democracy government and works for Special Branch’s anti-terrorism department. Her boss, police captain Zaw Win Tun, is the plaintiff in her case. Junta forces seized Cherry Htet’s phone and computer on September 14 and she has effectively been under a form of house arrest since the coup, the friend said. She is being interrogated at the Pyinmana central police police station in Naypyitaw, both sources said. Suu Kyi once gave Cherry Htet a necklace she reportedly designed herself as a birthday gift, according to a Facebook post from February last year. Junta spokesperson Zaw Min Tun told BBC Burmese on Sunday that Cherry Htet was being interrogated for her alleged connections to the NUG. Hundreds of police officers have joined the Civil Disobedience Movement in a bid to topple the dictatorship. The junta has been closely monitoring the online activity of police officers, especially lieutenants and sub-lieutenants, said a police officer on condition of anonymity. “Their major concern is us using Facebook,” he said. Cherry Htet and other members of Suu Kyi’s security team were not present when the State Counsellor was detained on the night of the coup, Suu Kyi’s lawyers have said. Zaw Naing Win, a former personal assistant to Suu Kyi at the foreign affairs ministry, was reportedly sentenced to seven years in prison in July after he resigned from his post in the aftermath of the military’s power grab..."
Source/publisher: "Myanmar Now" (Myanmar)
Date of entry/update: 2021-09-28
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Title: Woman Hospitalized After Being Beaten by Myanmar Junta Forces
Description: "A woman detained by Myanmar’s military regime has been hospitalized in Dawei after she was beaten during her interrogation, according to sources close to her. Ma Soe Mie Mie Kyaw, a former English student at Dawei University, was detained on Monday night, along with three other people including a 13-year-old girl, in Dawei, the capital of Tanintharyi Region in southern Myanmar. “Ma Soe Mie Mie Kyaw has the records of donations made to People’s Defense Forces. She was beaten during her interrogation when she was asked about it. We are sure she is now in hospital,” said a member of the Dawei University Students Union who wished to remain anonymous. Initially, Dawei University Students Union said that Ma Soe Mie Mie Kyaw had attempted to commit suicide by drinking methylated spirts after being tortured, and was then taken to hospital. But the secretary of the Dawei University Students Union said he could not confirm those reports. “I am sure she is in the hospital. But I can’t confirm if she took methylated spirits,” said the secretary. Ma Soe Mie Mie Kyaw is now at Dawei Military Hospital. The man and woman detained alongside her – Ko Soe Pyae Aung and Ma Shar Pyae Khin – are being held at Dawei’s main police station. The 13-year-old girl was released by the regime. Last week, junta troops detained five people in Dawei, including three university students and a striking employee of the military-owned Myawaddy Bank and her husband. At least 1,120 people have been killed by the military regime since the February 1 coup and a further 6,698 detained, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners. Another 1,984 people are the subject of arrest warrants..."
Source/publisher: "The Irrawaddy" (Thailand)
Date of entry/update: 2021-09-26
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Title: Myanmar junta abducting children of people targeted for arrest, says UN expert
Sub-title: Children as young as 20 weeks old are being seized to force opponents to hand themselves in
Description: "Myanmar’s military junta is systematically abducting the relatives of people it is seeking to arrest, including children as young as 20 weeks old, according the UN special rapporteur for the country. Tom Andrews told the UN Human Rights Council on Wednesday that conditions in the country had continued to deteriorate and “current efforts by the international community to stop the downward spiral of events in Myanmar are simply not working”. His speech was followed by the release of a report by the UN Human Rights Office on Thursday, which warned of a “human rights catastrophe” and said abuses perpetrated since the coup may amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity. The military and its forces have killed more than 1,100 people, according to the UN report. It details systematic, targeted killings by the junta, including the use of semi-automatic rifles and snipers against pro-democracy protesters. Weapons designed for military confrontation, such as grenade launchers and artillery shells, have also been used against protesters and fired into residential areas, it said. “Victims of security forces often sustained wounds to their heads and torsos, indicating that they were targeted for maximum harm,” the report said. As of July, the junta had killed at least 75 children ranging in age from 14 months to 17 years, according to Andrews. The military, he added, was routinely abducting family members when it is unable to locate individuals it is seeking to arrest. “I have received credible reports that junta forces have arbitrarily detained at least 177 individuals­ when the initial target of a raid had successfully eluded arrest. These victims include very young children as young as 20 weeks old,” he said. More than 8,000 people have been detained since the military seized power on 1 February. The junta, which faces widespread public opposition, has arrested anyone who has challenged its rule – from elected politicians, to activists, medical workers and journalists. Most are held without any form of due process, and lack access to legal counsel, or even the ability to communicate with their families, according to the UN Human Rights Office report. “We continue to receive reports from multiple locations of interrogation techniques that amount to ill-treatment and torture, and have credible information that more than 120 detainees have died in custody – some within 24 hours of their arrest,” said Michelle Bachelet, UN high commissioner for human rights, in a speech to the UN Human Rights Council on Thursday. “Conflict, poverty and the effects of the pandemic are sharply increasing, and the country faces a vortex of repression, violence and economic collapse,” Bachelet said. In response to the coup, peaceful protests and a civil disobedience campaign spread across the country. A growing armed resistance movement has also emerged, with civilians taking up arms to defend their areas from military repression. Bachelet warned of “the alarming possibility of an escalating civil war”. Over recent days, virtually the entire population of a town in western Myanmar, home to 7,500 people, were forced to flee, after clashes between the military and its opponents, according to media reports. The Global New Light of Myanmar, which is controlled by the junta, said the military was ambushed by “some 100 terrorists” while patrolling Thantlang in Chin state, near the border with India. Residents started to flee on Monday after soldiers “began to randomly shoot out the windows” of houses in the town, according to a resident who spoke to AFP anonymously. “Almost everyone has left,” he said, adding he was sheltering in a nearby village with about 500 people, and that several hundred had already headed towards India. Another resident said she travelled for three days with her elderly parents to reach India after soldiers bombed her house and fighting escalated around the town. “I never thought of running from my own house even after the military bombed it … but as things got worse … I finally had to flee,” she told AFP on condition of anonymity. The independent outlet Myanmar Now reported that soldiers shot dead a Baptist pastor, who had gone outside to extinguish fires. His body was discovered with his left ring finger missing, the chair of the Thantlang Association of Baptist Churches said, adding that he believed troops had stolen his wedding ring. The junta spokesperson Zaw Min Tun dismissed such reports as fake news. He said 20 homes and a government building had been destroyed in a fire after a clash on 18 September. Attacks on junta troops have increased after Myanmar’s self-declared parallel government, which was set up by pro-democracy politicians, announced a “defensive war” against the military earlier this month. There are now more than 230,000 civilians who have been displaced as a result of the junta. Speaking to the Human Rights Council, Andrews called for greater humanitarian aid for the more than 3 million Myanmar people who are in need of assistance. “The international community must make a stronger commitment to ensuring lifesaving aid reaches those in need,” he said. “Myanmar civil society organisations who are saving lives need and deserve our support. The 2021 UN Myanmar Humanitarian Response Plan has received only 46% of requested funds to date. We can and should do better.”..."
Source/publisher: "The Guardian" (UK)
Date of entry/update: 2021-09-23
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Title: Activists fear for life of detained students’ union leader
Sub-title: Aye Nandar Soe was taken away on Sunday and her whereabouts are unknow
Description: "Activists say they fear for the life of a students’ union chairperson after she was detained by junta forces on Sunday afternoon while travelling on a long distance bus. Aye Nandar Soe, 21, was stopped and arrested at the Yadanabon bridge connecting Mandalay and Sagaing regions. She leads the students’ union at the Sagaing University of Education, where she is in her fourth year of studies. Her friends say her whereabouts are unknown and believe she was arrested because of her opposition to the military’s February coup. Her detention comes as the junta steps up its crackdown against student and youth activists across the country. The junta has not made a public announcement about Aye Nandar Soe’s arrest or the grounds on which she is being detained. Many other student activists who were detained recently have been charged with incitement. “Our comrade Aye Nandar Soe is being detained… but we still do not know where she is being held,” the All Burma Federation of Student Unions (ABFSU), of which Aye Nandar Soe’s union is a member, said in a statement. “We fear for our comrade Aye Nandar Soe's life and safety,” the statement said. An ABFSU spokesperson said he had no information about where she was travelling when she was detained. The military has stepped up arrests of anti-junta student activists in recent weeks, but the exact number detained is unknown, the spokesperson added. “Many students from the ABFSU and other students’ unions were arrested, but the ones who were not will continue to revolt against the military,” he told Myanmar Now. On Sunday three young activists, including two members of the ABFSU, were detained in Yangon and accused of being involved in bank robberies to fund armed resistance against the junta. According to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, at least 1,122 people have now been killed by the junta and 6,698 others are in detention..."
Source/publisher: "Myanmar Now" (Myanmar)
Date of entry/update: 2021-09-23
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Title: Three activists detained over bank robberies ‘to fund armed resistance’ against the junta
Sub-title: The anti-coup organisers are accused of helping to rob 136m kyat from two banks in Yangon
Description: "Three young anti-coup activists were arrested on Sunday in Yangon’s Tamwe Township and accused of helping to rob two banks to raise funds for armed resistance against the junta. Win Htet Mar, who is the former chair of a local branch of the Youth for a New Society activist group, was detained at 9:30am at her apartment on 152nd street. “Residents from Win Htet Mar’s neighbourhood told me that plainclothes officers from the military broke into the apartment she was staying in,” a fellow activist said. Kyaw Zin Lin and Pyae Phyo Kyaw, two activists from the All Burma Federation of Student Unions, were arrested in Tamwe later that afternoon, he added. “The two were together when the military made the arrests. I think [the soldiers] came to their apartment after arresting Win Htet Mar,” he told Myanmar Now. Relatives said they do not know where the three are being held. The activists all played leading roles in street protests against the coup regime after the military seized power in February. Military-run newspapers on Wednesday accused the three activists of being involved in robberies at two branches of the Global Treasure Bank, in South Okkalapa and Mayangon townships, on July 15 and August 30. Robbers stole more than 136m kyat (roughly $75,000) from the banks, the newspapers said. The reports named seven other people accused of involvement. Kyaw Zin Lin is accused of supervising the robberies and of possessing weapons and ammunition at his apartment. He attended a “terrorist training course” in territory controlled by the Kachin Independence Army along with Win Htet Mar and three others involved in the robberies, the newspapers claimed. The reports said the stolen money was spent “on purchasing vehicles and weapons, renting apartments, supporting protesters in Yangon and... personal staff.” “Their gang aimed to rob and lead to armed attacks,” the Global New Light of Myanmar said. Myanmar’s underground National Unity Government declared a “resistance war” against the junta on September 7. Since then, the military has intensified its hunt for people involved in armed resistance against regime targets. Junta forces in Yangon carried out several raids last week aimed at stamping out guerilla attacks on soldiers and military informants in the city..."
Source/publisher: "Myanmar Now" (Myanmar)
Date of entry/update: 2021-09-22
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Title: Two injured activists who survived deadly Yangon raid transferred to Insein Prison
Sub-title: Min Thitsar Aung and Wai Yan Htet were hospitalised due to severe injuries they sustained when they jumped from the 44th St apartment building during a junta raid
Description: "Two seriously injured young activists who were arrested during a raid on an apartment on Yangon’s 44th Street last month were transferred from a military hospital to Insein Prison last week, according to a relative. Min Thitsar Aung and Wai Yan Htet are among the five people who jumped from a three-storey building as they attempted to escape a military raid in August. Two of them died at the scene after the fall, while three others—Ye Min Oo, Min Thitsar Aung, and Wai Yan Htet—survived but suffered severe injuries. Before they were sent to Insein Prison, Min Thitsar Aung and Wai Yan Htet were undergoing treatment at the 500-bed military hospital in Mingaladon Township until Friday for injuries they endured from the fall. Min Thitsar Aung’s father, Thein Kyaing, said he was informed of his son’s transfer on Sunday by the Botahtaung Township police officer that had filed the charges against the young activists at a district court. “He said the police sent the pair by ambulance from Mingaladon to a hospital inside Insein Prison. I was not able to see them though. I would like to see my son, of course,” Thein Kyaing said. He added that his son sustained an injury that had left him still unable to walk without assistance and Wai Yan Htet, who broke both his legs in the fall, requires the use of a wheelchair. On Monday, Thein Kyaing said he went to Insein to deliver basic items to Min Thitsar Aung but the staff did not confirm whether he was detained there. “The prison staff said they would inform me if my son was not there. They have not said anything to me yet, so I assume he is there,” he said. At the time of reporting, Myanmar Now was unable to get in touch with the family of Wai Yan Htet. On August 10, junta troops raided an apartment on 44th St in downtown Yangon where nine anti-coup activists were present. Five people—Wai Wai Myint, Wai Zaw Phyoe, Ye Min Oo, Min Thitsar Aung and Wai Yan Htet—jumped from the three-storey building to the ground while three people were arrested inside the apartment. The ninth person, Kaung Min Thant, managed to flee the raid. Wai Wai Myint and Wai Zaw Phyoe did not survive the fall. The three people who survived the jump, as well as the three others who were arrested from within the apartment and a taxi driver who had been hired by the group, were all charged with violating the Explosive Substances Act. The three young men who jumped, Ye Min Oo, Min Thitsar Aung, Wai Yan Htet, and two of the people arrested from inside the apartment—Thiha Kaung Sett and Phyo Wai Aung—were all charged on September 10 with making and possessing explosives with the intent to endanger life. They face a maximum penalty of life in prison if found guilty. Their next hearing is scheduled for Friday..."
Source/publisher: "Myanmar Now" (Myanmar)
Date of entry/update: 2021-09-22
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Title: Announcement: 2021 MacBride Peace Prize recipients
Description: "Announcement: 2021 MacBride Peace Prize recipients Alexander Kmentt, Ambassador and Director of the Department of Disarmament, Arms-Control and Non-proliferation, Austria Assistant Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP), Myanmar/Burma About the Sean MacBride Peace Prize Every year the IPB awards a special prize to a person or organization that has done outstanding work for peace, disarmament and/or human rights. These were the principal concerns of Sean MacBride, the distinguished Irish statesman who was Chairman of IPB from 1968-74 and President from 1974-1985. MacBride began his career as a fighter against British colonial rule, studied law and rose to high office in the independent Irish Republic. He was a winner of the Nobel Peace Prize (1974) The award is decided by the IPB Steering Committee. IPB members are welcome to make suggestions and provide background documentation on potential candidates. The Prize is a non-monetary one. Assistant Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP), Burma Established in 2000, AAPP is a human rights organization that advocates for the release and rehabilitation of all political prisoners within Burma/Myanmar. The organization is headquartered in Mae Sot, Thailand, close to the Burman border as many of AAPP’s staff members are former political prisoners exiled from the country. The organization accurately states that “As long as political prisoners exist inside Burma, Burma will not be free”. Since the military coup d’état staged by the Burman military on February 1 2021, the AAPP have continued to tirelessly and diligently documented each and every death caused by the Junta. Their work makes them targets of the Junta, but this is a sacrifice they willingly embrace, placing the future and wellbeing of their country before themselves. In recognition of their bravery and commitment to securing the freedom and democratic rule of Burma, the IPB decided to award AAPP the Sean MacBride Peace Prize for 2021. The AAPP has graciously accepted this award which will be officially given during a ceremony in 2022. Alexander Kmentt, Ambassador and Director of the Department of Disarmament, Arms-Control and Non-proliferation, Austria Mr Alexander Kmentt is the President-designate for the First Meeting of States Parties to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, a role he fulfils alongside his Directorship of the Department of Disarmament. Arms-Control and Non-proliferation within the Austrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Mr Kmentt has a long career behind him of advocating for a reduction in arms production, sale and use, especially nuclear weapons, bringing these issues to the highest levels of government and imploring decision makers to take notice and take action. Mr Kmentt was one of the key architects to the TPNW. In 2014 he organized the Vienna Conference on the Humanitarian Impact of Nuclear Weapons which culminated in the Humanitarian Pledge which was endorsed by 135 States and played a significant role in the TPNDW’s fruition. For these reasons, among others, the IPB board decided to award Mr Kmentt the Sean MacBride Peace Prize for 2021. Mr Kmentt has humbly accepted this award, which will also be given during a ceremony in 2022.
Source/publisher: International Peace Bureau ( Berlin)
Date of entry/update: 2021-09-21
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Title: Jailed Myanmar Actress Wins Top Award at German Film Festival
Description: "Imprisoned Myanmar actress Eaindra Kyaw Zin has won the Best Performance Award at Germany’s Oldenburg International Film Festival. The famous actress was arrested and jailed for anti-regime activities in early April and is currently spending her 164th day in Yangon’s Insein Prison, alongside thousands of other political prisoners. She won the Seymour Cassel Best Performance Award for the melodrama What Happened to the Wolf? The movie follows two women who meet and fall in love while patients at a hospital for the terminally ill, with Eaindra Kyaw Zin and fellow Myanmar Motion Picture Academy Award winner Paing Phyoe Thu playing the women. At the September 15 opening ceremony of the Oldenburg International Film Festival, the festival director Torsten Neumann and others wore t-shirts in honor of the detained actress. Eaindra Kyaw Zin is among the highest-profile supporters of Myanmar’s Civil Disobedience Movement (CDM). She was arrested along with her husband Pyay Ti Oo, who is also a famous actor. The two face potential three-year prison terms for sedition for their opposition to the military regime The couple, reputedly the highest-paid actors in Myanmar, joined street protests demanding a return to democracy following the junta’s February 1 coup. They urged civil servants to refuse to work for the regime and join the CDM. What happened to the Wolf? is directed and produced by Na Gyi, who made the film before the coup. Na Gyi, along with his wife Paing Phyoe Thu, is in hiding after arrest warrants for sedition were issued for the couple for allegedly using their celebrity status to oppose the coup. Also in hiding are two other actors in the film, Kyaw Htet Aung and Aung Myint Myat. Paing Phyoe Thu was also nominated for the Seymour Cassel Award for Best Performance. “Na Gyi’s What happened to the Wolf? and the performances of the lead actresses left us breathless,” said award-winning actress and festival jury member Deborah Kara Unger as she announced the award. “We celebrate her [Eaindra Kyaw Zin] elegance, her soul, her invaluable gift to cinema with hope that this reaches her,” she added. Over 8,200 civilians including protesters, activists, politicians and celebrities have been detained by the junta since the coup. Another 2,000-odd people are the subject of arrest warrants. The junta has also banned the showing, broadcasting or publishing of works by artists arrested or wanted for their involvement in anti-regime activities..."
Source/publisher: "The Irrawaddy" (Thailand)
Date of entry/update: 2021-09-20
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Title: Myanmar Regime Soldiers Kill Christian Pastor, Cut Ring From His Hand
Description: "A Chin Christian pastor was shot dead and his wedding ring was looted by Myanmar junta soldiers who cut off the pastor’s finger during an urban clash with civilian resistance forces in Thantlang Township, Chin State on Saturday. On the day, a six-hour prolonged firefight between junta forces and a combined force of the Chinland Defense Force-Thantlang (CDF-T) and the Chin National Army (CNA) occurred in Thantlang. The CDF-T claimed that more than 30 junta troops were killed during the firefight with no casualties on the civilian forces’ side. In the afternoon, 19 houses were set ablaze when junta soldiers opened fire randomly into the town with heavy weapons and explosives. Christian pastor Cung Biak Hum was shot dead by the junta forces when he went outside to help put out the fires caused by the military’s artillery fire. Following the killing and burning down of the houses in the town, the Chin Baptist Convention (CBC) on Sunday issued a statement condemning the atrocities of junta forces against civilians in Chin State. “We are deeply hurt and frightened by the killing of the pastor and stripping of a golden ring by cutting off his finger, as well as the looting of other belongings; [a] watch and mobile phone,” the CBC said in a statement. Most of the residents of Thantlang have reportedly fled the town after seeing the intense violence committed by the junta forces. Myanmar has seen armed resistance by civilians against the junta in Chin State since late April, after junta forces failed to release detained anti-regime protesters in the mountaintop town of Mindat. Last week, a combined force of the CDF-T and CNA seized and burned down a military outpost in Lungler Village near the Indian border west of Thantlang. On Saturday night, at least five people including a child were injured and two houses were burnt to ashes when junta forces randomly opened fire with heavy artillery in residential areas in Hakha, the capital of Chin State..."
Source/publisher: "The Irrawaddy" (Thailand)
Date of entry/update: 2021-09-20
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Title: Myanmar: Military junta intensifies hostility towards media workers
Description: "Myanmar’s military junta is increasingly arresting media workers, a sign of the gradual deterioration of press freedom in the country. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) condemns the repeated and increasingly hostile acts of Myanmar’s military junta towards media workers, which are a blatant attempt to supress an objective and independent press in Myanmar. On September 10, the State Administration Council increased the charges against Frontier Myanmar and Voice of America political reporter Sithu Aung Myint. Myint, along with Htet Htet Khine, a freelance producer for BBC Media Action, have been detained in Insein Prison since their apprehension and arrest on August 15. Myint has had an additional charge levelled under Article 505(b) which criminalises speech that could “cause fear or alarm in the public” within Myanmar’s penal law. She was initially charged with the dissemination of false news, a crime under Article 505(a) of Myanmar’s penal code. A sedition charge, under Article 124(a) of the penal code, was also made but has since been withdrawn. Myint has reported on criticism of Myanmar’s military junta. Khine was charged with harbouring Myint, an accused criminal at that stage, and for alleged ties to a shadow National Unity Government under Section 17(1) of the Unlawful Associations Act. Moreover, Myo Thant, former Mizzima news editor-in-chief, was arrested by the State Administration Council on September 15. A justification for his arrest has not been disclosed. This follows the confirmation of photojournalist Ma Thuzar’s arrest by Myanmar police on September 5. Myanmar’s junta has repeatedly publicised its opposition to independent media during its administration. The Deputy Information Minister, Major General Zaw Min Tin said on July 12, “These media outlets are a danger to the people and traitors to the state, as they are broadcasting fake news and incorrect opinions.” The likelihood of arrest is an “ever-present” consideration for Myanmar’s media workers, according to Aye Chan Naing, chief-editor of independent Myanmar broadcaster DVB News. Recent reporting indicates that 98 journalists have been arrested by the junta since the coup on February 1, 2021. The IFJ said: “We condemn the punitive actions by the Myanmar military junta aimed at curtailing a strong and independent press. The IFJ calls for the immediate release of Sithu Aung Myint, Htet Htet Khine, and Myo Thant as well as for the release of all other media workers enduring detainment in Myanmar; arbitrary detentions must end so that the people of Myanmar can begin to create a safe and secure country.”..."
Source/publisher: "International Federation of Journalists" (Brussels)
Date of entry/update: 2021-09-18
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Title: Two more journalists arrested in Myanmar’s continuing crackdown
Description: "Following the addition of two more names to the list of 54 journalists and media workers currently held in the military junta’s jails in Myanmar, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) reminds the international community of the need for targeted sanctions against those responsible for the growing terror. Mizzima News former editor-in-chief Myo Thant was arrested yesterday in Kangye Htaung, a township in southwestern Myanmar’s Irrawaddy River delta region. RSF has learned that the security forces went to the township after being told he was there, and threatened to take his aunt if he did not surrender. He was finally arrested at round 8 pm. The Channel Mandalay news agency meanwhile confirmed today that one of its journalists, Win Naing Oo, was arrested with his wife on 31 August. His arrest came to light as a result of official report that he had been charged under section 505(a) of the penal code, under which the dissemination of information contrary to the interests of the armed forces is punishable by three years in prison. He is being held incommunicado at a detention centre in Sint Kaing, a township in Mandalay, Myanmar’s second largest city. “The arrests of Win Naing Oo and Myo Thant sadly illustrate the extreme brutality with which Myanmar’s military treats journalists, pursuing them, pressuring their relatives and holding them incommunicado,” said Daniel Bastard, the head of RSF’s Asia-Pacific desk. “Their names have joined a list that keeps on growing. It is high time the international community reacted to the situation by imposing targeted sanctions on the ruling junta’s leaders.” World’s second biggest jailer of journalists According to RSF’s tally, a total of 53 professional journalists, two non-professional journalists and a media worker are currently imprisoned in Myanmar. In the past seven and a half months, since the coup d’état on 1 February, Myanmar has become the world’s second biggest jailer of journalists. Only China detains more. Myo Thant’s arrest comes two weeks after that of Ma Thuzar, a freelancer for various outlets including the Myanmar Pressphoto Agency and the Friday Times News Journal. As RSF reported last week, the authorities let five days go by before confirming her arrest. Myanmar is currently ranked 140th in RSF's World Press Freedom Index..."
Source/publisher: Reporters Without Borders (Paris)
Date of entry/update: 2021-09-18
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Title: Women's League of Burma - August Situation Update
Description: "In the seven months which have now passed since the junta’s attempted coup, the people of Burma/Myanmar have been forced to endure multiple grievances, all of which have taken a toll on the state’s economy and socio-political affairs. The whole country has been pushed back to living under constant threads and insecurity. The military has used all forms of violence including arrest, killing, torture and sexual assault to suppress any actions taken against the coup. The junta also employs state-controlled media to defame women who have joined resistance forces. The junta’s spokesperson in particular has used sexist and patriarchal language against these brave women in an attempt to discredit them. After the arrest, the people continue to suffer from the violence during the interrogation process and in detention. Three dozen civilians have already been tortured to death following interrogations by the military. Many died within 24 hours of being tortured. Eighty- two percent of those in detention are in locations that the junta has not disclosed. At this moment, it is impossible to know how many more women and children are being abused under the scrutiny and increased surveillance of the junta. Women face various challenges as they face the onslaught of the pandemic in the midst of the coup and crippling internal conflict. Female health workers are under attack as they join the hundreds forced to go underground as the junta seeks out medical professionals with any connection to the Civil Disobedience Movement (CDM)..."
Source/publisher: Women's League of Burma
Date of entry/update: 2021-09-18
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Title: Myanmar Junta Arrests Two More Journalists
Description: "Two more Myanmar journalists have been arrested by junta forces, raising the number of journalists being held by the military regime to 53 as of September 16, according to Reporters Without Borders (RSF). Since the military’s February 1 coup, Myanmar has become the world’s second-biggest jailer of journalists, after China, said RSF. On Wednesday night, the former editor-in-chief of Mizzima News, Ko Myo Thant, was arrested in Kangyidaunt Township, Ayeyarwady Region. Junta forces went to Kangyidaunt after being told that Ko Myo Thant was there, and threatened to detain his aunt if he did not surrender, RSF stated in a report released on Thursday. Channel Mandalay news agency journalist Ko Win Naing Oo was arrested on August 31 with his wife. News of his arrest only emerged on Thursday, following a report that he has been charged under Section 505(a) of the Penal Code, which criminalizes the spreading of false comments or fake news targeting government officials. Ko Win Naing Oo faces a potential prison sentence of three years. Since seizing power, the junta has targeted journalists with arrests, lawsuits, raids on newsrooms and violence in an effort to silence independent coverage of its daily atrocities. Over 100 journalists and media workers have been detained. In some cases, relatives of journalists have been held as hostages to force the journalists to turn themselves in. “The arrests of [Ko] Win Naing Oo and [Ko] Myo Thant sadly illustrates the extreme brutality with which Myanmar’s military treats journalists, pursuing them, pressuring their relatives and holding them incommunicado,” said Daniel Bastard, the head of RSF’s Asia-Pacific desk. Ma Thuzar, a freelance reporter and former member of the Press Council has also been arrested. She was snatched by police as she left her home on the morning of September 1. Her arrest was only confirmed by the police on September 5. Her family were unable to confirm her whereabouts, although there are rumors that she was taken to a military interrogation center in Yangon. The reason for her detention is unknown. RSF has called on the international community to impose targeted sanctions against those responsible for the media crackdown..."
Source/publisher: "The Irrawaddy" (Thailand)
Date of entry/update: 2021-09-17
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Title: MYANMAR’S CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE MOVEMENT
Description: "AN INTRODUCTION TO MYANMAR’S CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE MOVEMENT: On 8 November 2020, Myanmar held a third round of national elections since the start of an extended reform process instigated by the 2008 Constitution and national elections in 2010 and 2015. This reform process was premised on the country transitioning away from military dictatorship and civil war and towards peace and federalism. During the November 2020 elections, the military-backed political party, the Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP), lost decisively to the National League for Democracy (NLD), which is led by Daw Aung San Suu Kyi. Subsequently, the USDP and the military started to make false claims of widespread electoral fraud. Both domestic and international election monitors had deemed the poll fair and credible. Myanmar’s military, known as the Tatmadaw, launched a coup d’état on 1 February 2021, removing the elected NLD government led by State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and President U Win Myint. The Tatmadaw’s commander-in-chief, Senior General Min Aung Hlaing took power, forming a dictatorial body of the “State Administration Council” (SAC), composed largely of generals. The Tatmadaw also announced a “one-year-long state of emergency” and that multi-party elections would be held at the end of this year. This period was subsequently extended by SAC in July. The generals announced, unsurprisingly, that elections would not be held within one year of the coup but instead would not be held until at least August 2023. Despite their own unconstitutional actions in the form of a coup, the Tatmadaw cynically contends that the 2008 Constitution is still sacrosanct. Opposition to the Tatmadaw’s unconstitutional and coercive action was quick and nation-wide. Peaceful protests spread across the entire country demanding the release of all political prisoners and the return of the elected government. The Tatmadaw’s claims of electoral fraud were met with widespread contempt from the Myanmar people because of the military’s distinctly toxic history of launching coups and denying or corrupting elections. As peaceful protests were expanding across the country in early February, a novel movement also began to emerge. This movement intended to demonstrate both moral and ethical repulsion at the actions of the coup leaders but also to begin applying peaceful pressure on the military regime to relinquish power. The first incident of what would quickly grow into a national movement occurred on 2nd February. Medical doctors and other healthcare workers at the Mandalay General Hospital, all civil servants, posted social media statements that they would not work for an illegal military regime. As Naypyidaw surgeon Zwe Min Aung recounted to the Voice of America, “At the time, we really disagreed [with] this [the military coup], and we created [a] small group in Mandalay hospital and other hospitals, too. We distributed the statement on February 2 from Facebook and the nationwide CDM began.”2 Though CDM began as an online campaign but has expanded into a wider prodemocracy movement as civil servants from across the ministries started to boycott the military regime. As the movement gained momentum, ever wider parts of Myanmar society joined to make their opposition to the junta known.....MYANMAR’S PEOPLE REJECT MILITARY DICTATORSHIP: Myanmar is not a failed state. Its condition is not that of chronic state weakness caused by civil war, corruption, or entrenched dictatorship. Rather, it is a country where the public, as well as both the private and public sectors, reject the military coup staged on 1 February 2021. In this sense, Myanmar is a country where the near entirety of the population - including civil servants and the private sector – is staging a general strike to peacefully protest the illegal seizure of power by the Myanmar military, known as the Tatmadaw. This effort is the CDM, a non-violent endeavour of an entire population to resist brutal dictatorship. By early-2021, the public had experienced nearly a decade of civilian leadership, economic growth and more generally reform and positive change. This was particularly so after the fully free elections in 2015 that brought the NLD political party, led by Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, to power. The prospects of returning to decades of impoverishment and dictatorial violence through Tatmadaw rule was revolting to the tens of millions of Myanmar citizens who sought to show their unwillingness to accept the coup through peaceful demonstrations in countless villages, towns, and cities across the country. CDM is composed of three major groups from the Myanmar people: the general public, private sector businesses and associations, and civil service personnel. CDM by Myanmar’s Public Since the 1 February coup, countless protests have taken place daily across the entire country to show solidarity for CDM and to demonstrate an absolute rejection of the junta. Over February and March, hundreds-of-thousands of normal Myanmar citizens gathered across the country’s cities, towns, and villages to demonstrate their anger and demand a future of federal democracy. These early mass demonstrations served to unite the various societies within Myanmar. The revulsion of the junta is near universal. For instance, Myanmar’s national football team refused to play under military dictatorship, while hundreds of monks led a prayer session supporting CDM and protestors. Numerous professional associations have regularly demonstrated on the streets wearing their respective attires (doctors, nurses, engineers, teachers, and lawyers). Women have been prominent in the protests and LGBTs groups have also joined protests. The mass protests were not limited to one ethnic group or a particular area of the country. They were across the entire country, spanning religious, ethnic, and socio-economic lines. What united all the millions of people peacefully protesting was a shared desire for a better future defined by a path of democratization, peace, and economic development. The traumas of decades of brutal dictatorship, civil war and crushing impoverishment under the military are too painful to accept returning to. As such, some of the most common placards held high delivered the key messages - “Respect Our Votes” and “Say No to Coup.” Some young women joined early protests playfully wearing wedding gowns and holding placards with messages such as “we don’t accept military coup.” Myanmar’s people just want a normal life for themselves and their families. They know the military will never provide that. Given its toxic history, Myanmar’s military predictably resorted to mass violence against peaceful protesters as they have done so many times over the decades since independence in 1948. Large protests were no longer possible by the end of March after the military started regularly using war weaponry automatic rifles, rocket propelled grenades, and machine guns to disperse peaceful protest rallies. Despite this violence by an organization claiming to protect the people, viz. a national army, Myanmar’s people have continued to protest across the country using novel methods - such as so-called ‘flash mobs’ - to avoid opportunities by the junta to kill. Such is their determination and despite the risk of death, Myanmar’s people can still be seen from the smallest villages to the largest cities demonstrating their desire for a return to democracy and a better future..."
Source/publisher: National Unity Government of Myanmar
Date of entry/update: 2021-09-17
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Title: နိုင်ငံရေးအကျဥ်းသားတယောက်ထံသို့ပေးစာ
Description: "စူဇန်နာ (ကလောင်အမည်) မှ ဖမ်းဆီးအကျဥ်းချခံထားရသူ သူငယ်ချင်းတဦးထံသို့ ပေးစာ ရေးသားသည်။ ရွှေပြည်သာနှင့် အင်းစိန် မှလွဲ၍ နေရာများနှင့် ရက်စွဲများကို လုံခြုံရေးအရ ပြန်လည်ပြင်ဆင်ထားသည်။ ယခုစာကို ၂၀၂၁ ခုနှစ် ဂျွန်လလယ် တွင်ရေးသားခဲ့သည်။ မူရင်းပို့စ်အား ၂၀၂၁ ခုနှစ် ဩဂုတ်လ ၃၀ ရက်နေ့တွင် ရေးသားထုတ်‌ဝေခဲ့သည်။ အင်္ဂလိပ်ဘာသာဖြင့် ဤနေရာတွင် ဖတ်ရှုပါ။ အကိုနဲ့ နောက်ဆုံးစကားပြောခဲ့တာ ၂၀၂၁ ခုနှစ် မေလ ၂ ရက်နေ့ ညနေ ၄ နာရီပါ။ နောက်နေ့ နေ့တနေ့ရဲ့ အစ ပထမဆုံး ကော်ဖီသောက်နေတုန်းမှာ ရန်ကုန်ကသူငယ်ချင်း တယောက်စီက “နင်သိပြီးပြီလား” ဆိုတဲ့ စာ ၀င်လာတယ်။ ကျွန်မ ဘာကိုသိပြီးရမှာလဲ။ တကယ်တော့ သိပ်မကြာသေးခင်ကမှ အကိုပုန်းရှောင်နေတဲ့ တိုက်ခန်းတခုကို မနက် ၂ နာရီမှာ စစ်သားတွေလာပြီး အကို့ကိုလာဖမ်းသွားတဲ့ အကြောင်းကိုပါ။ ပြီးတော့ အဲ့ကတည်းက အကိုကို့ ဘယ်ခေါ်သွားတယ်၊ ဘာဖြစ်သွားတယ် ဆိုတာ ဘယ်သူမှမသိဘူး ဆိုတဲ့ အကြောင်းကို ပေါ့။ ဖြစ်နိုင်ရင် မေလ ၂ ရက်နေ့ညက အကိုအဲ့လိုအဖမ်းခံရမယ်ဆိုတာ ကြိုသိခဲ့ရင်ကောင်းမှာပဲလို့ တွေးမိတယ်။ အင်တာနက်လိုင်းပြန်ရပြီပဲလေဆိုပြီး အကိုကို့ ချက်ချင်း တိုက်ရိုက်ဖုန်းခေါ် စကားပြောဖို့ ကျွန်မ တွန့်ဆုတ် ခဲ့ပါတယ်။ အကိုနဲ့ စာအပြန်အလှန်ပို့တဲ့ အကျင့်ကို မျက်နှာချင်းဆိုင် စကားပြောတဲ့အကျင့်နဲ့ ကျွန်မ တကယ် ပြောင်းလဲချင်ခဲ့တယ်။ အဲ့လိုပြောင်းကြရအောင်လို့ ဘာလို့မတိုက်တွန်းခဲ့မိတာလဲတော့ မသေချာဘူး။ အခု အင်တာနက်တွေ ပြန်ရပြီ၊ မြို့လယ်ခေါင် အင်တာနက်ဆိုင်တွေ ထိုင်ပြီး ဆက်သွယ်ဖို့ သတင်းပို့ဖို့ မလိုတော့ဘူး၊ ကျွန်မတို့ အချိန်မရွေး ဆက်သွယ်နိုင်ပြီလို့ အကို ပြောခဲ့တာကြောင့် မတိုက်တွန်းမိတာလဲ ဖြစ်နိုင်ပါတယ်။ ဟုတ်ပါတယ်၊ ကျွန်မတို့မှာ တယောက်နဲ့တယောက် စကားတွေအချိန်မရွေး ပြောလို့ရတဲ့ ဘ၀တခုရှိခဲ့ပါတယ်။ အဲ့ဒီ ဘဝကို ညတွင်းချင်း ခိုးယူ မခံလိုက်ရခင်ထိပေါ့။ ရန်ကုန်အပြင်ဘက် စိမ်းလန်းစိုပြေတဲ့နေရာလေးတခုမှာပဲ အချိန်တွေရင်းနှီးမြုပ်နှံပြီး ဘေးဖယ်ထားခဲ့တဲ့ အကိုရဲ့ နိုင်ငံရေးတက်ကြွလှုပ်ရှားမှုတွေဟာ ဖေဖော်၀ါရီလ ၁ ရက်နေ့ အာဏာသိမ်းပြီးနေ့မှာ ပြန်အစပျိုးခဲ့တယ်။ အကို ဟာ ဩဂဲန်းနစ် ဟင်းသီးဟင်းရွက်လေးတွေ စိုက်ပျိုးနေခဲ့တယ်။ အကိုဟာ သဘာဝတရားကြီးနဲ့ ပြန်ချိတ်ဆက် မိသွားပြီ၊ အဲ့လိုစိုက်ပျိုးနေရတာ အကို့တွက်ကောင်းတယ်လို့ ကျွန်မထင်တယ်။ မြစ်ဘေးနား ကြိုးပုခက်လေးထဲ က အကို့ပုံတွေ ကျွန်မ ဖေ့စ်ဘုတ်ပေါ်မှာ မြင်တွေ့လိုက်ရတိုင်း စိတ်အေးချမ်းသာမှု ဖြစ်ရတယ်။ ဇန်န၀ါရီလ ကုန်မှာ အကို့ ကံတရားဟာ အကို့အိမ်ရှေ့တံခါးဝကို တံခါးလာခေါက်တော့မလိုမျိုး ပတ်၀န်းကျင်အသစ်မှာ မိတ်ဆွေဟောင်းတွေနဲ့ အကိုပြန်လည်ချိတ်ဆက်မိသွားတာကိုလည်း ကျွန်မ သတိပြုမိပါရဲ့။ ရက်အနည်းငယ်အကြာမှာပဲ အဲ့ကံတရားဟာ ရောက်ချလာတယ်။ မြေအောက်လှုပ်ရှားမှုတွေ စည်းချက်ညီညီ ပြန်စပြီး လူထုဆန့်ကျင်လှုပ်ရှားမှုလမ်းကြောင်းကို ဆက်လျှောက်ဖို့ သူတို့နဲ့ အတူတူ အကိုဆုံးဖြတ်ခဲ့တယ်။ ပို့ပေးနေကြ ခရမ်းချဥ်သီး၊ သခွါးသီး လတ်လတ်ဆတ်ဆတ် ပုံတွေ၊စာတွေဟာ ပျောက်ကွယ်သွားတယ်။ ကျွန်မတို့ ပြောဆိုဆက်သွယ်ရတဲ့ ပုံတွေ၊ အကြောင်းရာတွေဟာ ပြင်းထန်လာတယ်။ အကိုအင်တာနက် ရနေချိန်တိုင်း ကျွန်မတို့အဆက်သွယ် လုပ်ခဲ့ပါတယ်။ ကျွန်မတို့ဟာ အချိန်နဲ့ နေရာ ထပ်တူမကျတဲ့ ပြင်ပအရပ်တခုမှာ မမျှော်လင့်ဘဲ ဆက်သွယ်နေခဲ့ကြတာပါ။ မတူညီတဲ့ ကမ္ဘာနှစ်ခုက လူနှစ်ယောက်ဟာ တက်ညီလက်ညီ အလုပ်လုပ်ခဲ့ကြတာပါ။ တခါတခါ လျှပ်စစ်ပစ္စည်းတွေကနေ ဆက်သွယ်ကြ၊ တခါတခါလည်း စိတ်ခံစားချက်တွေပေါက်ကွဲကြ ငြင်းခုံကြနဲ့ ဒါတွေအားလုံးရဲ့ နောက်ကွယ်မှာတော့ ဘာဖြစ်လာမလဲဆိုတာကို ကြိုသိနေတဲ့ စိုးရိမ်ပူပန်မှုတွေ ရှိနေခဲ့ပါတယ်။ အာဏာသိမ်း သတင်းနဲ့အတူ ကျွန်မကိုယ်တိုင်လည်း အလုပ်သစ်ရနေတာကို တွေ့လိုက်တယ်။ ကျွန်မက အကိုရဲ့ သတင်းအချက်သိမ်းဆည်းရာ database တခု၊ သတင်းအချက်လက်အလွယ်တကူသယ်ယူလို့ရရာ hard drive တခု၊ သတင်းရှာတဲ့ ကြားခံ browser တခု၊ ပြီးတော့ အကိုယုံကြည်ရတဲ့ ဘော်ဒါတဦးဖြစ်လာတယ်။ အကိုအဆင်ပြေနေရင်လည်း ကျွန်မသိသလို၊ အကိုအဆင်မပြေနေရင်လည်း ကျွန်မသိတယ်။ အပြန်အလှန် ဆက်သွယ် စကား ပြောနေရင်းနဲ့ မြန်မာမှာဖြစ်နေတဲ့ အကြောင်းရာ၊ အဖြစ်ပျက်တွေကို ကျွန်မသိရှိနေခဲ့တယ်။ ဖေဖော်ဝါရီလမှာ လူထောင်ပေါင်းများစွာ ငြိမ်းချမ်းစွာလမ်းလျှောက်ဆန္ဒပြနေတုန်းကလည်း အကိုလျှောက်သလို ကျွန်မလိုက်လျှောက်ခဲ့တယ်။ လအနည်းငယ်ကြာပြီး အဲ့လျှောက်ခဲ့ဖူးတဲ့လမ်းတွေပေါ်မှာပဲ မီးတွေလောင်၊ သွေးတွေရဲနေတုန်းကလည်း အကိုလျှောက်သလို ကျမလိုက်လျှောက်ခဲ့တယ်။ စစ်သားတွေ သေနတ်နဲ့ပစ်ခတ်တဲ့ အချိန်မှာလည်း အကိုပြေးသလို ကျွန်မပြေးခဲ့တယ်။ အကို တယောက်တည်း ပုန်းရှောင်နေတဲ့ တိုက်ခန်းလေး တခုမှာ အကိုရဲ့ အထီးကျန်မှုတွေကို ကျွန်မခံစားခဲ့ရတယ်။ အကို့ ရဲဘော်တွေရဲ့ ကံကြမ္မာကို မြင်ရတဲ့အခါ အကို့ကိုထိုးနှက်လာတဲ့ ၀မ်းနည်းမှုတွေကို ကျွန်မတွေ့ကြုံခံစားရတယ်။ ဧပြီလညတညမှာ အကိုပုန်းရှောင်နေတဲ့ မြောက်ဥက္ကလာပက နေရာတခုရှေ့တည့်တည့်မှာ စစ်သားတွေ သေနတ်တွေနဲ့ပစ်ခတ် နေခဲ့တဲ့ ညကတော့ ကျွန်မအတွက် ကြောက်စရာအကောင်းဆုံးပါပဲ။ အဲ့တာတွေအားလုံးကို အကိုကနေ တဆင့် ခံစားသိမြင်ခဲ့တာပါ။ လက်တွေ့မှာ ကျွန်မက အဲ့နေရာတွေမှာမှ တကယ်ရှိမနေခဲ့တာပဲ။ အကိုသာ စစ်အာဏာရှင်ရဲ့ မတရားမှုနဲ့ လူသားမဆန်မှုတွေကို ကံတရားနဲ့ ရင်ဆိုင် အလဲထိုးတဲ့ဒဏ္ဍာရီထဲမှာ အခြားထောင်ပေါင်များစွာသော လူတွေနဲ့အတူ ပါ၀င်ခဲ့တာပါ။ အမှောင်ခွင်းပြီးအလင်းဆောင်ဖို့ မြန်မာပြည်ရဲ့ အခြားထောင်ပေါင်းများစွာသော လူတွေလိုပဲ အကိုသတ္တိမွေးခဲ့တယ်။ ဒါပေမယ့် အမှောင်ဟာ ဖော်ပြလို့မရတဲ့ နည်းလမ်းမျိုးနဲ့ မျက်နှာပြင်မှာ ဖက်တွယ်ထားတယ်။ မဖြစ်နိုင်တာမဟုတ်ပေမယ့် ဖယ်ရှားဖို့အတွက် ဇွဲရှိဖို့လိုအပ်တယ်။ အကို့မှာ ဒီလို ဇွဲသတ္တိမျိုး ရှိတယ်ဆိုတာလည်း သက်သေပြခဲ့ပြီးပါပြီ။ အကို့ကိုမလိမ်ပါဘူး၊ အကို့ရဲ့ ကံတရားက ကျွန်မကို အစောကြီးကတည်းကစိုးရိမ်စေခဲ့ပါတယ်။ အကိုက ကိုယ်သင်ပြပေးခဲ့ရတဲ့ လူငယ်တွေအပေါ် အမြဲတမ်းဂရုတစိုက် ရှိခဲ့သလို အကို့ ဆီ အကူညီ တောင်းလာတဲ့ သူတွေကိုလည်း ပံ့ပိုးပေးခဲ့တာချည်းပါပဲ။ မြန်မာလူငယ်တွေမှာ အကိုလိုလူမျိုး လိုအပ်တယ် ဆိုတာ မြေကြီးလက်ခတ်မလွဲပါဘဲ၊ အခုလက်ရှိအဖွဲ့လိုပေါ့။ ကံကောင်းတာက အခြားအရာတွေအပြင် စည်လုံးညီညွတ်မှု၊ စိတ်အားထက်သန်မှုတို့ လည်းရှိနေပြန်တယ်။ ဒါပေမယ့်လည်း ဒလန် (သတင်းပေးသူ) တွေများလာတဲ့ ပတ်၀န်းကျင်မှာ အဖွဲ့တွေအများကြီး၊ လူတွေအများကြီးနဲ့ ချိတ်ဆက်တာဟာ တဖြည်းဖြည်းနဲ့ အကို့အတွက် အန္တရာယ်ဖြစ်လာတယ်။ အမှန်တကယ်လဲ ဒလန်ပါခဲ့ပါတယ်။ အကိုဟာ ကျွန်မကို အခြား အန္တရာယ်ရှိနိုင်တဲ့ ကိစ္စတွေနဲ့ ပတ်သတ်ပြီး အသိပေးခဲ့တယ် ။ ဒလန်တွေအကြောင်းတော့ အကိုမသိခဲ့ဘူး။ ဒီတော်လှန်ရေးအတွက်၊ အမှန်တရားအတွက် အကို့ဘ၀ကိုပေးဆပ်ဖို့ အဆင်သင့်ပဲလို့ အကို ကျွန်မကို မကြာခဏ ပြောခဲ့တယ်။ အဖမ်းမခံရမချင်း ဆက်လုပ်နေမှာလို့ သိပ်မကြာခင်ကလည်း အကိုထပ်ပြောခဲ့တယ်။ အကိုကို့ မြန်မာနိုင်ငံက ထွက်သွားဖို့ တိုက်တွန်းတိုင်း၊ အဲ့လိုဆုံးဖြတ်တာပေါ် မူတည်ပြီး အကိုလုံခြုံ သွားမယ်လို့ ပြောတိုင်း အကိုနဲ့ အပြိုင်မပြောနိုင်ခဲ့ဘူး။ အကို့ ကြယ်လေးတွေမှာ ရေးသားသဘောတူထားပြီးတဲ့ ကံတရားကို ၀င်စွက်ဖက်ရအောင် ကျွန်မက ဘယ်သူမို့လို့လဲ။ အကိုက နှစ်ပေါင်းများစွာ အကျဥ်းချခံခဲ့ရတဲ့ နိုင်ငံရေး အကျဥ်းသား သမားတယောက်၊ ထပ်ဖမ်ဆီးခံရတာက အကို့အတွက်ကော ကျမအပါအ၀င် အကိုချစ်ရတဲ့သူတွေအတွက်ကော အရမ်းကိုရက်စက်ရာကျမှာပဲ။ ဒီလိုနဲ့ မေလ ၂ ရက်နေ့မှာတော့ အကို့ သတင်း အစနပျောက်သွားတယ်။ ၀ိုင်ဖိုင်နဲ့ အကိုပုန်းခိုလို့ ရမယ့်နေရာ အသစ်ကို အကိုဆုံးရှုံးသွားတယ်။ ပွင့်ပွင့်လင်းလင်းပြောရရင် အကို့လွတ်လပ်ခွင့်တွေအားလုံး ဆုံးရှုံးသွားပြီး တခြားကမ္ဘာတခုထဲကို ခြေချော်လက်ချော်ကျသွားခဲ့တာပါ။ ဒီဆက်သွယ်မရ ရုပ်ဝတ္တုမဲ့ကမ္ဘာကြီးက လူတယောက်ကို အရိုးထဲထိစိမ့်နေအောင် ‌‌ခြောက်ခြားစေခဲ့တာပါ။ ရူးကြောင်ကြောင်နိုင်တယ်ဆိုတာ ကျွန်မသိပေမယ့် အကျင့်တွေက ပြင်ရခက်တယ်။ အကိုဘယ်မှာလဲနဲ့ အကိုအားတင်းထားရဲ့လားဆိုတာကို စာပို့ပြီးမေးဖို့ အကြိမ်ပေါင်းများစွာကြံမိပြီးမှ ကျွန်မစာကို အ၀တ်အစိမ်းတွေ၊ ဘွတ်ဖိနပ်တွေ ၀တ်ထားတဲ့ အာဏာရူးတွေ ဖတ်မိမှာပဲဆိုပြီး မပို့မိအောင် ကိုယ့်ကိုကိုယ် ပြန်သတိပေးရတယ်။ အကိုဘယ်မှာလဲဆိုတာ ကျွန်မတို့မသိခဲ့ပါဘူး။ အကို အသက်ရှင်လျက် ရှိနေသေးလားဆိုတာတောင် ကျွန်မတို့ မသိခဲ့ပါဘူး။ ညသန်းခေါင်ကြီးမှာ အကို့ကိုဖမ်းတဲ့ အကြောင်းကို ပြန်တွေးရင်တောင် ခေါင်းတွေကိုက်ခဲလာတယ်။ ဒါပေမယ့်လည်း ကျွန်မခေါင်းထဲမှာ ခဏခဏပြန်တွေးရလွန်းလို့ အသေးစိတ်တွေတောင် စပြီး စဥ်းစားမိ လာတယ်။ နိုင်ငံရေးတက်ကြွလှုပ်ရှားသူတွေက ညအိပ်၀တ်စုံကြီးနဲ့ အဖမ်းခံသွားရတာလား။ ဒီလို ဘာမဟုတ်တဲ့ အတွေးတွေက အကို့အခန်းတံခါးကို မနက် ၂ နာရီ ဖျက်ပြီး ၀င်လာချိန်မှာ ဘယ်လောက်များ စိတ်မသက်မသာ ခံစားနေရမလဲဆိုတဲ့ အတွေးတွေမတွေးမိအောင် ရပ်တန့်ပေးနိုင်ပါတယ်။ ဒီလိုနဲ့ အကို့ကို ကျွန်မတို့ ရက်ပေါင်းများစွာ ရှာဖွေခဲ့တယ်။ ကောက်ရိုးပုံထဲ အပ်ရှာရသလိုပါပဲ။ ရန်ကုန်က သူတွေကို ဆက်သွယ်တယ်။ အကို့မိသားစုကို တဆင့်ခံ ဆက်သွယ်တယ်။ အကိုဘယ်နေရာမှာ ရှိနေနိုင်မလဲဆိုတဲ့ သတင်းအချက်လက် အရှိနေနိုင်ဆုံးသူတွေ၊ အဖွဲ့တွေကို ဆက်သွယ်ခဲ့ပါတယ်။ သူတို့က ရှေ့နေ တယောက်ကို ဆက်သွယ်နိုင်ခဲ့ပြီး အကို ရွှေပြည်သာ စစ်ကြောရေးမှာ စစ်ဆေးမေးမြန်းခံနေရတာ ဖြစ်ဖို့များတယ်လို့ ရှေ့နေက ကျွန်မတို့ကိုပြောပါတယ်။ ကျွန်မ တိတ်ဆိတ်ဆွံ့အပြီး ကြက်သေသေသွားခဲ့တယ်။ ကြားရတဲ့စကားတွေက ခြောက်ခြားစရာကောင်းလွန်းတယ်။ ဒီလိုဆိုတော့ အကို့ကိုလည်း အဲ့နေရာကိုခေါ်သွားခံရတာပေါ့။ အကိုကို ရုပ်ဆင်းရဲ၊ စိတ်ဆင်းရဲအောင် လုပ်တဲ့အတွေ့အကြုံကို ပထမတကြိမ် ထောင်သွင်းအကျဥ်းခံရတုန်းကတည်းက တွေ့ကြုံခံစားဖူးပြီးသားဆိုတာ ကျွန်မသိပါတယ်။ အဲ့မှာ အကိုရှိနေမယ်လို့လည်း ကျွန်မတို့ ၁၀၀ ရာခိုင်နှုန်းမသေချာပါဘူး။ ခန့်မှန်းချက်အများကြီးထဲက တခုပါ။ အဲ့နေရာကို ဘယ်သူမှမသွားနိုင်သလို၊ ဘယ်ရှေ့နေမှလည်း ၀င်ရောက်ခွင့်မရှိပါဘူး။ ဝမ်းနည်းဖို့ကောင်းစွာပဲ အကို့ဆီကသတင်းအချက် လက်တွေ ရဖို့အတွက် နှိပ်စက်ကြမယ်၊ အကိုဟာ စစ်ဖိနပ်တွေ လက်ခုပ်ထဲကရေ ဖြစ်နေတာပါ။ အကိုဟာဘယ်လောက်ခက်ခဲပါ‌စေ၊ ဘယ်လောက်ထိ မခံမရပ်နိုင်အောင် ခံစားနေရပါစေ၊ ဘယ်တော့မှ ဒူးထောက်မှာ မဟုတ်ဘူးဆိုတာ ကျွန်မတို့သိပြီးသားပါ။ နှစ်ပတ်ကြာပြီးတဲ့နောက်မှာတော့ အကိုမိသားစုကို အမည်မဖော်လိုတဲ့ နေရာတခုကနေ ဖုန်းဆက်လာတယ်။ စစ်ကြောရေးမှာ အကို ဒဏ်ရာရသွားတယ်တဲ့။ နောက်ဆုံးမှာတော့ ကျွန်မတို့ အကိုကို့ရှာတွေ့ ခဲ့ပြီ။ ဘယ်လိုအခြေနေမျိုးမှာ ရှာတွေ့ခဲ့တာလဲ ဆိုတာတော့ ကျွန်မတို့မသိပါဘူး ။ ဒါပေမယ့် အကို အသက်ရှုနေတုန်းပဲ။ ရက်ပေါင်းများစွာ ကြာပြီးတဲ့နောက်မှာ နောက်ဆုံးမှာတော့ အကို့ကိုအင်းစိန်ထောင်ကို ရွှေ့ ပြောင်းခဲ့တယ်။ အဲ့ဒီတခဏမှာ ကျွန်မတို့အားလုံး စိတ်သက်သာရာရခဲ့တယ်။ ဒီခံစားချက်နဲ့အတူ မြန်မာနိုင်ငံမှာဖြစ်နေတဲ့ လူသားတွေနဲ့ သူတို့ရဲ့ ရူးသွပ်မှု အဖျက်စွမ်းအားကို လူတယောက်ဟာ နားလည်ခဲ့ရတယ်။ အင်းစိန်ထောင်ဟာ နာမည်ဆိုးနဲ့ကျော်ကြားပါတယ် ။ အင်းစိန်ရောက်ဖူးတဲ့ နိုင်ငံရေးအကျဥ်းသားတွေက ကမ္ဘာပေါ်ကငရဲ လို့ ပြောကြတယ်။ ဒါပေမယ့် အခုတော့ အဆိုးဆုံးရဲ့ အဆိုးဆုံးထက် ပိုကောင်းနေတယ်။ အခု အကို့ကို တခါတလေ လာတွေ့မယ့် ရှေ့နေတဦးရှိပြီ။ သူလဲ အများကြီး တတ်နိုင်မှာမဟုတ်ပေမယ့် တနည်းအားဖြင့် အကောင်းဆုံးဖြစ်အောင် ကြိုးစားပေးမယ့် တယောက်တော့ရှိနေပြီ။ အကျဥ်းသားတွေရဲ့ ကံတရားဟာ အင်းစိန်ထောင် ထောင့်က ဖြစ်ကတက်ဆန်း တရားရုံးလက်ထဲမှာရှိနေပြီ။ အကိုကို့ တပတ်နှစ်ပတ်အတွင်း သို့မဟုတ် လပေါင်းများစွာ ကြာပြီးတဲ့အခါမှာ အမိန့်ချမှတ်ပါလိမ့်မယ်။ လွယ်လွယ်ကူကူနဲ့ ပြီးသွားမယ် လို့ တော့ မထင်ပါဘူး။ လွယ်တယ်ဆိုတဲ့ သတင်းကောင်းမျိုးလည်း မရှိခဲ့ဘူးလေ။ ဒီနံရံတွေကြားမှာ အသားကျအောင် အကိုဘယ်လိုလုပ်မလဲ၊ အချိန်တွေကုန်သွားအောင် ဘယ်လိုလုပ်မလဲ ဆိုတာ ကျွန်မမသိပါဘူး။ တခါတလေ တရားထိုင်နေမယ်၊ တခါတလေ မိုးကျမှာကို စောင့်စားနေမယ်လို့ ကျွန်မစိတ်ကူးကြည့်ပါတယ်။ အကို့မှာ အကို့လို အေးအေးချမ်းချမ်းနဲ့ စိတ်အားထက်သန်မှုရှိတဲ့ ပြီးတော့ အကို့ရဲ့ ဆန္ဒမျှော်လင့်ချက်တွေကို ဆက်လက်တောင်လောင်နေဖို့ရာ အပြန်လှန်မျှ‌ဝေနိုင်တဲ့ အခြားနိုင်ငံရေး အကျဥ်းသားအဖော်တဦးရှိမယ်လို့ မျှော်လင့်ပါတယ်။ မြန်မာနိုင်ငံမှာ နိုင်ငံရေးအကျဥ်းသားတွေ အများကြီး ရှိပါတယ်။ ဒီနေ့ ဒီအချိန်မှာ သူတို့ထဲက အချို့ဟာစစ်အာဏာရှင်ကို ဆန့်ကျင်ကြတဲ့ ထင်ရှားတဲ့ပုဂ္ဂိုလ်တွေ ဖြစ်လာနေကြပါပြီ။ လူတွေနဲ့ သူတို့လျှောက်ခဲ့တဲ့ခရီးတွေဟာ မသေချာတဲ့ အနာဂတ်ကို ဆေးရောင်စုံခြယ်မယ့် ခွန်အားအရင်းမြစ်တွေ၊ မျှော်လင့်ချက်တွေ ဖြစ်လာပါပြီ။ အကျဥ်းထောင်ထဲက အကိုတို့တွေဟာ လွတ်မြောက်ရေးအတွက် တိုက်ပွဲ၀င်နေတဲ့၊ ဒီပန်းတိုင်ကို ရောက်အောင်ကြိုးစားနေတဲ့ ပြယုဒ်တွေပါပဲ။ အဲ့ဒီအတွက် အကိုတို့အားလုံးကို အရမ်းပဲလေးစားပါတယ်။ သူတို့ဘာပဲပြောပြော လွတ်မြောက်မှု အလင်းရောင်ကိုဆုပ်ကိုင်ထားတာက အပြောင်းလဲတခုကိုဖြစ်စေနိုင်တယ်ဆိုတာ အကိုလည်းသိနှင့်ပြီးသားပါ။ အကို့ရဲ့ စွန့်လွှတ်အနစ်နာခံမှုတွေက အလကားမဖြစ်ပါဘူး။ တလက်လက်တောက်နေတဲ့အလင်းစက်တွေက အမှောင်ထုကိုခွင်းနေပါတယ်။ …. ကိုယ့်ကိုကိုယ် ဂရုစိုက်ပါ။ ကျွန်မလမင်းကြီးကိုမေးလိုက်တယ်။ အဲ့ဒီမီးခိုးရောင်နံရံတွေရဲ့ တဖက်ခြမ်းမှာ တော်လှန်ရေးက ခရီးဆက်နေတယ်၊ ကျွန်မတို့ကလည်း အကို့ကိုစောင့်နေပါတယ်။ ကျွန်မတို့ တယောက်နဲ့တယောက် ခဏ အဆက်သွယ်ပြတ်သွားခဲ့ပေမယ့် ကြယ်တွေလင်းလက်တဲ့ တခုသောကောင်းကင်ကြီးအောက်မှာ အတူတူရှိနေတုန်းပါပဲ။ တကယ်လို့သာ ဘယ်လိုနားထောင်ရ မယ်ဆိုတာကိုသိရင် ကြယ်တွေဟာသတင်းစကားတွေကို လက်ဆင့်ကမ်းပေးနိုင်တယ်လို့ ကျွန်မကြားဖူးပါတယ်။ သိပ်မကြာခင်ပေါ့ အကို… ညီမ။ “မြန်မာနိုင်ငံမှာ နိုင်ငံရေးအကျဥ်းသားတွေ ရှိနေသရွေ့ မြန်မာနိုင်ငံဟာ မလွတ်မြောက်သေးပါဘူး။ နိုင်ငံရေးအကျဥ်းသားတွေဟာ မြန်မာနိုင်ငံရဲ့ ပြည်သူတွေလွတ်မြောက်ရေးနှင့် တန်းတူညီမျှမှု၊ လူ့အခွင့်ရေး၊ ဒီမိုကရေစီရရှိရေး တိုက်ပွဲများကို ကိုယ်စားပြုပါတယ်” နိုင်ငံရေးအကျဥ်းသားများ ကူညီစောင့်ရှောက်ရေး အသင်း (အေအေပီပီ)..."
Source/publisher: "Tea Circle" (Myanmar)
Date of entry/update: 2021-09-16
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Title: National Unity Government: Press Release No.14/2021
Description: "Republic of the Union of Myanmar National Unity Government https://nugmyanmar.org Press Release (14/2021) 13 September 2021 MYANMAR, September 13, 2021. The Myanmar National Unity Government (NUG) announced the people's defensive revolution against the military junta on September 7, 2021. It issued an order declaring a State of Emergency in the country, closing all government offices for an indefinite period, and a directive outlining the Code of Conduct for People’s Defense Forces. The announcement was met with overwhelming support from the people. Min Aung Hlaing’s military junta continues to commit atrocities against the people of Myanmar and has dragged the country into instability and severe economic, humanitarian, and health crises in the last seven months. Immediately after the attempted coup, millions in Myanmar joined non-violent resistance movements and peaceful protests. The military responded with violence, killing more than 1,000 unarmed protesters, arbitrarily detaining more than 7,000 people, looting and destruction of civilian properties, and violating International Human Rights and Humanitarian Laws in its offensive operation against ethnic areas. With the illegal and failed coup having entered its eighth month, it is clear that the military junta is not interested in a peaceful political settlement but will continue to use violence in an attempt to gain power. The NUG, as the legitimate government of Myanmar, has the solemn responsibility to protect the interests and security of our people and bring stability back to the country. With the failure of various political and diplomatic efforts to stop the military’s brutality in the past eight months, local communities are forced to form defense forces and to defend themselves from continuous military atrocities. The NUG restates its commitment to ensuring that needs to create a unified chain of command amongst People’s Defense Forces, respect the NUG’s Code of Conduct which are in line with International Human Rights and Humanitarian Laws, and the Geneva Conventions. The NUG has also accepted the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court, meaning that all actors in Myanmar can now be held accountable for their actions under the Rome Statute. The NUG is striving to save Myanmar from the root cause of Myanmar’s civil wars and crises—the military. The People’s Defense Forces will play a very important role in reforming Myanmar’s security sector in the future and ensuring the establishment of a Federal Army that respects and follows international law, protects the people, and serves the Federal Democratic Union under civilian rule. At the same time, the NUG is giving a clear message to the forces of the military that they have a choice – they are ordered to depart immediately from their posts and seek the protection of the People’s Defense Forces and EAOs (Ethnic Armed Organizations). The NUG has invited and continues to invite members of the military and police forces to join with the people and the NUG. The NUG will ensure the security and safety of those who join and of their families, and make arrangements for those who wish to continue their duties as soldiers. The NUG, as the legitimate government of Myanmar, appreciates and recognizes various international efforts in support of Myanmar, and will continue its own efforts to engage the international community and respect international laws in implementing our goals and objectives. We note however, that, by default, the military has been invited to officially participate in some international meetings by some States, and is forging military and economic deals with some other countries thereby illegally encroaching on the legitimacy of the NUG as the sole representative of the people of Myanmar. In addition, the military has rejected the efforts of many international organizations and agencies to deliver health aid to the people, causing countless needless deaths from COVID-19, while generating instability and health crises across the region. The international community obviously cannot be relied upon to intercede on behalf of the democracy movement and secure the safety and well-being of the people of Myanmar from the frontal and brutal assault of the military junta. For that reason, the last seven months have clearly shown that national solidarity and collective action will be the most effective way to end the coup, chaos, and instability caused by the military. As the people continue to resist military rule, escalation of violence from the military is inevitable. The excessive and deadly force already used against peaceful protesters by the military has driven young people to take up a force-ready self-defensive revolution. The people across Myanmar have already formed the defense groups and initiated the defense activities, and the Ethnic Armed Organizations (EAOs) are preparing to defend themselves from military forces entering into their areas to attack villages. PDF have joined hands with the EAOs in their various states and regions to develop more coordinated defense plans. The NUG calls for the unity of all the people of Myanmar to uproot the military oppressors – the perpetrators of violence against the people – for good and to establish a peaceful federal democratic union that fully safeguards equality, freedom, inclusion and democracy for all. It further calls on the international community to recognize the NUG as the legitimate government of the people. As such, the NUG will listen to the demands of the people of Myanmar and respond to their need for protection from the military’s brutality. We acknowledge and accept our right and our duty to defend the people..."
Source/publisher: National Unity Government of Myanmar
Date of entry/update: 2021-09-13
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Title: National Unity Government: Press Release No.14/2021 - ပြည်ထောင်စုသမ္မတမြန်မာနိုင်ငံတော် အမျိုးသားညီညွတ်ရေးအစိုးရ က သတင်းထုတ်ပြန်ချက်အမှတ် (၁၄/၂၀၂၁)
Description: "ပြည်ထောင်စုသမ္မတမြန်မာနိုင်ငံတော် အမျိုးသားညီညွတ်ရေးအစိုးရ https://nugmyanmar.org သတင်းထုတ်ပြန်ချက် (၁၄/၂၀၂၁) ၂၀၂၁ ခုနှစ်၊ စက်တင်ဘာလ (၁၃) ရက် အမျိုးသားညီညွတ်ရေးအစိုးရက စစ်ကောင်စီအား ခုခံတွန်းလှန်မည့် ပြည်သူ့တော်လှန်ရေး စတင်ကြောင်း ၂၀၂၁ ခုနှစ်၊ စက်တင်ဘာလ (၇) ရက်နေ့စွဲဖြင့် ကြေညာခဲ့သည်။ တိုင်းပြည်အား အရေးပေါ် အခြေအနေ ကြေညာ၍ အစိုးရရုံးများအား ရက်အကန့်အသတ်မရှိ ပိတ်ထားကြောင်းနှင့် ပြည်သူ့ကာကွယ်ရေး တပ်ဖွဲ့များ လိုက်နာရမည့် ကျင့်ဝတ်စည်းကမ်းများ ကိုလည်း ထုတ်ပြန်ကြေညာခဲ့သည်။ အဆိုပါ ကြေညာချက်ကို ပြည်သူများက တခဲနက် ကြိုဆိုထောက်ခံခဲ့ကြသည်။ မင်းအောင်လှိုင်ဦးဆောင်သည့် စစ်ကောင်စီသည် ခုနှစ်လအတွင်း ပြည်သူလူထုအား ဖိနှိပ်ရက်စက်မှုများစွာ ကျူးလွန်ခဲ့သည့်အပြင် မတည်ငြိမ်မှုများနှင့်အတူ စီးပွားရေး၊ လူသားချင်းစာနာမှုနှင့် ကျန်းမာရေးဆိုင်ရာ အကြပ်အတည်း ပေါင်းများစွာ ကြုံတွေ့စေခဲ့သည်။ အာဏာသိမ်းရန်ကြိုးပမ်းမှု ပေါ်ပေါက်ပြီး မကြာခင်မှာပင် သန်းပေါင်းများစွာသော ပြည်သူလူထုသည် အကြမ်းမဖက် ခုခံလှုပ်ရှားမှုများနှင့် ငြိမ်းချမ်းစွာ ဆန္ဒထုတ်ဖေါ်ပွဲများတွင် ပါဝင်ခဲ့ကြသည်။ စစ်ကောင်စီ၏ လုံခြုံရေးတပ်ဖွဲ့များက လက်နက်မဲ့ဆန္ဒထုတ်ဖေါ်နေသည့် လူပေါင်း ထောင်ကျော်သတ်ဖြတ်ခြင်း၊ လူပေါင်း (၇၀၀၀) ကျော် မတရားဖမ်းဆီးခြင်း၊ ပြည်သူများ၏ အိုးအိမ်စည်းစိမ်ပိုင်ဆိုင်မှုများကို ဖျက်ဆီးခြင်း အစရှိသော အကြမ်းဖက်မှုများကို ကျူးလွန်ခဲ့ကြပြီး တိုင်းရင်းသားဒေသများတွင် စစ်ဆင်ရေးများ ပြုလုပ်ကာ နိုင်ငံတကာ လူ့အခွင့်အရေးနှင့် လူသားချင်းစာနာမှုဥပဒေများကို ချိုးဖောက်ခဲ့ကြသည်။ တရားမဝင်၊ မအောင်မြင်သည့် အာဏာသိမ်းရန် ကြိုးပမ်းမှုက ရှစ်လအတွင်းသို့ ဝင်ရောက်လာပြီဖြစ်သော်လည်း စစ်ကောင်စီသည် နိုင်ငံရေးအရ ငြိမ်းချမ်းစွာ ဖြေရှင်းမှုကို လုံးဝ စိတ်မဝင်စားပဲ အာဏာဆက်လက်တည်မြဲရေးအတွက် အကြမ်းဖက်မှုများကို ဆက်လက် ကျူးလွန်သွားမည်မှာ သေချာလျက်ရှိသည်။ အမျိုးသားညီညွတ်ရေးအစိုးရသည် မြန်မာနိုင်ငံ၏ တရားဝင်အစိုးရတစ်ရပ်အနေဖြင့် ပြည်သူလူထု၏ အသက်အိုးအိမ်စည်းစိမ်နှင့် လုံခြုံမှုတို့ကို အကာအကွယ်ပေးရန်နှင့် တိုင်းပြည်အား တည်ငြိမ်မှုကို ဆောင်ကျဉ်းပေးရန် အလေးအနက် တာဝန်ရှိသည်။ ပြီးခဲ့သည့် ခုနှစ်လအတွင်း နိုင်ငံရေးနှင့် သံတမန်ရေး ကြိုးပမ်းမှုသက်သက်ဖြင့် ပြဿနာများကို မဖြေရှင်းနိုင်ကြောင်း သေချာခဲ့သည့်နောက်တွင် မိမိတို့ဒေသ ရပ်ရွာများကို စစ်ကောင်စီတပ်များ၏ ဖိနှိပ် ရက်စက်မှုများမှ ကာကွယ်ရန် အဆိုပါ ရပ်ရွာဒေသမှ ပြည်သူများက ကာကွယ်ရေးအဖွဲ့များကို မလွှဲမရှောင်သာ ဖွဲ့စည်းခဲ့ရသည်။ အမျိုးသားညီညွတ်ရေးအစိုးရ၏ ပြည်သူ့ကာကွယ်ရေးတပ်ဖွဲ့များအနေဖြင့် နိုင်ငံတကာ လူ့အခွင့်အရေး နှင့် လူသားချင်းစာနာမှုဆိုင်ရာဥပဒေများ၊ ဂျီနီဗာသဘောတူညီချက်တို့နှင့် လိုက်လျောညီထွေဖြစ်သော ကျင့်ဝတ် စည်းကမ်းများကို လေးစားလိုက်နာရန် အမျိုးသားညီညွတ်ရေးအစိုးရက ကြိုးပမ်းဆောင်ရွက်မည်ဖြစ်ကြောင်း ထပ်လောင်း အတည်ပြုပါသည်။ အမျိုးသား ညီညွတ်ရေးအစိုးရသည် နိုင်ငံတကာ ရာဇဝတ်တရားရုံး၏ တရားစီရင်ပိုင်ခွင့် အာဏာကို လက်ခံထားပြီး မြန်မာပြည်တွင်းရှိ သက်ဆိုင်သူအားလုံး မိမိတို့လုပ်ရပ်များအတွက် ရောမသဘောတူညီချက် နှင့်အညီ တာဝန်ခံရမည်ဖြစ်သည်။ အမျိုးသားညီညွတ်ရေးအစိုးရသည် ပြည်တွင်းစစ်နှင့် လက်ရှိအကြပ်အတည်းများ၏ အခြေခံ အကြောင်းတရားဖြစ်သော စစ်ကောင်စီကို ဖယ်ရှားရန် ကြိုးပမ်းနေခြင်းလည်း ဖြစ်သည်။ ပြည်သူ့ကာကွယ်ရေး တပ်ဖွဲ့များသည် အနာဂတ်တွင်အကောင်အထည်ဖေါ်မည့် လုံခြုံရေးကဏ္ဍ ပြုပြင် ပြောင်းလဲရေးနှင့် နိုင်ငံတကာ ဥပဒေကို လေးစားလိုက်နာသော၊ ပြည်သူလူထုကို ကာကွယ်သော ဖက်ဒရယ်တပ်မတော်ဖွဲ့စည်းရေးတွင် အရေးကြီးသည့် အခန်း ကဏ္ဍမှ ပါဝင်မည်ဖြစ်ပြီး အနာဂတ် ဖက်ဒရယ်ဒီမိုကရေစီပြည်ထောင်စု၏ အရပ်သားအုပ်ချုပ်မှုအောက်တွင် အမှုထမ်းမည် ဖြစ်သည်။ တချိန်တည်းမှာပင် စစ်ကောင်စီ၏ တပ်ဖွဲ့များအနေဖြင့် မိမိတို့တာဝန်များကို စွန့်ခွာ၍ ပြည်သူ့ ကာကွယ်ရေး တပ်ဖွဲ့များ၊ တိုင်းရင်းသားလက်နက်ကိုင် တော်လှန်ရေးအင်အားစုများနှင့် ပူးပေါင်းရန် အခွင့်အရေး ရှိကြောင်း အသိပေးလိုသည်။ အမျိုးသားညီညွတ်ရေး အစိုးရက တပ်မတော်သားများနှင့် ပြည်သူ့ရဲတပ်ဖွဲ့ဝင် များအား အမျိုးသားညီညွတ်ရေးအစိုးရနှင့် ပြည်သူ များအား ပူးပေါင်းရန် ဖိတ်ခေါ်ခဲ့ပြီး ဖြစ်သည်။ ထိုသို့ ပူးပေါင်းလာသူများနှင့် ၎င်းတို့ မိသားစုများ၏ လုံခြုံရေးကို အာမခံပြီး တာဝန်ဆက်လက် ထမ်းဆောင်လို ပါကလည်း စီမံဆောင်ရွက်ပေးမည် ဖြစ်သည်။ အမျိုးသားညီညွတ်ရေးအစိုးရသည် တရားဝင်အစိုးရတစ်ရပ်အနေဖြင့် နိုင်ငံတကာ၏ ကြိုးပမ်းဆောင်ရွက်မှု များစွာကို အသိအမှတ်ပြုပြီး ဆက်လက်၍ နိုင်ငံတကာအသိုင်းအဝိုင်းနှင့် ပူးပေါင်းဆောင်ရွက်သွားကာ မိမိတို့ ရည်မှန်းချက်အောင်မြင်ရေးအတွက် နိုင်ငံတကာဥပဒေများကို ဆက်လက်လေးစားလိုက်နာသွားမည်ဖြစ်သည်။ သို့သော်လည်း တဖက်တွင် နိုင်ငံအချို့၏ တရားဝင် ဖိတ်ကြားမှုဖြင့် စစ်ကောင်စီက အချို့သော နိုင်ငံတကာ အစည်းအဝေး များတွင် တက်ရောက်ခွင့်ရနေရပြီး အချို့နိုင်ငံများနှင့် စစ်ရေး၊ စီးပွားရေး သဘောတူညီချက်များပင် ရရှိနေကြောင်း တွေ့ရသောကြောင့် အမျိုးသား ညီညွတ်ရေး အစိုးရ၏ ပြည်သူများ ရွေးချယ်တင်မြှောက်ထားသည့် တစ်ခုတည်းသော တရားဝင်အစိုးရဖြစ်မှုကို ထိခိုက်မှုများရှိလာကြောင်း တွေ့ရသည်။ ထို့ပြင် ကုလသမဂ္ဂအပါအဝင် နိုင်ငံတကာ အဖွဲ့အစည်းများနှင့် အေဂျင်စီ များ၏ ပြည်သူ လူထုအတွက် ကျန်းမာရေး အကူအညီများ ပေးအပ်ရန် ကြိုးပမ်းချက်များကို စစ်ကောင်စီက ငြင်းပယ်ခဲ့ သောကြောင့် ကိုဗစ်-၁၉ ရောဂါဖြင့် မသေသင့်ပဲ လူပေါင်းများစွာ သေကြေပျက်စီးခဲ့ရပြီး ဒေသတွင်း၌လည်း မတည်ငြိမ်မှုနှင့် ကျန်းမာရေးဆိုင်ရာ အကြပ်အတည်းများ ပေါ်ပေါက်ခဲ့ရသည်။ ဒီမိုကရေစီ လှုပ်ရှားမှုကိုယ်စား ကြားဝင် ဆောင်ရွက်ပေးနိုင်ရန်နှင့် ရက်စက်ကြမ်းကြုတ်လှသော စစ်ကောင်စီ၏ တိုက်ခိုက်မှုများမှ မြန်မာပြည်သူလူထုအား ကူညီကာကွယ်ပေးရန် နိုင်ငံတကာ အသိုင်းအဝိုင်းကို အားကိုး၍မရတော့ပါ။ ပြီးခဲ့သည့် ခုနှစ်လတာ ကာလကို ပြန်လည်ဆန်းစစ်ကြည့်ပါက တမျိုးသားလုံး စုစည်းညီညွတ်မှု၊ စုပေါင်းဆောင်ရွက်မှု တို့ဖြင့်သာလျှင် စစ်ကောင်စီကြောင့် ပေါ်ပေါက်ခဲ့သော အာဏာသိမ်းရန် ကြိုးပမ်းမှုနှင့် မတည်ငြိမ်မှုများကို အဆုံးသတ်နိုင် လိမ့်မည် ဖြစ်ကြောင်း သိသာထင်ရှား နေပြီဖြစ်သည်။ ပြည်သူလူထုက စစ်ကောင်စီအား ဆက်လက်ခုခံတွန်းလှန်နေချိန်တွင် စစ်ကောင်စီ၏ အကြမ်းဖက်မှုများ ပိုမို မြင့်တက်လာနိုင်ခြင်းကို ရှောင်လွှဲ၍ရမည် မဟုတ်ပါ။ ငြိမ်းချမ်းစွာဆန္ဒပြမှုများကို သေစေနိုင်သော လက်နက်များဖြင့် အလွန်အမင်း အင်အားသုံးဖြိုခွဲခဲ့မှုများက လူငယ်များကို ရရာအင်အားသုံး၍ မိမိကိုယ်ကိုခုခံရန် တွန်းပို့ခဲ့သည်။ ပြည်သူများ က နိုင်ငံတစ်ဝှမ်းလုံးတွင် ခုခံရေးအဖွဲ့များ ဖွဲ့စည်းပြီး ခုခံ တွန်းလှန်မှုများကို စတင်နေကြပြီဖြစ်သည်။ တချိန်တည်းမှာပင် တိုင်းရင်းသား လက်နက်ကိုင် တော်လှန်ရေး အင်အားစုများက မိမိတို့နယ်မြေအတွင်း ကျုးကျော် ထိုးဖောက်ဝင်ရောက်ပြီး ရပ်ရွာများကို တိုက်ခိုက်လာ တော့မည့် စစ်ကောင်စီတပ်ဖွဲ့များအား ခုခံကာကွယ်ရန် ပြင်ဆင် နေကြပြီဖြစ်သည်။ ပြည်သူ့ ကာကွယ်ရေး တပ်ဖွဲ့များအနေဖြင့်လည်း တိုင်းရင်းသားလက်နက်ကိုင် တော်လှန်ရေး အင်အားစုများနှင့် သက်ဆိုင်ရာ ဒေသများ အတွင်း အတူပူးပေါင်းလက်တွဲ၍ ခုခံတွန်းလှန်သွားရန် ပြင်ဆင်နေကြပြီဖြစ်သည်။ အကြမ်းဖက်မှုများ၏ တရားခံဖြစ်သော အာဏာရှင် စစ်ကောင်စီအား အမြစ်ပြတ် ခုခံတွန်းလှန် သွားရန်နှင့် ပြည်သူလူထုအားလုံး၏ ညီမျှမှု၊ လွတ်လပ်မှု၊ အားလုံးပါဝင်မှုနှင့် ဒီမိုကရေစီ အခွင့်အရေးများအား အပြည့်အဝ ကာကွယ် စောင့်ရှောက်မည့် ငြိမ်းချမ်းသော ဖက်ဒရယ် ဒီမိုကရေစီ ပြည်ထောင်စု တည်ဆောက်ရန် အတွက် ပြည်သူ တရပ်လုံးက စည်းလုံးညီညွတ်စွာဖြင့် အမျိုးသားညီညွတ်ရေးအစိုးရနှင့် ပူးပေါင်းဆောင်ရွက် ကြပါရန် တိုက်တွန်း အပ်ပါသည်။ အမျိုးသားညီညွတ်ရေးအစိုးရကို ပြည်သူလူထုက ရွေးချယ်တင်မြှောက်ခဲ့သော တရားဝင်အစိုးရတစ်ရပ် အနေဖြင့် အသိအမှတ်ပြုပေးရန် နိုင်ငံတကာအသိုင်းအဝိုင်းကိုလည်း ထပ်မံတိုက်တွန်းပါသည်။ သို့မှသာ အမျိုးသားညီညွတ်ရေး အစိုးရအနေဖြင့် မြန်မာပြည်သူလူထု၏ တောင်းဆိုမှုကို လေးစားလိုက်နာပြီး စစ်ကောင်စီ၏ အကြမ်းဖက်မှုများမှ အကာအကွယ်ပေးရမည့် လိုအပ်ချက်ကို တုန့်ပြန် ဆောင်ရွက်ပေးနိုင်မည်ဖြစ်သည်။ အမျိုးသား ညီညွတ်ရေး အစိုးရသည် ပြည်သူများကို အကာအကွယ်ပေးရမည့် တာဝန်ဝတ္တရားနှင့် အခွင့်အရေးအား ကောင်းစွာ အသိအမှတ်ပြု လက်ခံထားပါသည်။..."
Source/publisher: National Unity Government of Myanmar
Date of entry/update: 2021-09-13
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Type: Individual Documents
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Title: How Myanmar’s junta used a coup to settle old scores
Sub-title: Many of those imprisoned on the day of the military takeover had long been in the generals’ sights for questioning their right to rule
Description: "On February 1, the people of Myanmar woke up to their worst nightmare: the return of military rule after nearly a decade of relative freedom. The predawn arrest of State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi and President Win Myint signalled the end of a brief era of elected government and set the stage for the massive demonstrations and brutal crackdowns that were to follow. But the country’s civilian leaders were not the only ones detained that day. Many others were also taken into custody, not because they presented any immediate threat to the coup makers, but because they had displeased them in the past. Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, who orchestrated the military’s return to direct control over the state, moved swiftly to punish perceived enemies, locking them up even before they could utter a word of protest. Besides activists and politicians, his targets included celebrities, monks and other public figures who dared to question the army’s right to rule. Some had already been marked for revenge before the coup. Charged with offenses related to their criticism of the military or its bigoted henchmen, they were among the first to be silenced when the time came to start settling scores. Others, however, were arrested without even a pretence of legal justification. As with the allegations of voter fraud that served as the pretext for the military takeover, no serious evidence of wrongdoing was ever presented against them. In every case, all that mattered was the alleged offenders’ attitude towards the class of men who consider themselves Myanmar’s natural rulers. The profiles that follow provide a glimpse into the thinking of the generals and what they fear most—the prospect of losing power to those who refuse to fear them. Mya Aye Mya Aye, a veteran activist who played a leading role in the 1988 pro-democracy uprising, was taken away from his home on the morning of the coup and held incommunicado for the next two months. It was not until April 1 that his family learned that he was being held in Yangon’s notorious Insein Prison. Their relief at finally finding out where he was soon turned to dismay, however, when they discovered that Mya Aye had been charged with hate speech under section 505c of the Penal Code, which deals with acts likely to incite a criminal offence against any group or individual based on their ethnic or religious background. What made this so bewildering was the fact that, as a prominent Muslim political leader, Mya Aye had long been involved in interfaith efforts to end tensions between the country’s various religious communities. The charges, which carry a possible sentence of two years in prison, stem from an email he sent from his mobile phone in November 2014. At the time, he was working with the ethnic affairs department of the 88 Generation Peace and Open Society, led by former student leader Min Ko Naing. The email, which was related to Myanmar’s peace process, touched on the subjects of Burman ethno-nationalism and the need for cooperation among the country’s ethnic groups in order to achieve true federalism. “The only reason he sent that email was for the country’s sake. No conflicts between ethnicities, races or countries resulted from that email sent in 2014,” said his lawyer, Thet Naung. Mya Aye had been on the army’s radar since 1988, when he was a teacher who founded his own party to coordinate the efforts of younger leaders. “We were student leaders and he was the party chair. We usually held our meetings at his party’s office, which was essentially a rebel’s hideout,” recalled former political prisoner Tun Kyi. The only reason he sent that email was for the country’s sake. No conflicts between ethnicities, races or countries resulted from that email sent in 2014 – Mya Aye's lawyer Mya Aye was imprisoned twice, in 1989 and 2007, and spent a total of 12 years behind bars. During his years of freedom, he remained politically active and often courted the military’s ire. When the generals hinted before the coup that they might seize power again, Mya Aye described their words as an act of intimidation. He also rightly foretold the disastrous consequences of such a move. “A coup would be really bad for the country. We’ll be looked down upon by the international community. It’s a losing battle for everyone, including the military itself, the people, the winning party of the election, everyone, really,” he said. For those familiar with his career of speaking truth to power, Mya Aye’s arrest came as no surprise. “They know exactly who their enemies are,” Tun Kyi said of the country’s dictators. “They regard every activist and politician who stands against them as their enemy. And they have a very strong grudge against them.” Thura Aung Ko Thura Aung Ko’s journey from high office to a prison cell was a long and unlikely one. But a full year before his arrest, it was clear that the former army general and government minister was a marked man. In February 2020, after he suggested that the only reason the fugitive monk Wirathu remained at large was because the police answer to the military-controlled Ministry of Home Affairs, and not to the civilian government, army spokesperson Brig-Gen Zaw Min Tun called on the then-ruling NLD administration to “take action” against him for defamation. But it was long before this episode that Aung Ko, a retired brigadier general who once served as deputy minister for religious affairs under the former junta, began his fall from favour with the military’s senior leaders. When Myanmar made a transition to quasi-civilian rule under retired general Thein Sein in 2011, Aung Ko was one of the key holdovers from the military regime that held power until then. As a prominent member of the military-backed USDP, he was elected to the Pyithu Hluttaw, or lower house of parliament, in 2010 and appointed chair of a judicial and legislative review committee. In this capacity, he advocated for the suspension of a clause in the constitution that barred then opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi from becoming president, signalling a break with the military’s entrenched position on the matter. In August 2015, when Thura Shwe Mann, the speaker of the Union parliament, was removed as chair of the USDP by a faction that felt he had grown too close to Suu Kyi, Aung Ko also found himself on chilly terms with the party. The two former generals, who share the “thura” title signifying courage in battle, were seen as allies who threatened to weaken the army’s hold over Myanmar politics. When the NLD came to power after a landslide win in the 2015 election, Aung Ko was named minister of religion and culture despite losing his seat in parliament. As head of the ministry, he was instrumental in shutting down the ultranationalist group Ma Ba Tha, led by firebrand monk Wirathu, in July 2017. Although Wirathu remained active after this, he was eventually prosecuted for sedition. After more than a year on the run, he turned himself in to the police just days before the 2020 election. (Imprisoned under the NLD government, he was pardoned and released by the junta earlier this month.) On March 5, more than a month after his arrest on the day of the coup, Aung Ko was charged with corruption for allegedly awarding religious titles to individuals in exchange for bribes. Currently being held in Insein Prison, the 74-year-old ex-general who made the mistake of displeasing higher-ranked hardliners now faces a sentence of 15 years behind bars. Min Htin Ko Ko Gyi Documentary filmmaker Min Htin Ko Ko Gyi is well-acquainted with the generals’ vindictiveness. Less than a year before his latest arrest, he was released from prison after serving a one-year sentence for writing Facebook posts critical of the military-drafted 2008 constitution and the army’s role in politics. Accused of making derogatory remarks that harmed the dignity of the military, Min Htin Ko Ko Gyi was charged in April 2019 with incitement under section 505a of the Penal Code. He was freed in February 2020 after receiving routine sentence reductions, but was repeatedly denied bail during his incarceration, despite suffering from liver cancer. A long-time critic of the military-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) and Ma Ba Tha, the Buddhist nationalist organization that actively promoted anti-Muslim sentiment, Min Htin Ko Ko Gyi was “a thorn in the soles of the feet of the fascist generals,” as one colleague put it. Part of the reason for this is that he had long been a supporter of the National League for Democracy (NLD) and its leader, Aung San Suu Kyi. One way he demonstrated this was by auctioning off a poem written by Suu Kyi for 240m kyat (nearly $145,000) and donating the proceeds to her party. Despite being a well-respected filmmaker with an international reputation, Min Htin Ko Ko Gyi was unable to screen any of his early work in Myanmar because it was banned by the junta that ruled the country until 2011. "a thorn in the soles of the feet of the fascist generals" His 2010 documentary “The Floating Tomatoes”—about the environmental degradation of Inle Lake in Shan State—and his first film, “Human Zoo,” which examines the exploitation of the so-called “long-neck” Padaung people in Thailand, were well-received overseas, but couldn’t be seen at home due to the regime’s censorship. When Myanmar began a partial opening a decade ago, Min Htin Ko Ko Gyi started organizing events to bring his own work and that of others to a Myanmar audience. For the first, the Art of Freedom Film Festival, he collaborated with Zarganar, a comedian and fellow director who was also known as a vocal opponent of military rule. This was followed by the Human Rights Human Dignity International Film Festival and the founding of the Human Dignity Institute, which produces documentaries and short films on human rights. "his ideals as an artist and the passion and inspiration he has fostered in young filmmakers cannot be contained and will not be silenced – Min Htin Ko Ko Gyi's colleague" According to his colleague, who asked to remain anonymous, many young filmmakers owe their start to Min Htin Ko Ko Gyi. Through them and through his own films, he continues to influence public discourse in Myanmar, even as he remains a prisoner of the junta. “The fascist regime may have succeeded [in detaining] Min Htin Ko Ko Gyi, but his ideals as an artist and the passion and inspiration he has fostered in young filmmakers cannot be contained and will not be silenced,” said the colleague. Min Htin Ko Ko Gyi, 59, and his former collaborator Zarganar, 60, are both currently being held in Insein Prison, along with many others deemed a threat to the regime. Htin Lin Oo As he awaited his arrest on the morning of February 1, author and former NLD information officer Htin Lin Oo recorded a nine-minute live broadcast on social media to denounce the military’s actions. No matter what, he said, he would always oppose the dictatorship. “I am not opposing the army. I am opposing the dictators who staged the coup. All of us civilians have to rise up and revolt against the dictatorship,” he said in his final public statement before being taken away. Htin Lin Oo accused the generals of killing democracy in its infancy. Every time they staged a coup, he said, they threw the country decades behind the rest of the world, as they did when they seized power in 1962 and 1988. Not surprisingly, these remarks did not sit well with Myanmar’s newly self-appointed leaders. After arresting him without charges, they hastened to use his online comments to charge him with incitement and spreading false news on social media. As was the case with many others arrested that day, Htin Lin Oo had a history of displeasing the military. In a speech delivered in Magway Region’s Chaung Oo Township in October 2014, he accused the army of using religion to create conflict and maintain control. A 10-minute excerpt from his two-hour speech was circulated widely online and portrayed as an attack on Buddhism, the religion of the majority in Myanmar. It proved so controversial that even his own party distanced itself from his remarks. At the time, the military-backed USDP was in power and the Patriotic Association of Myanmar (the Buddhist nationalist group better known by its Burmese acronym Ma Ba Tha) was at the height of its influence. It came as no surprise, then, when Htin Lin Oo was sentenced to two years with hard labour for allegedly violating sections 295a and 298 of the Penal Code, which prohibit “deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings” and speaking “with deliberate intent to wound religious feelings”. After his release, Htin Lin Oo resumed his efforts to push the military out of politics, organizing public discussions on amending the military-drafted constitution and founding a weekly journal, D Lann, that raised related issues. His wife, Saw Sandar, said that the regime arrested Htin Lin Oo because it fears anyone who can lead the public. “It’s not fair, but we have the courage to face this. We’re not afraid of anything because we haven’t done anything wrong,” she said, adding that her only real worry is that her husband will fall victim to Covid-19 while behind bars. “What’s important is to stay healthy, especially when the pandemic is getting worse inside the prisons. That’s the only thing I’m worried about,” she told Myanmar Now. Min Thway Thit If he hadn’t been arrested on the day of the coup, Min Thway Thit would likely have been at the forefront of the anti-dictatorship movement. The 38-year-old activist and former political prisoner has long played a leading role in resisting military oppression. He first came to prominence in 2014 during student protests against a new national education law introduced by the quasi-civilian administration of then President Thein Sein. During a violent crackdown on protests in Letpadan, Bago Region, in March 2015, he was one of more than 100 people arrested and imprisoned. The charges against him were eventually dropped, however, when the NLD assumed power a year later. More recently, the former associate secretary of the All Burma Federation of Student Unions (ABFSU) and founder of the Oway Library and Education Charity (Thanlyin) led a volunteer group established in Yangon’s Thanlyin Township to respond to the Covid-19 pandemic. Min Thway Thit was detained for a full month before the regime released any information about him to his family. His wife, Yadanar Su Po Khaing, told VOA’s Burmese-language service in an interview that she wasn’t able to send him any medicine or other necessities until early March, when she first learned that he was being held in Insein Prison. He now faces charges of violating vehicle-licensing regulations under Section 95 of the Vehicle Safety and Vehicle Management Act, which carries a maximum sentence of three years in prison. However, according to his wife, he has refused to take part in the proceedings against him because he has no confidence in the impartiality of the junta’s judiciary. Ministers, monks and satirists The most common crime committed by those arrested on February 1 was supporting the NLD, the party that won two successive landslide victories against the military’s proxy party, the USDP. Anyone tied to the NLD, either as a leading member or as an outspoken supporter, was fair game for a regime determined to silence the military’s most potent rival for power. Surprisingly, perhaps, only a handful of NLD-appointed ministers have come under sustained pressure. Apart from State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi and President Win Myint, the only senior figures from the Union government still in custody are Soe Win, the ousted minister of planning and finance, his vice minister Set Aung, and his predecessor Kyaw Win. At the regional and municipal levels of government, however, a number of other senior officials have also been targeted by the junta. In early July, Mandalay’s chief minister, Dr. Zaw Myint Maung, and the region’s minister for electricity, energy and construction, Zarni Aung, were charged with corruption, more than five months after their arrest. Similar charges, made in connection with alleged illegal deals involving Aung San Suu Kyi, have also been laid against Naypyitaw’s former mayor, Dr. Myo Aung, and deputy mayor, Ye Min Oo, as well as Min Thu, a member of the city’s development committee. Of the monks who were arrested on February 1, Ven. Pyinya Thiha, better known as Shwe Nya Wah Sayadaw, was perhaps the most outspoken backer of the NLD. In 2011, long before the party came to power, he was banned from giving public sermons after he commemorated the 20th anniversary of Aung San Suu Kyi receiving the Nobel Peace Prize. The abbot of Mandalay’s Myawaddy Mingyi monastery, Ven. Ariyawuntha Biwunsa (also known as Myawaddy Sayadaw), had also earned the military’s ire in the past. In late 2019, he was sued for defamation after he accused the armed forces of supporting ultranationalist monks. He was out on bail when he was arrested on the day of the coup. In an interview with Myanmar Now following his release from Mandalay’s Obo Prison last month, he dismissed the junta’s claims that the NLD was bad for Myanmar’s Buddhist monks and repeated his charge that the military was trying to “exploit the people in the name of religion.” Ven. Thawbita, one of the leaders of the 2007 Saffron Revolution, was taken away from his monastery in Patheingyi, east of Mandalay, in handcuffs on the morning of February 1. Two days later, he was sentenced to two years in prison after being found guilty under Section 66d of Myanmar’s draconian Telecommunications Law for an online comment he wrote more than two years earlier facetiously comparing Min Aung Hlaing to a cow. As if to prove their utter humourlessness, the generals also went after a pair of prominent satirists on the day they seized power. One was Maung Thar Cho, who wrote satirical articles for the 7Day daily newspaper under the pseudonym of Jack (Kunchan Kone). These pieces proved immensely popular and earned him a following among NLD supporters, who invited him to literary talks around the country. "They were kidnapped and now they are political hostages. The junta chief will use them to ease international pressure" The other was Saw Phoe Khwar, an ethnic Kayin reggae musician who performed at NLD campaign events during last year’s election. Famous for his peace concerts, he is also well-known for his use of wit to skewer the military. “The Son of Daw Sein Aye,” one of his most popular songs, plays on the name of the Defence Services Academy (DSA), the elite institution that produced most of Myanmar’s top military leaders. Ostensibly about an unruly man who makes trouble for his neighbours, it clearly refers to the DSA’s proudest alumni. Since the coup, it has become a popular protest song. Whatever reasons were given for their arrest, most of those detained on February 1 are likely to remain in the junta’s custody until it becomes politically expedient to release them. Locked up for offending the generals, they are now just pawns in their game, according to former political prisoner Tun Kyi. “They were kidnapped and now they are political hostages. The junta chief will use them to ease international pressure. They may be released, but they won’t be free, because they could be arrested again at any time. That’s just how it was done under previous regimes, too,” he explained..."
Source/publisher: "Myanmar Now" (Myanmar)
Date of entry/update: 2021-09-12
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Title: Letter from Ambassador Kyaw Moe Tun to Secretary-General H.E. Mr. Antonio Guterres on 3 Sep 2021
Description: "Letter dated 3 September 2021 from the Permanent Representative of Myanmar to the United Nations, H.E. U Kyaw Moe Tun, addressed to the Secretary-General H.E. Mr. Antonio Guterres, on the heartbreaking situation in Myanmar, together with the weekly information update on current situation in Myanmar as of 29 August 2021..."
Source/publisher: Permanent Mission of Myanmar to the United Nations (New York)
Date of entry/update: 2021-09-12
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Title: Letter from Ambassador Kyaw Moe Tun to Secretary-General H.E. Mr. Antonio Guterres on 10 Sep 2021
Description: "Letter dated 10 September 2021 from the Permanent Representative of Myanmar to the United Nations, H.E. U Kyaw Moe Tun, addressed to the Secretary-General H.E. Mr. Antonio Guterres, on the worsening situation in Myanmar, together with the weekly information update on current situation in Myanmar as of 5 September 2021..."
Source/publisher: Permanent Mission of Myanmar to the United Nations (New York)
Date of entry/update: 2021-09-12
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Title: Letter from Ambassador Kyaw Moe Tun to Secretary-General H.E. Mr. Antonio Guterres on 25 August 2021
Description: "Letter dated 25 August 2021 from the Permanent Representative of Myanmar to the United Nations, H.E. U Kyaw Moe Tun, addressed to the Secretary-General H.E. Mr. Antonio Guterres, on the worsening situation in Myanmar, together with the weekly information update on current situation in Myanmar as of 22 August 2021..."
Source/publisher: Permanent Mission of Myanmar to the United Nations (New York)
Date of entry/update: 2021-09-12
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Title: Myanmar’s Students Sacrifice Books For Bullets in ‘Fight For Future’ Against Junta
Sub-title: A growing number of children are leaving school and picking up arms out of desperation.
Description: "Security forces in Myanmar are targeting anti-junta youth activists throughout the country, forcing many to drop out of school and take up arms with militia groups seeking to unseat the military regime despite international laws prohibiting children from becoming soldiers, family members said Thursday. Youth activists, many of whom say they felt hopeless about their future under military rule, began to join the widespread resistance movement against the junta after it seized power from Myanmar’s democratically elected government in a Feb. 1 coup. Many have been arrested or even killed in clashes with the military, prompting concern from observers who lament what they say is an increasingly lost generation of children forced to sacrifice their dreams in the hopes of reclaiming their country from an oppressive regime. In the seven months since the coup, security forces have killed 1,058 civilians and arrested at least 6,343—mostly during crackdowns on anti-junta protesters—according to the Bangkok-based Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP). The junta says it had to unseat Aung San Suu Kyi’s NLD government, claiming the party engineered a landslide victory in Myanmar’s November 2020 election through widespread voter fraud. It has yet to present evidence of its claims, though, and public unrest is at an all-time high. Among the youth activists who have joined the fight against the military is 16-year-old Zaw Myo Mai Laban from the Kachin state capital Myitkyina, who went underground in June after around 50 soldiers and police officers tried to arrest him at his home for taking part in anti-junta protests. “We know young students like us are not physically fit for fighting yet—we’ve only just passed childhood,” the member of the Basic Education Students' Union Network (BESUN) of hundreds of students from more than 50 townships told RFA’s Myanmar Service. “However, we are doing this with the sole intention of fighting injustice and oppression. We give encouragement to one another when we find ourselves weak and try harder to be competent for the revolution.” Zaw Myo Mai Laban said that ethnic armed groups in the liberated areas of the country’s remote border regions had initially refused to allow those under the age of 18 to attend military training, in accordance with international laws prohibiting the use of child soldiers, but eventually relented due to “the strong enthusiasm of the young students.” “It is true that I am underage according to international law and laws against child soldiers, but [the military is] killing people whether they are underage or not,” he said. “International law doesn’t mean anything to the military.” Despite the military’s heavy-handed response to anti-junta protests, many high school students continue to take part in the gatherings, particularly in Myanmar’s largest cities Yangon and Mandalay. A student with BESUN in Mandalay, who spoke to RFA on condition of anonymity, said he participates in protests daily “for the future of the country’s youth.” “We are more afraid of losing our future than we are of the military,” he said. “Education in Myanmar at present is completely in shambles. Conditions were just about to see some improvement when they staged this coup. All our hopes were dashed … We had a spirit of revolution long before the coup, and their atrocities made us want to fight back even more.” ”When your friends are killed, there is little you can do but grieve for them. I would rather fight for them instead,” he said. Most of the high school students now involved in the anti-junta movement are minors under parental guardianship. Many parents told RFA they are worried about their sons and daughters being arrested, maimed, or killed, although some have allowed their children to join the protests. The mother of two high school students aged 15 and 17 in Yangon’s South Okkalapa township said she accompanies her children to protests but has asked them not to join the armed uprising. “I went along with them so they would not get into trouble or be harmed, because you can’t stop them from joining the protests,” she said. “However, I asked them not to do anything like take up arms because they are not old enough. If they get arrested and sent to prison for taking part in the protests, at least I could go and see them. I may be selfish, but I cannot allow my young kids to join a revolution.” A student with the Launglon township branch of BESUN in Myanmar’s Tanintharyi division, who also declined to be named, said he regularly speaks with parents as part of an effort to bring more youths into the anti-junta movement. “If students don’t get involved in politics, politics will work against them,” he said. “We enlightened [parents] by explaining that students have been detained and tortured too. This helped them understand why we have taken to the streets, and they allowed their sons and daughters to join us.” Investigating youth activists Meanwhile, authorities have spared no effort in investigating high school students involved in anti-junta activities. In Myanmar’s Bago region, five high school students were arrested in the first week of September, including one who died in detention while being interrogated. According to AAPP, at least 23 school age children were among those killed in the past seven months since the coup, while at least 20 high school students have been arrested. An AAPP spokesman told RFA that school age children are still very much at risk from the military. “If things continue like this, the children in our country will no longer have a future, including those who would one day be the nation’s leaders,” he said. “Children must have the right to freedom of movement and to follow their dreams. They shouldn’t be living in fear. However, at present, they must be careful even of what they wear because of current restrictions. The loss of their future is a loss for the country.” Calls by RFA to military spokesman Maj. Gen. Zaw Min Tun seeking comment went unanswered Thursday..."
Source/publisher: "RFA" (USA)
Date of entry/update: 2021-09-12
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Title: Weekly Updates on Current Situation in Myanmar (29-8-2021)
Description: "After 200 days have passed since the coup, the Myanmar military group is still ignoring the will of the people, putting the country into turmoil with disproportionate actions when the people are facing the nationwide health crisis under the resurgence of the COVID-19 pandemic. Deaths and Arbitrary Arrests As of 28 August 2021, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP), a total of 7, 627 people have been arrested, 6,005 people have still been detained, whereas 1,984 people have been issued with warrants and 1,026 people were ruthlessly murdered by the military since 1 February 2021 when the military unleashed systematic and targeted attacks and violence against innocent civilians. Irrational Arrests and Unprovoked Shootings On 20 August 2021 in Sagaing, the security forces in plainclothes reportedly arrested the parents of Mr. Zaw Min Win, a police sergeant who joined the Civil Disobedience Movement (CDM). According to the news received, Mr. Zaw Min Win left his wife and two daughters at the police housing complex, and he took the weapons with him. On the same day, he left the house; about two dozen of security forces went to the house of Mr. Zaw Min Win’s parents, destroyed the properties, and arrested his parents. On 21 August 2021, around 8 pm, Mr. Maung Aye and his wife, Ms. Nweat Nweat Aye, from Kan Thit Village in Khin-u Township in Sagaing Region, returned home by motorbike, were reportedly shot to death by the patrolling military forces. It is reported that Mr. Maung Aye was shot in the head, and Ms. Nweat Nweat was shot in the stomach. On 22 August 2021 in Hintha village in Yesagyo Township of Magwe, the police forces reportedly raided a house in an ambulance. According to the residents, the forces surrounded the house and opened fire. Due to the incident, a 21-year-old man was killed, and four others were arrested. The owner of the house is believed to have participated in anti-coup movements. In accordance with the information received, a 10 year-old-child, Ven Bway Htan, was shot dead in the neck on the evening of 25 August 2021 in Htantalang Township of Chin State due to an unprovoked shooting by the military forces. Children are not safe, and the Myanmar military has no regard for the safety of children. It has no intention to abide by international laws protecting children in an armed conflict. According to the credible report, on 26 August 2021, in Mingalar Taung Nyunt Township in Yangon, Mr. Thein Min Oo was shot dead by the military forces on 121st street. His body was found between two buildings on 121st after the military forces reportedly opened fire at a drunken man shouting on the street. Neighbors believe that a stray bullet hit Mr. Thein Min Oo while the military forces chased and shot the drunk man. It is also reported that there were some injured civilians during the shootings. Taking Hostages On 24 August 2021, in Taw Kyaung Lay Village, in Khin-u Township of Sagaing Region, it is reported that the military forces arrested Ms. Ei Thandar Phyo, the younger sister of an alleged PDF. The forces took Ms. Ei Thandar Phyo as a hostage since they could not find her brother. On 27 August 2021, in South Dagon Township in Yangon, the husband and daughter of Political Activist Ms. Su Mar and a guest who were with them at home were reportedly arrested as the security forces could not find Ms. Su Mar at home. Deaths from Torture Mr. Soe Paing, a.k.a. Mr. Kyaw Khaing Win, a physics teacher from Tharkayta Township in Yangon Region, was reportedly arrested on 22 August 2021. He later died on the night of 23 August due to torture in interrogation. Similarly, on 24 August 2021, at night in Khayan Township of Yangon, Mr. Min Aung was shot and arrested by the security forces while passing by Khayan Police Station by a motorbike. He was then reportedly beaten during detention and died from the torture. In Monywa Township in Sagaing Region, Mr. Thet Paing Soe was reportedly arrested on 24 August 2021 and later died on 25 August. The security forces informed his family that he died due to COVID-19. However, his body was found with serious injuries due to constant torture. On 26 August 2021, Mr. Yan Aung Soe from Gonetan Village, in Shwebo Township of Sagaing Region, was reportedly arrested and taken to Gonetan Village Cemetery. The security forces then shot dead, who questioned him for allegedly possessing weapons in his house. Raiding in Rural Areas Myanmar military forces have reportedly been raiding in rural areas in Chaung-U Township in Sagaing Region. They raided Nwe Khwe village on 23 August 2021, Taw Kyaung Lay village on 24 August 2021, and Taw Kyaung Gyi and Thone Pan Hla villages on 26 August 2021. According to the residents, the forces invaded the villages where there were no anti-coup activities. They took even small things, and they did not leave behind a tiny amount of money. They searched the houses of youths who have been volunteering the charity work during the Covid-19 period. According to credible news, during the raid in Taw Kyaung Lay village, they destroyed some houses and took 9 million kyats, six motorcycles, jewelry, and clothes. Five youths who were taking care of Covid patients were reportedly arrested. Seizing Kar Paung Kya Village Military forces have seized Kar Paung Kya Village in Taze Township of the Sagaing Region since 26 August 2021. According to the residents, nearly a hundred soldiers in six trucks stormed the village at around 2 am on 26 August 2021. Troops started shooting a man who came out of the house to see what was happening. It is reported that several houses were torched and destroyed. More than a thousand of the 800-household inhabitants fled to a nearby forest. And the military troops even fired light weapons and heavy artillery into areas where villagers were hiding. On 27 August 2021, about 50 troops went into the forests to look for the fleeing villagers. People reportedly lost contact with each other, families have been separated, and many others have gone missing. During the raid, Mr. Moe Swe Oo and his younger sister were reportedly shot when they were hiding in a small hut three miles away from the village. According to a resident, Mr. Moe Swe Oo and his sister were shot while running away from soldiers. Mr. Moe Swe Oo reportedly died from his injuries, and his sister was severely wounded. According to the villagers, Kar Paung Kya village has been targeted repeatedly by the military troops. They keep coming into the village, destroying and looting things. Using Civilians as Human Shields It is reported that 30 civilians were detained by divisions 66 and 55 of the Myanmar military between 13 and 18 August 2021from Demoso, Hpruso, and Bawlakhe in Kayah State and Pekon township in Shan State during tensions between military forces and resistance fighters. The military has reportedly released 15 detainees; 10 from Pekon, three from Demoso, and two from Hpruso. However, 15 others are still being detained. According to credible news, six people taken from Demoso and Hpruso are in Loikaw after being used as human shields in different places. They will be interrogated in Loikaw. Those six people were detained on 14 August when they returned to their villages for food. One of the six is a 15-year-old with a health problem. A woman and seven men are reportedly being held by Light Infantry Battalion 531 based in Hpruso, and they have been seriously tortured. Generals, officers, and infantry soldiers have no regard for human life. They show no intention to abide by international humanitarian laws that protects civilians during the war. Mobilizing Military Troops in Karen State In accordance with the credible report, the Myanmar military has mobilized its troops in villages of the south of Kawkareik Township in Karen State. On 24 August 2021, Myanmar military forces and forces of the Karen National Union (KNU) clashed twice in Kawkareik Township after Myanmar military forces trespassed into KNU-controlled territory. It is reported that the military forces fired around 30 rounds of artillery, and there were casualties and deaths on both sides. Following the clashes, about 200 residents from Kawthanaw village fled their homes. According to the news, a jet fighter was seen on 25 August 2021 and was likely engaged in aerial reconnaissance. It is expected that a major invasion from the Myanmar military is coming soon. Targeting the members of the NLD On 21 August 2021, Mr. Kyaw Soe Win, a.k.a Kay Kay, NLD executive member in Aung Lan Township of Magway Region, was reportedly arrested in Shwe Pan Taw Village in Aung Lan Township. On 22 August 2021, it is reported that Ms. Khin Myat Thu, a Pyithu Hluttaw MP and NLD member of Mingaladon Township of Yangon Region, was arrested with her husband. Moreover, on 22 August 2021, Mr. Htay Win, MP of Htilin Township of Magway Region and executive member of the NLD of Magway Region, was also reportedly arrested in Sar Kyin Village in Pakokku Township of Magway Region. On 22 August 2021, Mr. Kyaw San Htoo, Magway Region NLD executive member, was reportedly arrested in Panmata Village at the Aung Lan Township of Magway Region. On 27 August 2021, in Kyaikhto Township of Mon State, Mr. Zaw Moe Htet, a.k.a. Gwen Gyi, NLD secretary of Theinzayat Town, who was issued a warrant under Section 505(b) of the Penal Code, was reportedly arrested by the security forces who were wearing plain clothes. Soldiers and Police joining the CDM It is reported that around 2,000 soldiers and police have joined the Civil Disobedient Movement (CDM) since the coup on 1 February 2021. Most of the soldiers who have joined the CDM are privates and sergeants. There are also around 100 officers ranking from lieutenants to majors. Most of them have reportedly fled to areas controlled by Ethnics Arms Organizations (EAOs), or some are hiding among civilians. These striking soldiers expect more military officers to join the CDM as the military regime continues to use violence against civilians. Humanitarian Situation The humanitarian update for Myanmar, issued by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) on 27 August 2021, highlighted the situations of people displacement and conditions of food insecurity in Myanmar. It is underlined that due to clashes and insecurity, thousands have been displaced in Sagaing Region and Chin State, particularly in and around Mindat Township. Also, in the south-eastern parts of the country, an estimated 141,200 people remain displaced, mainly in Kayah and Kayin States since the military coup. In the Shan States, more than 26,300 people have been displaced across the State since the beginning of 2021, of which about 6,400 of them remain displaced to date. It is also stated that food insecurity, particularly food shortage, is increasing in the displacement sites and communities in northern Shan and Rakhine states. The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) also announced monthly food and cash assistance for vulnerable families in Rakhine State resumed during the fourth week of August. With monthly life-saving support, World Food Programme has provided food, and cash aids to nearly 360,000 food-insecure people in Chin, Kachin, Rakhine, and the Shan States, including women, children, and persons with disabilities and families displaced conflict. Activities of the National Unity Government On 24 August 2021, the National Unity Government released a Statement regarding the 4th anniversary of the atrocity crimes committed against the Rohingya people in 2017. In the statement, the NUG has stated how it was saddened by the horrendous violence, gross human rights violations, and massive displacement that the Rohingya people suffered four years ago. The statement further explained that the same military responsible for all those atrocities has also perpetrated crimes against humanity and war crimes against the people of Myanmar over the decades. The NUG also expressed its endeavor in seeking justice and accountability for all crimes committed by the military against the Rohingya and all other people of Myanmar across the country throughout history. The NUG also informed its concerns regarding the situation of the Rohingya people in refugee camps of neighbouring countries and within Myanmar. It stated that voluntary and safe repatriation of the Rohingya people in a dignified manner is their utmost priority. Finally, the NUG also expressed its commitment to the fundamental principles enshrined in the Federal Democratic Charter, including fundamental human rights, human dignity, individual rights, collective rights, and establishing a Federal Democratic Union. The Radio NUG started its programme on 26 August 2021 at 8 am and 8 pm at SW 16, MHz 17.71. On 27 August 2021, the Ministry of Planning, Finance, and Investment released an Announcement on the Illicit Printing of Banknotes. In the announcement, the Ministry informed that they had received credible information that the illegitimate military council has made approaches to foreign banknotes and security printing times to seek assistance in printing new Myanmar Kyat banknotes. The Ministry also stated in the announcement that according to Section 16 of the Unlawful Associations Act 1908, the National Unity Government has determined the illegitimate military council to be an unlawful association, and thus, any issuance of currency effected by the military council, its successor entities, and any of its subordinate or subsidiary associations, including the so-called “caretaker government,” shall be deemed to lack legitimacy. The NUG called upon the military council to desist from the act of economic sabotage. It implored the foreign banknote and security printing approached the military council to refrain from printing Myanmar kyat Banknotes and providing any raw materials, supplies, etc., that could be used in their production. The NUG further called upon all responsible firms to follow the example set by Giesecke Devrient GmbH in March 2021. On 28 August 2021, the Ministry of Defence of the National Unity Government released Directive No. 2/2021 to Tatmadaw and Police Forces members. In the Directive, the Ministry referred to the policy of the NUG released under statement No. 8/2021 on 23 August 2021. According to that policy, the NUG also extended a special welcome to members of Tatmadaw and police forces who defected the State Administration Council to stand with the people. The NUG further instructed them not to obey the SAC’s orders and directives, to not obstruct, hinder, or attack People’s Defence Forces (PDF) and allied forces, and to not arrest, torture, or kill civilians and not plunder public and private properties. International Action and Pressure On 22 August 2021, Japan has reportedly refused to issue visas for two Myanmar military-appointed diplomats to the Embassy of Myanmar in Tokyo. However, the military has requested Japan to grant visas to them for the replacement in the Embassy. These two diplomats will be transferred to replace the two Myanmar diplomats who have joined the Civil Disobedience Movement (CDM) in early March 2021 and were dismissed by the military-controlled Ministry. During the 42nd ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA) General Assembly held on 23 August 2021, Speaker of the parliament of Singapore Tan Chuan-Jin remarked that platforms, particularly AIPA, are crucial for supporting a more integrated, digital, and forward-looking ASEAN community. He highlighted that the world is closely watching the response of ASEAN in resolving the crisis in Myanmar. Speaker of the parliament of Singapore stressed that Singapore welcomed the appointment of Brunei’s Foreign Minister as Special Envoy of the ASEAN to Myanmar, hoping that the special envoy will be allowed to have discussions and to facilitate meaningful dialogue with all stakeholders in Myanmar to facilitate the meaningful dialogue among all stakeholders in Myanmar for a peaceful political solution. He also affirmed that “the Myanmar people must determine the solution to the situation in Myanmar.” In the speech by U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris on the Indo-Pacific Region on 24 August 2021, it is highlighted that the U.S. is committed to supporting the people of Myanmar and restoring the democracy in the country and called for Indo-Pacific nations to join in that effort. In response to the reports of a journalist charged for doing their job, the U.S. embassy in Yangon issued an announcement on 26 August 2021 that the people in Myanmar and abroad should be free to express their beliefs and seek, receive, and share information and ideas. Following the public petition being signed by 268,428 people, which called on Seoul to render formal support to the National Unity Government (NUG) and to reject the military, the Office of the President of South Korea announced on 26 August 2021 that they will continue to engage with the NUG and continue to support the restoration of democracy in Myanmar through close cooperation with the international community. ***** Date: 29 August 2021 Permanent Mission of Myanmar to the United Nations, New York..."
Source/publisher: Permanent Mission of Myanmar to the United Nations (New York)
Date of entry/update: 2021-09-12
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Title: Announcement Regarding the State of Affairs inside Obo Prison – Announcement (3/2021) - အိုးဘိုအကျဥ်း‌ထောင်တွင်း အခြေအနေနှင့်ပတ်သက်၍ သဘောထားထုတ်ပြန်ချက် – ကြေညာချက်အမှတ် (၀၃/၂၀၂၁)
Description: "On August 8, 2021, at about 9 PM., the Obo political detainees, who have been unjustly arrested, staged a protest against the lack of COVID-19 preventive measures and treatment inside the prison as a political movement marking the 33th anniversary of the 8888 Revolution. The terrorist junta and those who are in charge of the prison brutally suppressed the protest with gun-fires and the use of military force and subsequently silenced information regarding the situation. The family of the detamees, the people all over the country partaking in anti-authoritarian movements and the international community are all very concerned about the safety and well-being of these political detainees who have been unjustly arrested and confined. Regarding the protests inside Obo Prison, we make the following demands unwaveringly. 1. To unearth the truth regarding the current predicament inside Obo prison 2. To give access to COVID-19 preventive measures and treatment m all prisons in Myanmar, including Obo prison 3. To release unjustly arrested political detainees unconditionally and unexceptionally 4. To stop immediately the murdering of political detainees by using COVID-19 as a biological weapon.\ We urge the entire people of Myanmar, the international communities, the civil societies, the ambassadors residing in Myanmar and the international organizations to be vigilantly watchful of the status of access to medical care and other basic human rights inside prisons in Myanmar and to spread out helping hands by any means possible..."
Source/publisher: Student Union Representatives Committee - SURC
Date of entry/update: 2021-09-10
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Title: Myanmar Rock Singer Ito Arrested for Alleged Anti-Regime Activities
Description: "The Myanmar junta arrested rock singer Ito at his home in Yangon’s Mayangone Township on Wednesday night for alleged connections with anti-regime activities. At least five others were also arrested, according to sources close to the artist. Professionally known as Ito, Ko Win Htut Thawdar is in his 30s. He is also a composer and a son of famous Myanmar rocker Zaw Win Htut. Details of the alleged anti-regime activities of which he is accused are not yet known, nor is the location where he is being held. Myanmar has been in political turmoil since the military seized power from the country’s democratically elected government on Feb. 1. Following the coup, many celebrities joined the anti-regime movement, using their popularity to amplify its pro-democracy message. They took to the streets to protest against the coup and urged civil servants to strike by joining the Civil Disobedience Movement (CDM). They have been targeted for their participation in protests against military rule, with arrest warrants being issued for nearly 100 celebrities, artists, singers, actors, actresses and directors. About a dozen have been arrested, and nine famous Myanmar artists including comedian U Zaganar, director Min Htin Ko Ko Gyi, actors Lu Min and Pyay Ti Oo, model Paing Takhon, actress Eaindra Kyaw Zin and singers Saw Phoe Kwer and Po Po are still in detention. In June, rock singer and songwriter Raymond, 32, passed away while evading arrest for participating in the anti-regime movement, after being charged under Article 505A of the penal code. Like other pro-democracy activists, many in the arts community are in hiding, having fled their homes to evade arrest. A few others have joined Myanmar’s “Spring Revolution.” Some artists have joined the armed resistance struggle and others are working for the parallel National Unity Government (NUG). As of Thursday, the Myanmar regime had killed a total of 1,058 civilians, arrested 7,992—of whom 6,343 are still in detention—and issued arrest warrants for 1,984, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners..."
Source/publisher: "The Irrawaddy" (Thailand)
Date of entry/update: 2021-09-10
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Title: Myanmar reporter arrested in Yangon after four months in hiding
Description: "Reporters Without Borders (RSF) calls for the immediate and unconditional release of Ma Thuzar, a journalist held arbitrarily since her arrest for no clear reason in Yangon, Myanmar’s biggest city, a week ago after four months in hiding. Her family and colleagues spent five days without any news of her after she was snatched by police as she left her home on the morning of 1 September. The police finally confirmed on 5 September that she had been arrested, but they have yet to give the judicial grounds for her arrest or say where she is being held. Ma Thuzar, who worked for the Myanmar Pressphoto Agency and the Friday Times News Journal, told RSF before her arrest that she filmed many of the major street protests that were triggered by the military coup on 1 February. It was partly as a result of her videos, broadcast live on the Friday Times’s online networks, that this media outlet was closed on 16 April. Two weeks later, on 1 May, around 40 police officers raided her home with the aim of arresting her under a warrant issued by the Yangon region military command. In her absence, they arrested her husband, a retired journalist, who was released five days later. It was this raid – which the Yangon region military command refused to confirm when reached by RSF – that forced Ma Thuzar to go into hiding. 51 journalists now detained “We call for the immediate and unconditional release of Ma Thuzar, whose arrest and detention are completely arbitrary,” said Daniel Bastard, the head of RSF’s Asia-Pacific desk. “The way she has been treated reflects the illegal, brutal and inhuman treatment to which the military junta has subjected all journalists in Myanmar for the past seven months. In so doing, Myanmar is violating the most elementary legal principles and, for this reason, we call on the international community to impose targeted sanctions against those responsible for these repeated abuses.” According to a tally verified by RSF, Ma Thuzar’s detention brings the number of journalists currently detained in Myanmar to 51. Zaw Moe Oo, a journalist who freelances for the pro-military news agency Eleven Media, was also arrested at her home in the southern Myeik region on 1 September but was released two days later. Last month, RSF reported that Sithu Aung Myint, a political commentor for the magazine Frontier Myanmar and radio Voice Of America, was arrested by police on 15 August at an apartment in Yangon’s Bahan Township, where he had been hiding. Htet Htet Khine, the presenter of programme called “Khan Sar Kyi” (Burmese for “Feel it”) for BBC Media Action, was also arrested in the same raid..."
Source/publisher: Reporters Without Borders (Paris)
Date of entry/update: 2021-09-08
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Title: Press Statement of MATA for arrestment to Kyaw Minn Htut and his family members - ဖမ်းဆီးခံရသည့်ကိုကျော်မင်းထွဋ် နှင့် သူ၏မိသားစုဝင်များနှင့်ပတ်သက်၍ မြန်မာနိုင်ငံလုံးဆိုင်ရာပွင့်လင်းမြင်သာမှုနှင့် တာဝန်ယူမှုတာဝန်ခံမှုဆိုင်ရာမဟာမိတ်အဖွဲ့၏ သဘောထားထုတ်ပြန်ချက်
Description: "Press Statement of MATA for arrestment to Kyaw Minn Htut and his family members Date: 6th September 2021 Kyaw Minn Htut, the member of Myanmar Alliance for Transparency and Accountability (MATA) and his younger brother Kyaw Minn Aung including a man who lived together with them were arrested at home by SAC around 3:00 pm today (6th September 2021) in Nandawon Ward, Monwyar town, Sagaing region. One day ahead, Daw Khin Saw Hlaing and two years old child who are wife and son of Kyaw Minn Htut were also detained on 5th September 2021 by the military as well. Kyaw Minn Htut has been working for environmental protection and human rights issues consistently and he actively participated in the non-violent movement for democracy and human rights since after the coup. Besides, SAC neglected human rights and humanitarian principles by arresting his wife and two years old child. Kyaw Minn Htut is also the civil society representative from the Multi-Stakeholder Group (MSG) of Myanmar Extractive Industry Transparency Initiatives (MEITI). MATA is the civil society alliance which was formed with over 400 organizations across the country for implementation of transparency and accountability in Extractive Industry through participating in MEITI. Kyaw Minn Hut is representative of Sagaing for MSG on behalf of MATA. Therefore, we strongly ask for freedom of Kyaw Minn Htut and all detained people who participated in the non-violent democracy movement without any harm and stop the coup immediately.....ဖမ်းဆီးခံရသည့်ကိုကျော်မင်းထွဋ် နှင့် သူ၏မိသားစုဝင်များနှင့်ပတ်သက်၍ မြန်မာနိုင်ငံလုံးဆိုင်ရာပွင့်လင်းမြင်သာမှုနှင့် တာဝန်ယူမှုတာဝန်ခံမှုဆိုင်ရာမဟာမိတ်အဖွဲ့၏ သဘောထားထုတ်ပြန်ချက် ရက်စွဲ။ ။ ၂၀၂၁ ခုနှစ် စက်တင်ဘာလ (၆) ရက် မြန်မာနိုင်ငံ ပွင့်လင်းမြင်သာမှုနှင့် တာဝန်ယူတာဝန်ခံမှုဆိုင်ရာ မဟာမိတ်အဖွဲ့ (MATA) အဖွဲ့ဝင်တဦး ဖြစ်သည့် ကိုကျော်မင်းထွဋ် နှင့် သူ၏ညီအရင်းဖြစ်သူ ကိုကျော်မင်းအောင် အပါဝင် (၃) ဦးအား ၂၀၂၁ ခုနှစ် စက်တင်ဘာလ (၆) ရက်နေ့ ညနေပိုင်းတွင် စစ်ကိုင်းတိုင်း၊ မုံရွာမြို့၊ နန္ဒဝန်ရပ်ကွက်ရှိ နေအိမ်တွင် ဝင်ရောက် စီးနင်းဖမ်းဆီးခဲ့ကြောင်း သိရှိရပါသည်။ ထို့အပြင် ၂၀၂၁ ခုနှစ် စက်တင်ဘာလ (၅) ရက်နေ့တွင်လည်း ကိုကျော်မင်းထွဋ်၏ ဇနီးဖြစ်သူ ဒေါ်ခင်စောလှိုင်နှင့် (၂)နှစ် အရွယ်ခန့်သာရှိသေးသည့် သားငယ်တို့အားလည်း ဖမ်းဆီးခဲ့‌ကြောင်းကြားသိရပါသည်။ ယခု စစ်ကောင်စီမှ ဖမ်းဆီးထားသည့် ကိုကျော်မင်းထွဋ်မှာ သဘာဝပတ်ဝန်းကျင်ထိန်းသိမ်းရေးနှင့် လူ့အ ခွင့်အရေးဆိုင်ရာ ကိစ္စရပ်များကို တစိုက်မတ်မတ်လုပ်ဆောင်နေသူဖြစ်ပြီး၊ စစ်အာဏာသိမ်းပြီးချိန်မှစ၍ အကြမ်း မဖက်သည့်နည်းလမ်းဖြင့် ဒီမိုကရေစီနှင့် လူ့အခွင့်အရေးအတွက်ဆောင်ရွက်နေသူဖြစ်သည်။ ထို့အပြင် သူ၏ဇနီး နှင့် ကလေးငယ်အား ဖမ်းဆီးထိန်းသိမ်းထားခြင်းမှာ လူသားချင်းစာနာထောက်ထားမှုဆိုင်ရာ စံနှုံန်းများနှင့်များစွာ သွေဖီပြီး အကျည်းတန်သည့် လုပ်ရပ်ဖြစ်သည်ဟုလည်း မိမိတို့ ရှုမြင်မိပါသည်။ ကိုကျော်မင်းထွဋ်သည် MATA အဖွဲ့ဝင်တဦးဖြစ်သည့်အပြင် (MEITI) ၏ သုံးပွင့်ဆိုင်အဖွဲ့ ဝင်တဦး လည်းဖြစ်ပါသည်။ MATA သည် တွင်းထွက် သဘာဝသယံဇာတဆိုင်ရာ ပွင့်လင်းမြင်သာ မှု လုပ်ငန်းစဉ် (EITI-Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative) အား အကောင်ထည်ဖော်သည့် အရပ်ဘက် မဟာမိတ်အဖွဲ့ အစည်း တခုဖြစ်ပြီး အဖွဲ့စည်းပေါင်း (၄၀၀) ကျော်ဖြင့်ဖွဲ့စည်းထားသည့် မဟာမိတ်အဖွဲ့အစည်း ဖြစ်ပါသည်။ ကိုကျော်မင်းထွဋ်သည် စစ်ကိုင်းတိုင်းဒေသကြီး မှ MATA အဖွဲ့ဝင်အဖြစ် ပါဝင်သူတဦး ဖြစ်ပြီး EITI (သဘာဝ သယံဇာတဆိုင်ရာ ပွင့်လင်းမြင်သာမှုဖော်ဆောင်ရေး) လုပ်ငန်းစဉ်တွင် သုံးပွင့်ဆိုင်ညွန့်ပေါင်းအဖွဲ့ MSG (Multi Stakeholder Group) အဖွဲ့ဝင်တဦးလည်း ဖြစ်ပါသည်။ သို့ဖြစ်ပါ၍ ဒီမိုကရေစီပြန်လည်ရရှိရေးအတွက် အကြမ်းမဖက်သောနည်းဖြင့် ဆောင်ရွက်နေသည့် ကိုကျော်မင်းထွဋ် အပါအဝင် ဖမ်းဆီးထိန်းသိမ်းထားသည့် နိုင်ငံရေးအကျဉ်းသားများ အားလုံးအား ရာဇဝတ်သား များကဲ့သို့ပြုမူဆက်ဆံခြင်းများမပြုလုပ်ဘဲ ချွင်းချက်မရှိပြန်လည်လွှတ်ပေးရန်နှင့် အာဏာသိမ်းသည့်လုပ်ရပ် အားအမြန်ဆုံးရပ်တန့်ရန် အလေးအနက်တိုက်တွန်း လိုက်သည်။..."
Source/publisher: Myanmar Alliance for Transparency and Accountability
Date of entry/update: 2021-09-07
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Title: 100 Senior NLD Leaders Arrested and Charged Since Myanmar Junta’s Coup
Description: "Myanmar’s military regime has charged at least 100 elected leaders, ministers and prominent members of the National League for Democracy (NLD) with high treason, corruption and incitement over the past seven months, as the junta steps up its efforts to destroy the party. Senior NLD figures who have been arrested and charged since the military’s February 1 coup include at least four government ministers, 10 chief ministers, 30 ministers of state and regional cabinets, 44 elected lawmakers and members of party offices nationwide, and seven other senior party members. There are 93 political parties in Myanmar, but the NLD is the only one that has been targeted by the military regime. Most notably, the junta has brought various charges against ousted State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and President U Win Myint in an effort to keep them behind bars for years. Daw Aung San Suu Kyi faces a total of 10 cases and a potential prison sentence of 75 years in total. The junta has accused her of accepting cash and gold, as well as of abusing her authority and funds donated to a charity foundation she leads. She also faces charges for the illegal possession of walkie-talkies, breaching COVID-19 restrictions, incitement and one case under the Official Secrets Act. Myanmar’s military detained Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, President U Win Myint and other senior officials of the NLD-led government before dawn on the day of the coup. Chief ministers of the states and regions, parliamentary speakers at union and state and regions level were also detained during the takeover, along with other senior leaders and members of the NLD’s Central Executive Committee (CEC). Coup leader Senior General Min Aung Hlaing has claimed that the coup was staged because the NLD committed “election fraud” during the 2020 general election that the NLD won by a landslide. The results of the election have since been annulled and the party faces the possibility of being disbanded. NLD members continue to face arrest, including those who won seats in the 2020 election. Several detained party members have been killed while in detention. Numerous members face arrest warrants and have gone into hiding, while NLD offices have been raided, vandalized and forced to close. Over 300 NLD leaders, ministers, elected lawmakers and other members at party offices are currently being detained. The four detained ministers of the NLD-led government have been accused of violating the Official Secrets Act and the Anti-Corruption Law. U Win Myat Aye, the ousted Minister of Social Welfare, Relief and Resettlement, and ousted Upper House Speaker Mahn Win Khaing Than have been charged with corruption and high treason respectively. Both were re-elected in the 2020 election. Since the coup, U Win Myat Aye has been made the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Disaster Management for the shadow National Unity Government (NUG), while Mahn Win Khaing Than has been appointed as NUG prime minister. Corruption charges have also been brought against NLD ministers and officials who were renowned for their good reputations while in office and who enjoyed the support of the general public. Of the 13 chief ministers who are still being detained, nine have been accused of bribery, abuse of their authority and embezzlement of public funds under the Anti-Corruption Law, all charges that carry long prison terms. One chief minister has also been charged with incitement. The other chief ministers are likely to be charged soon. Members of the NLD’s CEC face harsher charges. Detained NLD vice-chairman Dr. Zaw Myint Maung, who is also the Mandalay Region Chief Minister, has been charged with alleged corruption, incitement and breaching of COVID-19 restrictions. Dr. Zaw Myint Maung, who has blood cancer, caught coronavirus while being detained in Mandalay’s Obo Prison and was put on oxygen support. On June 7, the Magwe Chief Minister Dr. Aung Moe Nyo, who is also a member of the CEC, was sentenced to two years in prison on an incitement charge. He was accused of publishing statements saying that the junta’s State Administration Council is not an official government. The ousted chief minister also faces corruption charges along with three ministers of his cabinet. Around 50 ousted ministers, advocate generals and auditor generals of state and regional cabinets are also still being detained. At least 30 of them face charges such as corruption, incitement, violating COVID-19 restrictions and disobeying military regime orders. NLD CEC members U Nyan Win, U Han Thar Myint, U Thein Oo, U Mya Thein, the party’s patron U Win Htein, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi’s personal physician Dr. Tin Myo Win and the party spokespersons, Dr. Myo Nyunt and Monywa Aung Shin, were also arrested by the junta. They have been charged with sedition and incitement. 79-year-old U Nyan Win, who was also Daw Aung San Suu Kyi’s long-time personal lawyer, died of COVID-19 on July 20 while being detained in Yangon’s Insein Prison, where he caught coronavirus. At least 13 NLD members, including the Bago Region parliamentary speaker and elected lawmakers, have been sentenced to two to three years in prison, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners. NLD CEC member U Aung Kyi Nyunt, who chairs the Committee Representing Pyidaungsu Hluttaw (CRPH), said the arrests and charges against NLD members are a plot to ensure that the regime illegally wins the next general election. U Aung Kyi Nyunt is the subject of arrest warrants for sedition and other charges, along with other NLD leaders, members and other anti-regime forces and ethnic minorities who managed to evade arrest and form the CPRH and the NUG to oppose the junta. The number of detained NLD members is rising as the regime continues to crackdown on the party across the country. In the last month alone, at least 38 NLD members, including elected lawmakers and chiefs and members of state and region offices at the township and ward level have been arrested. Youth members of the NLD have also been detained. Regime-controlled media has stated that those arrested will be prosecuted for supporting the Civil Disobedience Movement and the NUG, as well as supplying civilian resistance fighters with food and financial aid. “As the junta knows, there is no way the military can compete against the most popular party so they are trying to eliminate the NLD before holding an election,” U Aung Kyi Nyunt told The Irrawaddy in June. “But that won’t be possible as it is has been clear from the beginning that this is not fair and that the people won’t accept it,” he added..."
Source/publisher: "The Irrawaddy" (Thailand)
Date of entry/update: 2021-09-03
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Title: Press Release from the Minister of Justice of the National Unity Government of Myanmar, U Thein Oo, calling for release of all political prisoners and measures to save all prisoners from the effects of Covid-19 in detention facilities (July 16)
Sub-title: တရားရေးဝန်ကြီးဌာန၊ အမျိုးသားညီညွတ်ရေးအစိုးရ၊ ပြည်ထောင်စုဝန်ကြီး ဦးသိန်းဦး၏ နိုင်ငံရေးအကျဥ်းသားအားလုံးလွတ်မြောက်ရေးနှင့် အကျဥ်း‌ထောင်များအတွင်းရှိ အကျဥ်းသားများအား ကိုဗစ် ၁၉ ရောဂါကူးစက်ဖြစ်ပွားမှုမှ ကာကွယ်နိုင်ရန် ဆောင်ရွက်သင့်သည်များ ဆောင်ရွက်ပေးရန် တောင်းဆိုခြင်းနှင့် ပတ်သက်၍ သတင်းထုတ်ပြန်ခြင်း (ဇူလိုင် ၁၆)
Description: "(Yangon- 16 JULY) As the Covid-19 crisis in Myanmar has reached a critical stage, the junta has announced the presence of Covid in Insein Jail. The 'Special Tribunals' established for the trial of persons detained for peaceful protests have been suspended. Reporting across the country is minimal, and the pandemic is likely to have reached all detention facilities, since our people are reporting cases, and deaths in all areas of Myanmar. “Holding people in detention without trial, in overcrowded facilities where Covid-19 is spreading out of control, will be a death sentence for many whose only crime was to peacefully express their fervent desire for democracy," said NUG Minister for Justice, U Thein Oo. " The legal system in Myanmar is operating under de facto Martial Law. with Special Tribunals headed by military judges in detention centres. The military must be held responsible for the extrajudicial killings they have engaged in since this coup, and this includes any deaths that occur in prisons due to Covid and an absence of health care." Many of those detained have been held without trial for more than five months, in overcrowded conditions and some have experienced interrogations techniques that amount to torture and cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment. They must be released immediately, and their families informed of their health status before release so that appropriate treatment and isolation measures can be taken to prevent the uncontrolled spread of the virus. Since March 2020, Covid-19 prevention measures have led to the closure, or only partial operating of all courts in all areas of Myanmar, except Rakhine State. This has resulted in a massive backlog of cases, and overcrowding in all jails and prisons. All of those who on remand must be released on bail immediately. In addition, prisoners with less than a year of their sentence to run should also be released. These measures will help to relieve overcrowding in the jails, so that correct procedures for controlling the spread of Covid-19 in jails can be put in place. The Minister added: “The President of the International Committee of the Red Cross, Peter Maurer, met with Min Aung Hlaing in Myanmar on June 3, 2021 and requested that IRCRC visits to places of detention be resumed. This visit was the first by an international organisation to meet the State Administrative Council, and was reported by the junta as recognition of its rule. If this visit was sincere, the IC RC must renew and maintain pressure on the junta to allow this access and activities to support prisoner rights."..."
Source/publisher: Ministry of Justice
Date of entry/update: 2021-09-03
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Type: Individual Documents
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Title: Arrests, torture, beatings and jail – inside Myanmar’s daily junta reality
Summary: "Myanmar’s military leaders used its armed forces to launch its coup and take control of the country from its elected government on 1 February 2021. In protest, millions of people took to the streets...
Description: "Myanmar’s military leaders used its armed forces to launch its coup and take control of the country from its elected government on 1 February 2021. In protest, millions of people took to the streets. The military responded to these protests by sending armed soldiers and police into residential areas to arrest defiant civilians, workers, students, doctors and nurses. In March, martial law was enforced in Yangon, snipers were used, and protesters were shot on sight. To restrict news coverage of their crimes and to impede the organisatiojn of protests, the military ordered telecommunication companies to restrict internet and mobile phone coverage. Independent media outlets had their licences withdrawn, offices were raided and trashed. Journalists were targeted and hunted by soldiers and police. Obscure laws were added to the penal code and used to restrict freedom of speech and expression. State-controlled media published pages of arrest warrants and photographs of the wanted, including journalists. To avoid arrest, independent journalists went underground or sought refuge with border based ethnic armed organisations. Myanmar journalists are well aware that being “arrested” and held in detention by the military doesn’t come with respect for their legal or human rights. The military uses a wide range of obscure laws, some dating back to colonial times, to detain, intimidate and silence its critics — academics, medics, journalists, students and workers. 95 journalists arrested Independent website, Reporting ASEAN, recorded that, as of August 18, 95 journalists had been arrested and 42 were being held in detention. The Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP) estimated by August 29 that the military has now killed at least 1026 people, arrested 7627, issued warrants for 1984 and are still holding 6025 in detention. They want names Those arrested are taken to interrogation centres and held indefinitely without contact with family or legal representation. Torture is used to extort names and contacts from the detained to be added to the military’s long list of those to be hunted down and suppressed into silence. One of those names on the military’s wanted list is that of journalist Nyan Linn Htet, now in hiding, after a warrant under Section 505 (a) was issued for his arrest. Nyan Linn Htet, managing editor of Mekong News, in an interview with the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) explains the impact of being hunted has had on both him and his family. “If I’m arrested it means I lose everything. When we had to run and go into hiding, we lost our home and our possessions. You lose your income. Your equipment. You never feel safe when hiding. Living like this affects all of us. If the military does not find me, they will pressure and threaten my family with arrest.” Nyan Linn Htet said he is still working despite the risk of arrest. “Losing a journalist is a big loss for our struggle for democracy. We’re only doing our job as reporters, but our news coverage exposes the military and its abuses – this is why we’re the enemy.” Despite the danger to him and his family, Nyan Linn Htet worries about the safety of those who helped him avoid arrest. ‘Caught in hiding’ “If I’m caught in hiding, the SAC (military-appointed State Administration Council) will persecute the people who gave me a place to live. I’m afraid they [the military] will arrest those who helped me.” His fears are well founded. Journalist and political analyst Sithu Aung Myint was high on the military’s wanted list for his political commentary and published opposition to the coup. On Sunday, August 15, the military raided the home of his colleague, BBC freelance producer, Htet Htet Khine, and arrested both of them. A week later, in its Sunday, August 21, edition, the military-run newspaper, Global New Light of Myanmar, said Sithu Aung Myint had been charged with sedition, spreading “fake news” and being critical of the military coup leaders and its State Administration Council under Sections 505 (a) and 124 (a) of the Penal Code. He could be sentenced to life in jail under Section 124 (a) of the penal code. Htet Htet Khine was arrested for giving shelter to Sithu Aung Myint, and charged under section 17(1) of the Unlawful Association Act for working with the recently formed National Union Government’s radio station, Federal FM. Held in interrogation centre Friends and colleagues of Sithu Aung Myint and Htet Htet Khine told IFJ they are concerned both journalists were held at an interrogation centre for more than a week before having access to either legal help or contact with colleagues or family. Nyan Linn Htet told IFJ he is aware his legal and human rights will not be respected if he is arrested. “They will not let us get legal help until they’ve got what they want from us. The military amended 505 (a) of the Penal Code to prevent giving us bail. We know they will jail us even if we have legal representation. “We know SAC is torturing journalists because of the work we do.” Reports by local and international humanitarian groups have detailed the severe beatings — hours of maintaining stressed positions, use of sexual violence — and killing of people while held in detention. Nyan Linn Htet said if arrested, he knows it will come with beatings. He admits that the thought of being tortured keeps him awake at night. “They will jail me, but only after they torture me. I will not be released until I sign a statement that I will never criticise them. I’m not afraid of being arrested, but torture scares me. There are nights when I’m too afraid to sleep.” International media drop Myanmar He and other local journalists told the IFJ it was disappointing that international media has dropped Myanmar from its news agenda and moved on to cover other stories. Nyan Linn Htets said despite access difficulties, the international media can use local reporters who are willing to help. “We know the difficulties media has getting ground access to Myanmar. Covid-19 restrictions also make it impossible to legally cross borders from neighboring countries, but we are already here in the country and are capable of doing the job.” Despite the fear of arrest and torture, he is still reporting and urged local journalists to keep doing the same. “It’s important we use what we can to still work and report news events of interest to people. People are accessing news and information in many different ways now.” The military, while trashing local and international laws and ignoring its constitution, is quick to use and amend laws to jail its opponents for being critical of the coup and for reporting military violence, abuse and corruption. We have no rights Nan Paw Gay, editor-in-chief at the Karen Information Center, says the military council has no respect for journalists or their right to publish information in the public interest. “There is no freedom of the press. If journalists try to report news or seek information from the military’s opponents — CRPH, NUG, CDM, G-Z and PDF — the State Administration Council prosecutes them under Section 17/1 of the Illegal Association Act. “Since the military launched its coup, sources we use have had their freedom of speech and expression made illegal and they now risk arrest for talking to us and… we can be arrested for speaking with them. “Independent media groups have been outlawed and totally lost their right to speak freely or write about news events.” Nan Paw Gay points out if journalists are “critical of the military, its appointed State Administration Council or its lack of a public health plan to tackle the covid-19 pandemic now ravaging the country, section 505 (a) is used to arrest journalists for spreading false news.” Essentially torture is used to terrorise journalists, he says. “When the military council arrests and detains journalists, the torture is both physical and psychological. Even before being detained threats are issued and then during the arrest the violence becomes real – shootings, people being kicked and dragged from homes by their hair and beaten.” Women journalists tortured Nan Paw Gay says women journalists are more likely to be “tortured using psychological abuse – kept in a dark room and constantly told that they will be killed tomorrow – to mess and generate fear with their thoughts. You can see the effects of the tortured on some journalists when they appear in court – shaking hands and body spasms.” Military brutality is a daily reality for Myanmar’s people. At the time of writing, the army is preparing to deploy and reinforce its bases with hundreds of extra troops into areas of the Karen National Union-controlled territory and where anti-coup protesters, striking doctors and politicians have been offered refuge and safety. A senior ethnic Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA) soldier told the IFJ that army drones and helicopters have been surveying the area in recent months. “We know they’ve sent munitions and large troop numbers to our area… last time we had drones flying over our area, they later attacked villages and our positions with airstrikes. They’re already fighting in our Brigade 5 and 1 and have started in 6 and 2.” Since the military launched its coup on February 1, there has been at least 500 armed battles between the KNU and the military regime and 70,000 Karen civilians have been displaced and are hiding in makeshift camps as a direct result of these attacks. Fighter jets have flown into Karen National Union-controlled areas 27 times and dropped at least 47 bombs, killing 14 civilians and wounding 28. Naw K’nyaw Paw, general secretary of the Karen Women Organisation, in an interview with Karen News, said villagers displaced by the Myanmar Army attacks are now in desperate need of humanitarian aid. ‘Shoot at villagers’ “They shoot at villagers if they see them on their farms, burning down their rice barns and killing the livestock left behind. The Burma Army also arrests people when they see them and use them as human shields to protect them when attacked by Karen soldiers.” Naw K’nyaw Paw said accessing the displaced villagers is difficult, especially during the wet season. “The only accessible way in is on foot, supplies have to be carried through jungle. Given the restrictions due to covid-19 as well as the increasing Burma Army military operations, villagers are unable to return to their homes and they will need food, clothing and medicine, especially the young and old.” Nan Paw Gay says the military’s strategy to muzzle the media is a familiar tactic that has been used before. “Stop international media getting access to conflict areas, shut down independent media, hunt local journalists and when there’s no one to left to report, launch attacks in ethnic regions, displacing thousands of villagers.” Phil Thornton is a journalist and senior adviser to the International Federation of Journalists in South East Asia. This article was first published by the IFJ Asia-Pacific blog and is republished with the author’s permission. Thornton is also a contributor to Asia Pacific Report..."
Source/publisher: Asia Pacific Report
Date of entry/update: 2021-09-01
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Type: Individual Documents
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Title: The Women’s League of Burma reinforces our condemnation of the junta’s illegal and unjust seizure of power and urges international community to act
Description: "On the day marking seven months since the Burmese military’s attempted coup, the Women’s League of Burma (WLB) reinforces our condemnation of the junta’s illegal and unjust seizure of power and categorically rejects the assault on civilian livelihoods including the infringement of basic human rights freedoms and protections by the Burmese Army, and in particular the targeting of women and girls through sexual violence as a weapon of war. WLB also condemns the junta’s efforts of using its controlled media and personnel to defame women who have joined resistance forces fighting against them, particularly the junta’s spokesperson shameful use of sexist and patriarchal language against these brave women. Since February the first, the whole country has been pushed back to living under constant threats and insecurity. The military has used all forms of violence including arrest, killing, torture and sexual assault to suppress any actions taken against the coup. Over 1,000 civilians have been killed by security forces, including over 73 women. More than 1,084 women were among 7,300 people arrested simply for their political views. Moreover, the junta has launched military offensives including airstrikes in Kachin, Karen, Karenni/Kayah, Rakhine and Shan State and Sagaing Region. As a result, more than 240,000 people have been internally displaced across the country adding to the already-existing numbers of IDPs. Among those, 80 percent, are women and children who face risks of malnutrition and sexual violence by the Burmese soldiers. Pregnant women have been forced to give birth while hiding in the jungle without proper health care. An increase number of rape and sexual abuse by the junta’s security forces against women has been reported daily. Besides its brutal attacks against the people, the Burmese military is blocking the routes to transport humanitarian aid to those in need, or even arresting relief workers. This humanitarian crisis unfolding across the country has heightened the needs of vulnerable communities against the backdrop of a raging pandemic. The COVID-19 has allowed the junta to restrict the movement of opposition forces and to limit civilian access to health care. WLB reiterates our commitment fighting against all forms of dictatorships in our country alongside with our alliances in the federal democracy movement as well as with various international and regional actors to raise awareness about the situation inside Burma, in particular highlighting the plight of women, girls including all human rights defenders. On this occasion, we urge international community to act as follows: To the International Community Categorically reject the military junta by supporting and standing with the people of Burma to topple the military dictatorship; To apply pressure on the junta for the immediate and unconditional cessation of military violence and the release of all arbitrarily detained protesters and political prisoners including female detainees as well as an end to the use of sexual violence by security forces against female detainees;..."
Source/publisher: Women's League of Burma
Date of entry/update: 2021-09-01
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Type: Individual Documents
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Title: Enforced Disappearances by the Military Junta
Description: "On this International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances, AAPP calls on international actors to recognize the enforced disappearances perpetrated by the military in its terror campaign against the entire population in Burma since the military coup. As of AAPP’s most recent database, the current condition of 82% of people on the under-detention lists are detained in an unknown location. The international community must demand the junta reveals the location to civil society of all of those arbitrarily detained. In the junta’s efforts to shield itself from accountability, the location of these detainees is withheld from civil society and independent media. In fact, intelligence on the fate or whereabouts of any of the total 7627 people detained since the coup has not been disclosed by the junta. AAPP Secretary U Tate Naing said “in Burma’s previous dictatorship, families of the detained were never notified of their loves ones transfer to prisons or the event that led to arrest. Families must spend time going to police stations or prisons to inquire about their relatives as well as asking other inmates’ families, often using bribes. Sometimes, information is revealed through media outlets instead. Even the whereabouts of the democratically elected leaders, President U Win Myint and Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, have not been disclosed and access to lawyers restricted. Such intentional disappearances pose a serious threat to public security and basic international law”. According to the 2002 Rome Statute, enforced disappearances occur when a detention of an individual is “followed by a refusal to acknowledge that deprivation of freedom or to give information on the fate or whereabouts of those persons, with the intention of removing them from the protection of the law for a prolonged period of time”. Even children are being enforced disappeared as hostage by the junta. In night-time raids or at peaceful protests everyone is at risk of being detained in secret locations by the junta. If one is taken to an interrogation center or military barracks, they could be tortured to death in Burma without anyone knowing where one was. AAPP Joint-Secretary U Bo Kyi said, “enforced disappearances are an attempt to create a climate of fear across Burma, to stop anti-coup protests, and begin dictatorial rule. The result of enforced disappearances is not only to bully the detainees, but forces families and friends to suffer. Not knowing the fate or whereabouts of a loved one, this is a kind of physiological torture as well as physical abuse of one’s human rights. For this reason, it is one of the worse kinds of crimes against humanity”. Article 7 (i) of the Rome Statute declares that enforced disappearances constitute crimes against humanity, when it is committed as part of a widespread and/or systematic attack, which it most certainly is in Burma. On 20 August, the National Unity Government released a statement accepting jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court with respect to crimes committed in Burma since July 1, 2002. Enforced disappearance falls within the jurisdiction created by the Rome Statute, accountability for these crimes against humanity must be ensured. Recognizing the political legitimacy of the National Unity Government at the United Nations General Assembly will strengthen these international accountability mechanisms, including to end the Burma junta’s use of enforced disappearances with impunity. Assistance Association for Political Prisoners Download link for English Forced Disappearances by the Military Junta **On 28 May AAPP released a report and database[1] on missing persons since the military coup, these were split into different categories including missing in detention and disappeared on the streets. AAPP released this report to report on the repression and chaos created by the military coup, but firmly stipulated the fate of all those missing as of 28 May has not been verified to junta involvement, but rather strong suspicion..."
Source/publisher: Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP)
Date of entry/update: 2021-08-30
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Type: Individual Documents
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Title: Enforced Disappearances by the Military Junta - အကြမ်းဖက် စစ်အုပ်စု၏ ပြည်သူများကို အဓမ္မပျောက်ဆုံးနေစေမှုများ
Description: "ယနေ့တွင် ကျရောက်သည့် အပြည်ပြည်ဆိုင်ရာ အတင်းအဓမ္မအစအနပျောက်ဆုံးစေမှုဒဏ် ခံရသူများနေ့၌ စစ်တပ်အာဏာသိမ်းချိန်ကတည်းက မြန်မာပြည်သူလူထုတစ်ရပ်လုံးကို ခြိမ်းခြောက်လျက်ရှိနေသည့် ၎င်းတို့ ၏ လူမဆန်သော ကျူးလွန်မှုများထဲတွင် ပါဝင်လျက်ရှိသော ပြည်သူများအား အတင်းအဓမ္မ အစအန ပျောက်ဆုံးစေမှုများကို နိုင်ငံတကာ အသိုက်အဝန်းအနေဖြင့် သတိမူ၍ အရေးယူမှုများ ပြုလုပ်ရန် မိမိတို့ နိုင်ငံရေးအကျဉ်းသားများ ကူညီစောင့်ရှောက်ရေးအသင်းမှ တောင်းဆိုလိုက်သည်။ အာဏာသိမ်းမှု စတင်သည့် ဖေဖော်ဝါရီလကတည်းက အတင်းအဓမ္မ အစအနပျောက်ဆုံးစေမှုများမှာ ယခု အချိန်ထိ ဖြစ်ပေါ်နေဆဲဖြစ်ပြီး AAPP ၏ အချက်အလက်များအရ စစ်တပ်၏ မတရားဖမ်းဆီးချုပ်နှောင်ခြင်း ခံထားရသူများထဲမှ (၈၂) ရာခိုင်နှုန်းမှာ မည်သည့်နေရာတွင် ထိန်းသိမ်းခံထားရသလဲဆိုသည်ကို မသိရှိရပေ။ ထိုကဲ့သို့ တရားလက်လွတ်ဖမ်းဆီးထိန်းသိမ်းချုပ်နှောင်ခံထားရသူများအား မည်သည့်နေရာတွင် ထိန်းသိမ်း ထားကြောင်းကို စစ်အုပ်စုမှ ထုတ်ဖော်ပြောကြားရန် နိုင်ငံတကာ အသိုက်အဝန်းအနေဖြင့် တောင်းဆိုရန် လိုအပ်သည်။ စစ်တပ်အာဏာသိမ်းချိန်မှ စတင်၍ ယနေ့အချိန်အထိ ဖမ်းဆီးခံခဲ့ရသူ စုစုပေါင်း (၇၆၂၇) ဦးရှိခဲ့ရာ စစ်အုပ်စု အနေဖြင့် ဖမ်းဆီးခံများကို မည်သည့်နေရာတွင် ချုပ်နှောင်ထိန်းသိမ်းထားကြောင်းကို ထုတ်ဖော်ပြောဆိုမှု လုံးဝမပြုလုပ်ခဲ့ပေ။ မိသားစုကိုယ်တိုင်နှင့် အရပ်ဖက်လူမှုအဖွဲ့အစည်းများ၊ ရှေ့နေများ၊ မီဒီယာများ စသည်တို့၏ ကြိုးစားအားထုတ်မှုကြောင့်သာ ဖမ်းဆီးခံရသူအချို့မှာ မည်သည့်နေရာတွင် ရှိနေသည်ကို သိရှိရခြင်းဖြစ်သည်။ AAPP ၏ အတွင်းရေးမှူး ဦးတိတ်နိုင်မှ “ မြန်မာနိုင်ငံ စစ်အာဏာရှင်အဆက်ဆက်မှာ ဖမ်းဆီးထိန်းသိမ်းတာ၊ ထောင်ပြောင်းတာတွေကို ကာယကံရှင်များရဲ့ မိသားစုများကို ဘယ်သောအခါမှ အသိပေးတာမရှိခဲ့ဘူး။ မိသားစုများက ထောင်တွေ၊ ရဲစခန်းတွေကို သွားရောက်စုံစမ်း မေးမြန်းတာ၊ အကျဉ်းကျနေသူတွေရဲ့ မိသားစုတွေကတဆင့် စုံစမ်းမေးမြန်းတာတွေကို အချိန်ကုန်၊ ငွေကုန်၊ လူပန်းခံပြီး ခက်ခက်ခဲခဲ စုံစမ်းကြရတယ်။ တစ်ခါတရံ မီဒီယာတွေကမှ တဆင့်သိကြရတယ်။ နိုင်ငံတော်သမ္မတ ဦးဝင်းမြင့်နဲ့ လူထုခေါင်းဆောင် ဒေါ်အောင်ဆန်းစုကြည်ကိုတောင် ဒီကနေ့အထိ ဘယ်နေရာမှာ ထိန်းသိမ်းထားတယ် ဆိုတာကို မထုတ်ပြန်တဲ့အပြင် ရှေ့နေတွေနဲ့တွေ့ခွင့်ကိုပါ ပိတ်ပင်တာတွေလုပ်လာခဲ့တယ်။ ဒီလို ရည်ရွယ်ချက်ရှိရှိ အစအနပျောက်ဆုံးစေခြင်းဟာ ပြည်သူတွေရဲ့ လုံခြုံရေးကို ကြီးမားစွာ ခြိမ်းခြောက်တာ ဖြစ်ပြီး နိုင်ငံတကာဥပဒေတွေကိုလည်း စိန်ခေါ်ရာ ရောက်ပါတယ်” ဟု မှတ်ချက်ပြုသည်။ ရောမစာချုပ် (၂၀၀၂) ၌ အာဏာပိုင်များအနေဖြင့် ထိန်းသိမ်းချုပ်နှောင်ထားသည့် တစ်စုံတစ်ဦးကို အချိန် ကာလကြာမြှင့်စွာ ဥပဒေ၏ အကာအကွယ်ပေးမှုမှ ကင်းလွတ်စေရန် ရည်ရွယ်ချက်ဖြင့် မည်သည့်နေရာတွင် ရှိနေသည်ကို ထုတ်ဖော်ပြောဆိုခြင်း၊ လွတ်လပ်မှုဆုံးရှုံးနေခြင်းတို့ကို အသိအမှတ်ပြုရန် ငြင်းဆန်ခြင်းသည် အတင်းအဓမ္မ အစအနပျောက်ဆုံးစေမှုမြောက်သည်ဟု ပြဌာန်းထားသည်။ စစ်အုပ်စုအနေဖြင့် အလိုရှိသူကို ဖမ်းမမိသည့်အခြေအနေမျိုးတွင် မိသားစုဝင်များကို ဓားစာခံအဖြစ် ဖမ်းဆီးခြင်းများလည်း ပြုလုပ်လျက်ရှိနေသလို ထိုဓားစာခံများကို မည်သည့်နေရာတွင် ထိန်းသိမ်းထား ကြောင်းလည်း ထုတ်ဖော်ပြောဆိုခြင်းမရှိပေ။ ထိုအထဲတွင် အရွယ်မရောက်သေးသည့် လူမမယ်ကလေး သူငယ်များပင် ပါဝင်သည်။ ညအချိန်ဝင်ရောက်စီးနင်း၍ ဖမ်းဆီးခြင်း သို့မဟုတ် ဆန္ဒပြပွဲအတွင်း ဖမ်းဆီးခြင်း ခံရသူများသည် လျို့ဝှက်သောနေရာများတွင် ထိန်းသိမ်းချုပ်နှောင်ခံနေကြရသည်။ ထို့အပြင် ဖမ်းဆီးခံရပြီး နောက် စစ်ကြောရေးစခန်းများတွင် ညှဉ်းပန်းနှိပ်စက်ခံရ၍ မည်သူမှ မသိလိုက်ရဘဲ အသက်သေဆုံးသွား ရမှုပင် ကြုံတွေ့ရနိုင်သည့် အန္တရာယ်ကို မြန်မာပြည်သူများမှာ နေစဉ်နှင့်အမျှ ရင်ဆိုင်နေကြရသည်။ AAPP ၏ တွဲဖက်အတွင်းရေးမှူး ဦးဘိုကြည်က “အတင်းအဓမ္မ အစအနပျောက်ဆုံးစေမှုတွေဟာ အာဏာရှင်စနစ်ကို အသက်သွင်းပြီး သူတို့ကိုဆန့်ကျင်နေမှုတွေ ရပ်တန့်စေဖို့ အကြမ်းဖက်စစ်အုပ်စုက မြန်မာတနိုင်ငံလုံးအနှံ့ ကြောက်ရွံ့မှုတွေကို တိုးလာအောင် ဖန်တီးဖို့ ကြိုးစားနေတာဖြစ်ပါတယ်။ ဒီလိုလုပ်ရပ် ဟာ အထိန်းသိမ်းခံနေရသူတွေကို ခြိမ်းခြောက်နေတာတင်မကဘဲ မိသားစုဝင်တွေနဲ့ မိတ်ဆွေသူငယ်ချင်းတွေ ကိုပါ ထိခိုက်နစ်နာခံစားရအောင် လုပ်ဆောင်နေတာ ဖြစ်ပါတယ်။ ချစ်ခင်ရသူတစ်ဦးဦးကို ဘယ်နေရာမှာ ထိန်းသိမ်းထားတယ်ဆိုတာ တရားဝင်အသိမပေးဘဲ ရည်ရွယ်ချက်ရှိရှိ ထိန်ချန်ထားခြင်းဟာ စိတ်ပိုင်းဆိုင်ရာ ညှဉ်းပန်းနှိပ်စက်မှု အသွင်တစ်ခုဖြစ်သလို ရုပ်ပိုင်းဆိုင်ရာအရပါ ဖိစီးနှိပ်စက်ခြင်း မြောက်ပါတယ်။ ဒါကြောင့် ဒီနည်းလမ်းတွေကို ကျယ်ကျယ်ပြန့်ပြန့်နဲ့ စနစ်တကျ အသုံးပြုကျူးလွန်နေတာဟာ လူသားမျိုးနွယ်အပေါ် ကျူးလွန်တဲ့ အဆိုးရွားဆုံး ရာဇဝတ်မှုတွေထဲက တစ်ခုဖြစ်ပါတယ်” ဟု ဆိုသည်။ ရောမစာချုပ်၏ အပိုဒ် ၇ (ဈ) တွင် အတင်းအဓမ္မ အစအနပျောက်ဆုံးစေခြင်းကို စနစ်တကျနှင့် ကျယ်ကျယ် ပြန်ပြန့် ကျူးလွန်လာပါက လူသားမျိုးနွယ်အပေါ် ကျူးလွန်သည့်ရာဇဝတ်မှု၏ အင်္ဂါရပ်တစ်ခုအဖြစ် ထည့်သွင်းပြဌာန်းထားသည်။ အမျိုးသားညီညွတ်ရေးအစိုးရက ဇူလိုင်လ (၁) ရက်၊ ၂၀၀၂ ခုနှစ်မှ စတင်၍ မြန်မာနိုင်ငံအတွင်း ကျူးလွန် ခဲ့သည့် ရာဇဝတ်မှုများနှင့်ပတ်သက်၍ တာဝန်ရှိသူများကို အရေးယူနိုင်ရန် နိုင်ငံတကာ ရာဇဝတ်တရားရုံး၏ တရားစီရင်မှုများကို လက်ခံမည်ဖြစ်ကြောင်း ဩဂုတ်လ ၂၀ ရက်နေ့က ကြေညာခဲ့သည်။ အတင်းအဓမ္မ အစအနပျောက်ဆုံးစေခြင်းသည် ရောမစာချုပ်အရ အပ်နှင်းထားသော တရားစီရင်ပိုင်ခွင့်အတွင်း၌ တည်ရှိ ပြီး အကြမ်းဖက်စစ်တပ်၏ လူသားမျိုးနွယ်အပေါ် ကျူးလွန်သောရာဇဝတ်မှုများအတွက် တရားမျှတမှုနှင့် တာဝန်ယူမှု၊ တာဝန်ခံမှုရှိစေရမည်ဖြစ်သည်။ အမျိုးသားညီညွတ်ရေးအစိုးရကို ကုလသမဂ္ဂအထွေထွေညီလာခံတွင် နိုင်ငံရေးအရ တရားဝင်အစိုးရတစ်ရပ် အဖြစ် အသိအမှတ်ပြုခြင်းသည် အကြမ်းဖက်စစ်အုပ်စုအနေဖြင့် အရေးယူခံရခြင်းမှ ကင်းလွတ်နေမှုကို အဆုံးသတ်နိုင်ရန် အပါအဝင် နိုင်ငံတကာတာဝန်ယူမှု၊ တာဝန်ခံမှု ယန္တရားများကို ခိုင်မာအားကောင်းစေခြင်း ပင် ဖြစ်သည်။ နိုင်ငံရေးအကျဉ်းသားများကူညီစောင့်ရှောက်ရေးအသင်း စတိတ်မန့်အပြည့်အစုံ ဒေါင်းလော့ရယူရန် Burmese Forced Disappearances by the Military Junta..."
Source/publisher: Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP)
Date of entry/update: 2021-08-30
[field_licence]
Type: Individual Documents
Language:
Format : pdf
Size: 163.55 KB
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Title: More than 100 prisoners died at the hands of the military council - စစ်ကောင်စီလက်ထဲ သေဆုံးရသူ နိုင်ကျဉ်း ၁၀၀ ကျော်ရှိ
Sub-title: စစ်ကောင်စီ၏ ညှဉ်းပန်းနှိပ်စက်မှုကြောင့် ဖမ်းခံရပြီး ၂၄ နာရီအတွင်း သေဆုံးရသူ ၆၆ ဦးအပြင် ကျန်းမာရေးစောင့်ရှောက်မှု လုံလောက်စွာ မရသဖြင့် သေဆုံးရသူများလည်း ရှိနေသည်ဟု AAPP က ဆိုသည်
Description: "စစ်ကောင်စီလက်ထဲတွင် သေဆုံးရသူ နိုင်ငံရေးအကျဉ်းသား ၁၁၀ ရှိကာ ဖမ်းဆီးစဉ် ညှဉ်းပန်းနှိပ်စက်ခံရသဖြင့် ၂၄ နာရီအတွင်း သေဆုံးခဲ့ရသူများနှင့်အတူ ဆေးကုသခွင့် ကောင်းစွာမရသဖြင့် သေဆုံးရသူများလည်း ပါဝင်ကြောင်း နိုင်ငံရေးအကျဉ်းသားများ ကူညီစောင့်ရှောက်ရေးအသင်း (AAPP) က ဆိုသည်။ ထိုနိုင်ငံရေးအကျဉ်းသား ၁၀၀ ကျော်မှာ အကျဉ်းသားအခွင့်အရေးမရရှိဘဲ နှိပ်စက်ခံရပြီး သေဆုံးရသူများဖြစ်ကာ အများစုမှာ အရပ်သားများဖြစ်ကြပြီး အမျိုးသားဒီမိုကရေစီအဖွဲ့ချုပ် (NLD) ပါတီဝင် ၇ ဦး၊ ဆရာဝန်နှစ်ဦးနှင့် ကျောင်းဆရာသုံးဦးလည်း ပါဝင်ကြောင်း AAPP စာရင်းများအရ သိရသည်။ ညှဉ်းပန်းနှိပ်စက်ခံရမှုကြောင့် ၂၄ နာရီအတွင်း သေဆုံးရသူများ ရန်ကုန်၊ ပန်းဘဲတန်းမြို့နယ် NLD ဥက္ကဋ္ဌဖြစ်သူ အသက် ၅၈ နှစ်အရွယ် ဦးခင်မောင်လတ်မှာ မတ် ၆ တွင် ဖမ်းဆီးခံရပြီး နောက်တစ်နေ့ နံနက်တွင် မိသားစုကို အလောင်းလာထုတ်ရန် စစ်ကောင်စီက အကြောင်းကြားခဲ့သည်။ ဦးခင်မောင်လတ်ကဲ့သို့ ၂၄ နာရီအတွင်းသေဆုံးရသူ ၆၆ ဦးထိရှိကြောင်း AAPP က ပြုစုထားသည့် စာရင်းအရ သိရသည်။ တချို့ကို ကိုဗစ်နိုင်တင်းရောဂါ ကူးစက်ခံရ၍ သေဆုံးသည်ဟုလည်း စစ်ကောင်စီက အကြောင်းပြခဲ့သည်။ ညှဉ်းပန်းနှိပ်စက်ခံရပြီး ၂၄ နာရီအတွင်း သေဆုံးခဲ့ရသူများတွင် ဦးဇော်မြတ်လင်း၊ ကိုအေးကို၊ ကိုအောင်မြင့်လှိုင်(ခ) ကိုကျေး၊ ကဗျာဆရာ ခက်သီ ခေါ် ကိုဇော်ထွန်း၊ စိုးစံ၊ ကိုမင်းမင်း၊ ကိုမျိုးဇော်ဇော်၊ ဇေယျာလင်း၊ မိုင်နွမ်ဇာထျန်၊ ကိုဇော်ထက် (ခေါ်) ဆလိုင်းဗန်ထာကျုံ၊ ကိုဇင်ကိုထွန်း၊ သက်နိုင်ဦး၊ မျိုးမြင့်သန်း၊ ခင်မောင်ကြည်၊ ကိုထက်ဇော်လင်း(ခေါ်)) ဉာဏ်စူးတို့ သေဆုံးမှုကို Myanmar Now က အတည်ပြုကာ သတင်းရေးသားဖော်ပြခဲ့သည်။ စစ်ကိုင်းတိုင်း၊ ကနီမြို့နယ်တွင် ရွာသူရွာသား ၂၆ ဦးမှာလည်း ဖမ်းဆီးခံရပြီး ၂၄ နာရီအတွင်း အစုအလိုက်အပြုံလိုက် ညှဉ်းပန်းနှိပ်စက်ကာ အသတ်ခံရခြင်းဖြစ်ကြောင်း AAPP က ဆိုသည်။ စစ်ကိုင်းတိုင်း၊ ကလေးမြို့နယ်တွင်လည်း ကျောင်းဖောက်ခွဲမှုသံသယဖြင့် အဖမ်းခံရသူတစ်ဦးဖြစ် သော ကိုမင်းမင်းဆိုသူမှာလည်း ၂၄ နာရီအတွင်း သေဆုံးခဲ့သူဖြစ်သည်။ စစ်အာဏာရှင်ကျဆုံး၍ တော်လှန်ရေးအောင်မြင်ချိန်တွင် အမှန်တရားပေါ်ပေါက်၍ ကျူးလွန်သူများ အပြစ်ခံရစေလိုကြောင်း၊ နစ်နာသူမိသားစုဝင်များကိုလည်း ပြည်သူ့အစိုးရက ကူညီထောက်ပံ့ပေးစေလိုကြောင်း ကိုမင်းမင်း၏ ဆွေမျိုးတစ်ဦးက ပြောသည်။ “နိုင်ငံတကာက ဟိုပိတ်ပင် ဒီကန့်ကွက် အဲဒီလိုပြောတာ မဟုတ်ဘူး။ ကြိုးမိန့်ပေး၊ တန်းစင်တက်၊ ဒါပဲ လိုချင်တာ။ သူတို့အသက်တွေ ပေးဆပ်ရကျိုးနပ်ချင်တယ်” ဟု ကိုမင်းမင်း၏ ဆွေမျိုးဖြစ်သူက ဆိုသည်။ မကွေးတိုင်း၊ ပခုက္ကူမြို့တွင်လည်း မတ်လအတွင်းက အသက် ၃၉ နှစ်အရွယ် ကလေးသုံးဦးမိခင် ဒေါ်ခင်မာလာဝင်းကို စစ်ကောင်စီက ဖမ်းဆီးပြီး နောက်တစ်ရက်တွင် အလောင်းလာထုတ်ရန် မိသားစုကို အကြောင်းကြားခဲ့သည်။ ဒေါ်ခင်မာလာဝင်းက ဒူးထောက်တောင်းပန်ခဲ့သော်လည်း စစ်ကောင်စီတပ်ဖွဲ့ဝင်များက ပစ်ခတ်ဖမ်းဆီးခဲ့သည်။ ထို့ပြင် အလောင်းတွင် ဒဏ်ရာဒဏ်ချက်များ တွေ့ရှိရသည်ဟုလည်း ဒေသခံတစ်ဦးကို ကိုးကား၍ AAPP ၏ စာရင်းပြုစုချက်၌ ဖော်ပြထားသည်။ ရန်ကုန်၊ ရွှေပေါက္ကံမြို့သစ်နေ အသက် ၃၃ နှစ်အရွယ် အောင်ခန့် (ခေါ်) ပါခန့် ဆိုသူမှာလည်း အဖမ်းခံရပြီး ၂၄ နာရီအတွင်း သေဆုံးခဲ့သည့်အပြင် အလောင်းကို ကျပ်သုံးသိန်းဖြင့် ရွေးယူခဲ့ရကြောင်း AAPP က ဆိုသည်။ လုံလောက်သော ကျန်းမာရေးစောင့်ရှောက်မှု မရသဖြင့် သေဆုံးရသူများ အာဏာသိမ်းစစ်ကောင်စီလက်ချက်ဖြင့် သေဆုံးရသူများတွင် ဖမ်းဆီးထိန်းသိမ်းခံထားရစဉ် လုံလောက်သော ကျန်းမာရေးစောင့်ရှောက်မှု မရသဖြင့် သေဆုံးရသည့်ဖြစ်စဉ်များလည်း ရှိသည်။ စစ်ကိုင်းတိုင်း၊ မင်းကင်းမြို့နယ် စည်ပင်သာယာရေးကော်မတီဥက္ကဋ္ဌဟောင်း အသက် ၅၀ အရွယ် ဒေါ်ခင်မာရီ (ခေါ်) ဖွားချိုမှာ အာဏာဖီဆန်ရေးလှုပ်ရှားမှု (CDM) တွင် ထဲထဲဝင်ဝင်ပါဝင်သည်ဟု စွပ်စွဲခံရကာ ရာဇသတ်ကြီး ပုဒ်မ ၅၀၅ (ခ) ဖြင့် တရားစွဲဆိုကာ မတ်လအတွင်း ဖမ်းဆီးခံရပြီးနောက် ကျန်းမာရေးစောင့်ရှောက်မှု ကောင်းစွာ မရသဖြင့် ဇူလိုင် ၂၁ တွင် သေဆုံးခဲ့ရသည်။ ဒေါ်ခင်မာရီမှာ ဆီးချိုရောဂါနှင့် နှလုံးအားနည်းခြင်းကြောင့် မင်းကင်းမြို့အချုပ်ခန်းတွင် ကွယ်လွန်သည်ဟု AAPP စာရင်းက ဆိုသည်။ NLD ဗဟိုအလုပ်အမှုဆောင်ကော်မတီဝင်နှင့် အတွင်းရေးမှူးအဖွဲ့ဝင် အသက် ၇၉ နှစ်အရွယ် ဦးဉာဏ်ဝင်းမှာလည်း အင်းစိန်ထောင်တွင် ထိန်းသိမ်းခံထားရစဉ် ကိုရိုနာဗိုင်းရပ်စ်ကူးစက်ခံခဲ့ရပြီးနောက် ကျန်းမာရေးစောင့်ရှောက်မှု အားနည်းခြင်းကြောင့် ဇူလိုင် ၂၀ တွင် သေဆုံးခဲ့သည်။ အာဏာသိမ်းပြီးနောက် စစ်ကောင်စီ၏ သတ်ဖြတ်မှုကြောင့် ဩဂုတ် ၂၆ ထိ သေဆုံးသူ ၁၀၁၉ ဦးရှိ ကာ ဖမ်းဆီးခံထားရသူ ၅၉၆၉ ဦး ရှိ​ကြောင်းလည်း AAPP က ထုတ်ပြန်ထားသည်။ AAPP တာဝန်ရှိသူတစ်ဦးကမူ ၎င်းတို့၏ စာရင်းမှာ လက်လှမ်းမီသလောက်သာ ပြုစုထားခြင်းဖြစ်ကာ တစ်နိုင်ငံလုံးကို မလွှမ်းခြုံနိုင်သဖြင့် အမှန်တကယ်သေဆုံးရသူမှာ စာရင်းထက်ပိုများရန်သာရှိပြီး မလျော့နိုင်ကြောင်း ပြောသည်။ “တစ်ချိန်မှာ တရားမျှတမှုရရှိဖို့ဆိုရင် ဒီလိုအထောက်အထားတွေ မရှိဘဲနဲ့ ဘာမှလုပ်လို့ မရဘူး။ ဒီလို အထောက်အထားတွေ ရှိတော့မှ ဘယ်တုန်းက ဘယ်သူက ဘယ်လိုဖြစ်သွားတယ်။ ဘယ်သူက ကျူးလွန်လိုက်တယ်ဆိုတဲ့ဟာတွေ တကယ့် သက်သေသက္ကာယ ခိုင်ခိုင်မာမာနဲ့ လုပ်နိုင်မှာ ဖြစ်တယ်” ဟု ၎င်းက Myanmar Now ကို ပြောသည်။ ယခင်က ပေါ်ပေါက်ခဲ့သည့် ၁၉၈၈ လူထုအရေးတော်ပုံနှင့် ၂၀၀၇ ရွှေဝါရောင်တော်လှန်ရေး ဖြစ်စဉ်များတွင် ယခုကာလကဲ့သို့ သတင်းစီးဆင်းမှု မမြန်ဆန်ခြင်း၊ ဆက်သွယ်ရခက်ခဲခြင်းများကြောင့် နစ်နာဆုံးရှုံးမှုများကို သေချာ မှတ်တမ်းမတင်နိုင်ခဲ့ကြောင်း၊ ၂၀၂၁ တွင်မူ အာဏာသိမ်းစစ်ကောင်စီ၏ လုပ်ရပ်နှင့် လက်ချက်များကို သက်သေ၊ အချက်အလက် အတိအကျဖြင့် ကမ္ဘာသိတင်ပြနိုင်ရန် ဆက်လက်စုဆောင်းမည်ဟုလည်း AAPP က ဆိုသည်။ အမျိုးသားညီညွတ်ရေးအစိုးရ (NUG) ၏ လူ့အခွင့်အရေးဆိုင်ရာဝန်ကြီး ဦးအောင်မျိုးမင်းကလည်း စစ်ကောင်စီ၏ ပြည်သူအပေါ် ကျူးလွန်မှုများသည် လူမျိုးသုဉ်းသတ်ဖြတ်မှု မြောက်သဖြင့် ကမ္ဘာသိအောင် ကြိုးပမ်းသွားမည်ဟု ဆိုသည်။ "အနာဂတ်မှာ နောက်တစ်ခါ ဒါမျိုး ဘယ်တော့မှမဖြစ်အောင် ပြင်ဆင်လျက်ရှိပါတယ်” ဟု ဦးအောင်မျိုးမင်းက ပြောသည်။..."
Source/publisher: "Myanmar Now" (Myanmar)
Date of entry/update: 2021-08-28
[field_licence]
Type: Individual Documents
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Title: Writer and journalist Tu Tu Tha spends her 50th birthday behind bars
Sub-title: The lover of betel nut, music and painting is deprived of the freedom to be with her loved ones on what should have been a milestone in her life
Description: "Myanmar writer and journalist Tu Tu Tha is not known for hosting grand birthday celebrations. Most of her previous parties have been simple but memorable gatherings marked by singing and time shared with loved ones, laughing. This year she was deprived of such an occasion. On Saturday, she turned 50 after spending more than four months behind bars. Tu Tu Tha is not a criminal. She is an author of several books, a trainer of journalists, and a former editor with nearly two decades of experience in a range of newsrooms. She was arrested at her home in Yangon’s Thanlyin Township on April 24 along with one of her two sons, 18-year-old Nyan Lu Thit; her younger brother, Ye Naung; and a friend of her son’s, under the pretext that they failed to report themselves as overnight guests to the military authorities. Family and friends hoped that they would be freed shortly after they were detained, but all four remain jailed. Tu Tu Tha was sent to the infamous Insein Prison after spending three nights at the military’s Shwepyithar interrogation centre. She was later charged with incitement under Section 505a of the penal code, a violation that carries a three-year prison sentence if convicted. In the four months she has been in prison, she has not been allowed an in-person visit from any of her relatives. Tu Tu Tha’s trial initially commenced in a closed prison court but was suspended in late June, when all hearings were halted due to the Covid-19 outbreak both inside and outside the jail. She is one of thousands of people subjected to the junta’s arbitrary arrests that followed the February 1 military coup. The regime has detained nearly 6,000 people in prisons across the country, charging most of them with incitement and terrorism for participating in anti-coup activities. Compelled to write Tu Tu Tha initially trained as an engineer at the prestigious Government Technical Institute (GTI) in Yangon’s Insein Township. She attended the school as per the wish of her late father, well-known cartoonist A Naung whose works were featured in newspapers and magazines from the 1970s until his death in the early 1990s. Raised in a family that celebrated creativity and the arts, Tu Tu Tha found that she was not suited to a career in engineering, instead changing her pursuit to literature, a passion since her childhood. Still, her love of the more than 120-year-old GTI school and the years she spent there were reflected in her most recent novel, published in early 2020. The title of the book, Bandamar Lan Ka Alwan Chay Yar, is inspired by the tree-lined streets in front of the dorm where she once lived. “The inspiration [for that book] was always in my heart. But I lost my computer when I was writing the book and was already halfway finished with it. It took me two more years to rewrite it from the start,” Tu Tu Tha said in a media interview at her book launch in March last year. Her commitment to writing works inspired by real life events was also apparent in her first novel, A Phay Kyaung, or Father’s School. Published in 2015, it tells the stories of four Burmese migrants to Thailand and explores the struggles surrounding migrant children’s access—or lack thereof—to education. The inspiration for that book came from her experience working in exile as an editor for The Irrawaddy news magazine in Chiang Mai, Thailand, where she wrote under the pen name Aye Chan Myae. The book followed a film by the same name, for which Tu Tu Tha wrote the script. It was made in 2012 but released in 2016, directed by filmmaker Min Htin Ko Ko Gyi, who is also currently detained in the same prison as Tu Tu Tha after being arrested on the day of the coup. The lead actor, Ye Deight, is also detained in Insein. He was charged with the same offence as Tu Tu Tha and was arrested in early April. After five years in Thailand, Tu Tu Tha returned to Myanmar in 2013 with her colleagues when The Irrawaddy opened an office in Yangon. Ye Ni, the editor of The Irrawaddy’s Burmese edition described his former colleague Tu Tu Tha as a committed journalist and writer who should not be spending time in prison, and called for the immediate release of all political detainees including journalists, authors, poets and filmmakers. In 2016, Tu Tu Tha founded the Thanlyin Post, dedicated to and operating from her home township. She ran the publication for around two years until she could no longer afford to continue. Tu Tu Tha then went on to work as a part-time trainer at the Myanmar Journalism Institute. Lover of betel nut Friends, former colleagues and relatives of Tu Tu Tha have said they are worried about her health amid reports of widespread Covid-19 infections within Insein Prison. In a letter to her family dated August 20, she wrote that she indeed had fallen sick for a few days but had since recovered, according to a relative who asked not to be named for security reasons. "She brought her betel nut container with her even during a trip to Norway. She would be really sad if she could not have it while still inside Myanmar" Imagining her in detention, friends and relatives commented on Tu Tu Tha’s years-long addiction to chewing betel nut, once a health concern but now a simple pleasure that her loved ones hope she can still access. “She brought her betel nut container with her even during a trip to Norway. She would be really sad if she could not have it while still inside Myanmar,” her friend of nearly two decades, Tin Zar, told Myanmar Now. Humour and satire Friends say that Tu Tu Tha’s sense of humour and ability to create satire, two of her most celebrated qualities, are arguably best showcased in her 2015 collection of short stories—Phoot Din, a Burmese play on the English word “pudding.” “She always sees things in an artistic and loving way. Even when she faces hardships, she transforms them into witty satirical pieces of poetry and writing,” longtime friend Tin Zar said. US-based Myanmar poet and author Aung Way described Tu Tu Tha as one of the finest contemporary writers on the Myanmar literary scene since the early 2000s. “She contributed a lot [to Myanmar] from exile with her writings,” Aung Way told Myanmar Now. In addition to her writing, Tu Tu Tha’s relatives and friends also know her as a lover of music, painting and environmental conservation. “She is spontaneous and full of positivity. She loves people, especially children,” said another longtime friend and former colleague. If she were not imprisoned, the friend said, Tu Tu Tha’s 50th birthday would have certainly been a “joyful occasion” with close friends from across the Myanmar arts scene, and would have featured songs by her favourite singer Htoo Eain Thin. “She would be so happy and laughing out loud—her usual self,” the friend said, speculating that Tu Tu Tha may have even created and unveiled a piece of writing or a painting for the day. A former detainee at Insein Prison alongside Tu Tu Tha told Myanmar Now that the writer is being held in a shared group cell with around 60 female inmates. “She exercises there and encourages other people to do so, too. She keeps herself healthy and reads books at night,” the now released detainee said. Tu Tu Tha was sent and received several books by loved ones in the early days of her detention. But restrictions for inmates have recently tightened and her family reports that they are currently only allowed to send her one book each month. The military council has released thousands of detainees in recent months, including those who have been charged with incitement. Tu Tu Tha’s family and friends say they hope that she too will be among the released in the coming months. Another friend said that while his own hope for the imprisoned journalist on her 50th birthday would be that she would soon be reunited with her family for a proper party, he believes her own wish on the occasion would be different. “She would surely wish for only one thing—democracy,” he said..."
Source/publisher: "Myanmar Now" (Myanmar)
Date of entry/update: 2021-08-28
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Title: At Least 12 Civilians Killed by Myanmar Junta in Week
Description: "At least 12 civilians, including a 72-year-old man and 10-year-old boy, have been killed by junta forces in Myanmar in a week. On Thursday night, junta soldiers opened fire indiscriminately in 122nd Street near a market in Mingalar Taung Nyunt Township in Yangon Region, killing U Thein Min Tun, 42, a vendor, who was shot in the neck. His body was found in an alley and taken away by soldiers and returned to the family on Friday for a funeral. Pedestrians and vendors fled and residents said the unprovoked shooting was in response to taunts from drunken men. Soldiers also destroyed parked vehicles, residents said. At least three deaths were reported on Wednesday. Salai Van Bawi Thang, 10, was shot dead during gunfire by junta forces in Thantlang Township, Chin State. The incident happened amid a shootout with civilian defense forces on Wednesday evening. Van Bawi Thang was hit in the neck and other civilians were injured, news outlets reported. Ko Thet Naing Soe, a 29-year-old philanthropist living in Monywa, Sagaing Region, died in detention, less than 24 hours after being apprehended. He was detained on Tuesday and on Wednesday his mother was informed of his death, a resident told The Irrawaddy. Junta forces blamed COVID-19 for his death but his mother told the media that she found torture marks on his body, including cigarettes burns on his cheeks, blood in his ears and fatal head injuries. In Yangon, philanthropist Ko San Win Aung, 19, from the Kaung Hmu Saung Charity, was killed during military interrogation on Wednesday. He was detained under suspicion of involvement in a bomb blast at the General Administration Department in South Okkalapa Township on August 22. A source close to his family told The Irrawaddy that troops asked the family to pay to retrieve his body. As the family could not pay, the body has not been returned. Ko San Win Aung volunteered with his group to help the sick and needy during the COVID-19 surge. He was taken from the charity’s office. Ko Soe Paing, also known as Ko Kyaw Khaing Win, a private teacher from Thaketa Township, Yangon Region, was detained by junta forces on August 22 and the next day his family was informed of his death. The Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP), which monitors fatalities and detention since the February coup, reported that Ko Min Aung of Kayan Township, Yangon Region, was tortured to death in detention on the day of his arrest. He was detained by junta troops on Tuesday while passing Kayan police station on a motorbike while returning from his mother’s house. Kan Htauk, 72, was kicked and punched to death on August 18 during a raid on Hnan Khar village in Gangaw Township, Magwe Region. He died on Saturday. Since the coup, at least 1,019 civilians have been killed by junta forces, according to the AAPP. The dead have included pedestrians, children, protesters, medics who helped the injured during crackdowns on protests and members of the National League for Democracy..."
Source/publisher: "The Irrawaddy" (Thailand)
Date of entry/update: 2021-08-27
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Title: Junta arrests Kachin National Congress chair
Sub-title: M Kawn La is the first leader of an ethnic political party to be arrested since the coup
Description: "The chair of the Kachin National Congress (KNC), M Kawn La, was arrested by the junta in Naypyitaw on Wednesday afternoon, according to a source close to him. “I heard that he was arrested on his way back from Thapyegone Hospital at around 3:00pm yesterday. It is not clear why he was arrested, ” the source told Myanmar Now on Thursday, adding that it was still unknown where M Kawn La was being detained. He was charged with Section 505a of the penal code for incitement, Kachin News Group reported on Thursday. M Kawn La had been critical of the military’s actions since Myanmar’s February 1 coup and was openly opposed to the coup regime. After the Kachin Independence Organization issued a statement on August 24 urging armed groups to avoid fighting, M Kawn La wrote that the time in which fighting could be limited had ended. In April, M Kawn La and a coalition of Kachin politicians co-founded the Kachin People's Political Front to discuss federal affairs and advocate for the interests of the ethnic Kachin people. Gumgrawng Awng Kham, the vice chair of the Kachin State People’s Party, told Myanmar Now that he was concerned about the KNC chair’s arrest. "We were worried when our friends reported that he had been arrested, and we also have to be very careful,” he said. While the military junta has been targeting members of the ruling National League for Democracy and its associates, M Kawn La is the first leader of an ethnic political party to be arrested since the coup. The KNC is a major Kachin party founded in 1949. They contested in the 2020 general election for the position of ethnic affairs minister, two Upper House seats, five Lower House seats, and 12 seats in the Kachin State parliament, but did not win. The KNC is a member of the United Nationalities Alliance. Initially, the party was involved in the push for the unification of ethnic Kachin political parties, but ultimately chose to run for election independently..."
Source/publisher: "Myanmar Now" (Myanmar)
Date of entry/update: 2021-08-27
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Title: More than a thousand killed in Myanmar as repression of activists continues unabated
Description: "Nearly seven months on following the coup, Myanmar remains on the CIVICUS Monitor Watchlist due to the ongoing repression of civic freedoms on the country by the military junta. On 27th July 2021, the military junta revoked the results of the 2020 general election, in which the National League for Democracy (NLD) won a landslide victory, claiming the poll was “not free and fair” and “not in compliance with” the constitution and the law. On 1st August, junta leader General Min Aung Hlaing named himself prime minister and said emergency rule may now extend to August 2023. He also pledged to hold a "free and fair multi-party election" but also described the ousted NLD as "terrorists". On 4th August 2021, ASEAN finally appointed Erywan Yusof, the second foreign minister of Brunei Darussalam as its special envoy to Myanmar more than 100 days after the Southeast Asian bloc’s members agreed to send an emissary to help resolve the post-coup crisis there. Observers have greeted the appointment with scepticism. Myanmar civil society groups rejected the appointment and expressed “deep disappointment with ASEAN and their lack of inclusive decision-making process”, said a statement from 413 groups. More than a thousand civilians have been killed in Myanmar since the 1st February coup, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP), a human rights group that records killings by the junta. As of 18th August 2021, the NGO said 1,006 people had been killed since the junta seized power, triggering nationwide protests and a mass civil disobedience movement. Among those killed are more than 100 teenagers. Some were killed while troops suppressed protests, but others fell in random and unprovoked shootings. As of 23rd August, at least 5,821 political prisoners remain in detention according to the AAPP. On 31st July 2021, Human Rights Watch reported that Myanmar’s military junta had committed numerous abuses against the population that amount to crimes against humanity in the six months since the coup. Apparent crimes against humanity include murder, enforced disappearance, torture, rape and other sexual violence, severe deprivation of liberty, and other inhumane acts. Activists have mobilised ahead of the United Nations General Assembly in September 2021 when UN member states will select the country’s ambassador. The General Strike Coordination Body (GSCB) launched the “Accept NUG, Reject Military” campaign in August 2021, which called on social media users to support the National Unity Government (NUG) and its UN Ambassador Kyaw Moe Tun. The United Nations Secretary-General’s special envoy for Myanmar, Christine Schraner Burgener, said the junta had not responded to her request for talks as it tries to consolidate its rule. Over the last month, concerns have been raised by the UN around the situation of human rights defenders as arrests and attacks on activists continue. A new report shows the systematic targeting of healthcare workers. The crackdown on the media has continued with arrests and sentencing of journalists. Civil society groups criticise the exit of Norwegian telco, Telenor. Protests continued across the country, including in prisons by political prisoners. There were reports of attacks on protests by the junta. Association Terror campaign against human rights defenders On 19th July 2021, UN human rights experts expressed their concern for the situation of human rights defenders in Myanmar and called for a stronger international response to the military coup, including coordinated sanctions and an arms embargo against the junta by an “emergency coalition of nations”. The experts highlighted credible information they had received concerning human rights defenders being forced into hiding after having arrest warrants issued against them under section 505(a) of the Penal Code. Their homes were raided, their possessions seized, and family members threatened and harassed. Many others, unable to flee, have been arbitrarily arrested, including labour rights defenders and student activists. Lawyers representing people detained following the coup have themselves been detained, as have journalists covering the protests. Women have played a leading role in the protest and civil disobedience movement that has emerged in the country in response to the military's seizure of the State apparatus in February, and the experts expressed particular concern for the situation of women human rights defenders in the country. “The brute force terror campaign we are witnessing in Myanmar continues to be directed towards human rights defenders,” said Mary Lawlor, the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, and Tom Andrews, the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar. “For years, human rights defenders have been doing essential work promoting human rights in the country,” Lawlor said. “Since the coup, and despite enforced internet blackouts along with difficulties accessing basic resources, especially for defenders forced into hiding or living in rural areas, they have been documenting the mass violations being perpetrated by the military. As a result, they have been targeted,” the expert said. Two pro-democracy activists died and three others were seriously injured when they jumped from a building in Yangon to avoid capture by the junta. Ye Min Oo and a woman, Wai Wai Myint, also called Pan Thee, lost their lives when they and three friends jumped from the roof of a building as junta forces stormed their apartment in Botahtaung township in Myanmar’s largest city. The three who survived the jump - Wai Phyo Aung, Thiha Kaung Set and Poe Kyaw Kyaw - were arrested by police and taken with the bodies of those killed to a military hospital in Mingaladon township in northern Yangon. Tin Zaw, the father of Ye Min Oo, said he was told by witnesses that his son was still alive after the fall but was beaten to death. A witness, who spoke on condition of anonymity for safety reasons, told RFA the fleeing activists apparently got trapped on the rooftops of the old buildings. A police report circulating on social media says the raid on the activists’ apartment was carried out by a team led by Tactical Commander Col. Soe Tun of the ruling junta. A youth leader from the Mandalay Protest Alliance Force was arrested by the military junta while driving near Mandalay University on 17th August. Plainclothes soldiers stopped a motorbike driven by activist Kyaw Thiha, beat him, and took him with them at gunpoint, according to an eyewitness. Thura Aung, a friend who had been staying with him and another leader of the alliance, said that over 20 troops later inspected Kyaw Thiha’s former home in Patheingyi Township that night. The Mandalay Protest Alliance Force has been a frequent target of the brutal crackdowns by the military on anti-coup resistance. The Mandalay Protest Alliance Force was formed when multiple Mandalay protest columns joined forces to revolt against the dictatorship. They include Daung Sit Thi (Peacock Warriors); All Burma Federation of Student Unions (ABFSU); Academics; Labourers; Farmers; Mandalay University Students; BEHS (7) Students; and Sein Pan. Threats and attacks on healthcare workers A new report by Insecurity Insight, Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) and Johns Hopkins University Center for Public Health and Human Rights (CPHHR) in August 2021 found that there were at least 252 attacks and threats against health workers, facilities and transport that have been perpetrated in Myanmar from 1st February to 31st July 2021 The country’s armed forces and police reportedly committed the vast majority of attacks. Health workers have been targeted for providing medical care to injured civilians and for their participation in the Civil Disobedience Movement (CDM), which is protesting the military takeover. 190 health workers were arrested, 37 health workers were injured and 25 health workers killed. Hospitals were raided at least 86 times and occupied at least 55 times. The report also highlights that staff from the World Health Organisation (WHO), non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and international NGOs have been threatened and forced to return to work by the military council. There are reports that the junta is trying to replace NGO workers believed to be close to the CDM with government appointees. The military junta has continued to arrest and prosecute journalists.Two journalists were arrested on 15th August 2021 at an apartment where they had been hiding in Yangon’s Bahan Township. Sithu Aung Myint, a Frontier Myanmar columnist and contributor to Voice of America, now faces a charge of sedition under section 124a of the Penal Code on top of an outstanding incitement charge. Sithu Aung Myint has been evading arrest since 24th April 2021, when the junta opened a case against him under section 505a for incitement. Htet Htet Khine, a freelance producer for BBC Media Action, has been charged under section 17(1) of the Unlawful Association Act for associating with the NUG, which the junta labels a terrorist group. According to Human Rights Watch on 27th July 2021, since the coup the junta has arrested 98 journalists, 46 of whom are currently in detention, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP). Six journalists have been convicted, including five for violating section 505(a) of the penal code, a new provision that makes it a crime to publish or circulate comments that “cause fear” or spread “false news.” Those sentenced under section 505(a) are: Kaung Myat Hlaing, from Democratic Voice of Burma (DVB), who was arrested at his home in Myeik, Tanintharyi Region, and sentenced to two years in prison; Min Nyo, from DVB, who was arrested while reporting on a protest in Pyay Region, and sentenced to three years;Thet Naing Win, from DVB, who was arrested in Bago Region and sentenced to three years; Zaw Zaw, a freelance reporter who was arrested while covering demonstrations in Myeik, Tanintharyi Region and sentenced to two years; and Htoo San, a freelance photographer in Myeik, Tanintharyi Region, who was sentenced to three years. On 28th July 2021, the Committee to Protect Journalists published a report, “Bitter reversal: Myanmar military coup wipes out press freedom gains,” which found the country has become one of the world’s worst jailers of journalists. The broadened language of penal code 505(a) has effectively made independent journalism a crime. The threat of arrest has driven many news organisations to close their offices and forced journalists underground or into exile. Further complicating access to information and the ability to report, authorities have banned satellite media and imposed rolling restrictions on the internet. Journalists who spoke with CPJ said their colleagues behind bars have been subjected to abuse and torture; at least three have reported health problems. International reporting from Myanmar is also restricted. Few foreign journalists have been allowed access. Civil society groups criticise exit of Norwegian telco In a letter to Gunn Waersted, the chair of Telenor Group’s board, a group of 45 global and Myanmar human rights, media and other organisations called on Norway’s Telenor Group to halt the controversial sale of its Myanmar operation to the M1 Group, a Lebanese company with ties to Myanmar’s junta. The group included ALTSEAN-Burma, Free Expression Myanmar, Global Witness, PEN America, Justice for Myanmar and dozens of other international and Myanmar organisations. Saying they were “surprised and dismayed” by Telenor’s deal with M1, the organisations said Telenor had acted “without seeking the views of the civil society stakeholders with whom it previously significantly engaged on responsible business, including some of our undersigned organisations. Furthermore, there was no evidence that Telenor had undertaken the “credible assessment of potential adverse human rights impacts of disengagement” from Myanmar required under the UN Principles on Business and Human Rights. Telenor announced on 8th July 2021 that it had agreed to sell its Myanmar operations to M1, which was added to the Burma Campaign UK’s Dirty List in 2019 for doing business with the Myanmar military. Telenor confirmed that as part of the deal it would transfer the call records of its more than 18 million subscribers to the Lebanese company. Rights activists say allowing the junta to access such information would be dangerous, pointing out that phone subscribers in Myanmar must supply ID cards and addresses when registering SIM cards. Protests continued across the country in Yangon, Mandalay and other townships including by youth, workers and LGBTQI+ activists. On 28th July 2021, the junta shot three people, killing at least one, during a crackdown on an anti-coup demonstration in Mandalay. Around 20 people were taking part in a flash mob protest near the east gate of Mandalay’s famous Mahamuni pagoda when they suddenly came under attack. On 2nd August 2021 it was reported that a 22-year-old anti-coup protester in Mandalay, who was shot and injured before being detained during a raid, had died in military custody. Political prisoners inside Myanmar’s most notorious jail held a protest on 23rd July 2021, singing popular songs opposing the military government and chanting political slogans, according to nearby residents and video uploaded to social media. One video showed a street close to Insein Prison in Yangon with clear audio of voices shouting support for ousted leader Aung San Suu Kyi and ousted President Win Myint. According to a lawyer representing some of those detained, the prisoners were demanding the release of all those held on political charges, an easing of prison regulations and medical treatment for those who have fallen sick amid spiralling cases of the coronavirus. A representative of the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP) said: “We are concerned about torture and potential additional charges being filed against the political prisoners as a consequence if the protest is dubbed a prison riot. Such incidents happened under the previous military dictatorships” Following the incident at Insein Prison, prisoners at Shwe Bo Prison in Sagaing Region and Obo Prison in Mandalay Region also protested, according to the AAPP. Anti-coup protesters mark 1988 uprising anniversary On 8th August 2021, protesters came out in cities across Myanmar to protest against the military junta and to mark the 33rd anniversary of an uprising against military rule that was violently put down. Protests took place across Myanmar, including the main cities of Yangon, Mandalay, Sagaing, Mongwa and Myitkyina, according to local news reports. Protesters remembered the thousands of people, many of whom were students, who rose up against military rule in 1988. That uprising was crushed in a bloody crackdown. They also organised online campaigns, bringing people out dressed in red to show the eight-finger salute, which has become one of the symbols of the protest movement, and to hold banners saying: "Let's return the old blood debt of 1988 in 2021."..."
Source/publisher: Civicus (Johannesburg)
Date of entry/update: 2021-08-26
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Title: Daily Briefing in Relation to the Military Coup (Updated 23 August 2021)
Description: "As of 23 August, (1013) people are now confirmed killed by this junta coup. AAPP compiled and documented (4) fallen heroes today. These (4) fallen heroes from Taunggyi Township in Shan State, Yesagyo Township in Magway Region and Khin-u Township in Sagaing Region were killed on previous days and documented today. This is the number verified by AAPP, the actual number of fatalities is likely much higher. We will continue adding as and when. As of August 23, a total of (5821) people are currently under detention. (255) people have been sentenced in person, of them 26 have been sentenced to death (incl. 2 children). 1984 are evading arrest warrants. 118 people have been sentenced in absentia, of them 39 sentenced to death in absentia. In total 65 sentenced to death, in person and absentia. We are also continuing to verify the recently released detainees. Soe Lwin Lwin was a primary school teacher at a Thein Kone Village Basic Education Middle School in Taunggyi Township, Shan State, arbitrarily arrested by the terrorist junta, and had been involved in the Civil Disobedience Movement (CDM). Soe Lwin Lwin contracted COVID-19 while detained in Taung Lay Lone (Nyaung Shwe) Prison and died on August 22. On the evening of August 22, the terrorist junta raided and opened fire in Hinthar Village in Yesagyo Township, Magway Region, after a junta-appointed village administrator informed on them. Five villagers were shot at in an attempt to make arrests. Chit Ye Yint, one of five, was shot dead in the forehead. On August 21 around 8 pm, Maung Aye and a nurse, Nweat Nweat Aye, from Kan Thit Village in Khin-u Township, Sagaing Region, were shot to death by terrorist junta’s soldiers who were patrolling in the area. The husband and wife were returning home by motorbike from selling agricultural products. It is reported that Maung Aye was shot in the head and Nweat Nweat was shot in the stomach. AAPP will continue to keep you informed of verified daily arrests, charges, sentences and fatalities in relation to the attempted coup, and update our lists to the details of these alleged offences. If you receive any information about detentions of, or charges against CSO leaders, activists, journalists, CDM workers, other civilians and fallen heroes in relation to the military and police crackdown on dissent. Please submit to the following addresses: [email protected] [email protected]..."
Source/publisher: Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP)
Date of entry/update: 2021-08-23
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Title: Detained Myanmar Columnist Faces Life in Prison
Description: "Detained political columnist U Sithu Aung Myint is facing life in prison on sedition charges for being critical of Myanmar’s junta and for allegedly backing the shadow National Unity Government (NUG). The junta arrested U Sithu Aung Myint, an outspoken junta critic, and Ma Htet Htet Khine, a freelance producer working with the BBC, from a hideout in Yangon on August 15. The junta-controlled media announced on Saturday that the columnist wrote articles criticizing the military for the Voice of America and Frontier Myanmar after the February coup. It said he also posted articles on Facebook criticizing the regime’s governing body, the State Administrative Council, inciting government employees to join the civil disobedience movement and backed the NUG, which has been declared a terrorist organization. An arrest warrant was issued for U Sithu Aung Myint in April for allegedly spreading false news under Article 505(a) of the Penal Code, which carries up to three years’ imprisonment. The junta-controlled media said he was also charged with Article 124(a) of the Penal Code which prohibits “any attempt to cause hatred, contempt and disaffection” towards the military or government. The charge carries a sentence of life in prison. Ma Htet Htet Khine was charged under Section 17(1) of the Unlawful Association Act for allegedly working as a volunteer editor for Federal FM launched by the NUG and for harboring U Sithu Aung Myint. Ma Htet Htet Khine was the presenter of a program for audiences in Myanmar called “Khan Sar Kyi” (Burmese for “Feel it”) for BBC Media Action, the corporation’s international development charity. “We are concerned by the detention and charges against our freelance producer, Htet Htet Khine,” BBC Media Action said, adding that it was monitoring the situation. The two journalists have had no access to a lawyer since their arrest. U Khin Maung Myint, the legal adviser to Ma Htet Htet Khine, said the two were had been relocated to police custody from a military interrogation center and are likely to be moved soon to Insein Prison, where he expects to have contact with her. The two join around 50 jailed journalists as the junta continues to crack down on journalists with arrests and lawsuits to silence coverage of its atrocities. Since the February coup, the junta has arrested 95 journalists and media staff. Of them, six have been convicted under Article 505(a) and one was sentenced under Article 188 of the Penal Code for defying government orders..."
Source/publisher: "The Irrawaddy" (Thailand)
Date of entry/update: 2021-08-23
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Title: Real Stories Not Tales, A Collection of Youth Stories (Part 3): A Rakhine perspective Post-Coup
Description: "In Part 3 of a 3-part series by Real Stories Not Tales (RSNT), Khin Thandar (pseudonym) tells her story post-coup that highlights a different reality and involvement than the rest of the country. Editor’s note: This is part 3 of a 3-part special feature of stories from a report by Real Stories Not Tales. Read Part 1 and Part 2. Access to the full report is available at the end of this post. Khin Thandar comes from a small village in Rakhine State. She is actively involved with a number of Arakan civil society organizations and youth groups. She was interviewed on May 2. What I feel sad about though is that most young people in Myanmar do not have the opportunity to study at all at the moment—whether online or offline—which means they are basically losing their future. I was in Yangon when the coup happened. I had a lot of missed calls from my friends and activists I work with that night, and when I finally answered one at around 4:30 a.m., I found out there had been a military coup. Actually, I wasn’t that shocked. I had suspected the coup would happen. My first thought was that, based on our experience in Rakhine State, people needed to prepare for an internet shutdown and for not being able to communicate with their loved ones. So, I began to calmly spread this message with my network. In contrast to many of my friends, I never really thought of going out into the streets to protest against the coup. You know, while people in Yangon and NLD supporters—mostly from the Bamar majority—were experiencing the so-called ‘democratic transition’ in recent years, we in Rakhine State continued to live and suffer under a military dictatorship. After the coup, these very same groups began calling for unity of all of Myanmar, but where were they when our ethnic people were dying in communal and armed conflicts? It is unfair and very painful. Actually, many people in Rakhine State feel as much distrust and even hatred towards the Bamar majority as they do towards the military. Because of this, I felt a little out of place in Yangon after the coup, so I decided to go back to my home state. When I arrived, I met with some youth who were thinking of organizing a protest. We discussed it for a while, especially the high risk of getting arrested or even killed since the military presence in Rakhine State is much bigger than in Yangon. We asked ourselves: Who is it exactly we would be protesting for? And do we deserve to get jailed or killed for that? In the end, we decided against it. That is why Rakhine State is ‘silent’ now: we don’t talk about the military, and there is no CDM here. What affected my life post-coup the most have been the progressive internet shutdowns. I had to cancel many of my plans, like an online civic education course for university students that I had been preparing together with some of my seniors. I was also unable to move abroad for my master’s studies as I had originally planned since my flight got cancelled in part due to the coup here and in part due to a Covid-19 outbreak over there. Luckily, I can study online, but I’ve had to move a couple of times in order to secure a stable internet connection. What I feel sad about though is that most young people in Myanmar do not have the opportunity to study at all at the moment—whether online or offline—which means they are basically losing their future. Of course, the coup has also affected me and everyone around me psychologically. The constant stream of bad news is heart-breaking. When I get too stressed, I spend time alone, go for walks on the beach, listen to music, or exercise. Sometimes, I write down my thoughts and feelings about what’s going on in the country. In my family there are different opinions on the current events, so it has become a very sensitive topic for us. For the first few weeks after the coup, we couldn’t even discuss it. I experienced something similar with my personal network as well. First, I was sharing my opinions about the political situation very openly, both online and offline. But then this led to fights with friends and other activists, and people began accusing me of being selfish. So in the end, I decided to stay silent. I feel like everyone wants to get media attention nowadays, but I would say that the world needs to listen to the unheard voices in Myanmar before it overgeneralizes the situation in the country. I’m personally worried about my state, because in contrast to the past when there was a lot of discussion, Rakhine State is now silent. It feels scary and I worry there will be more fighting in the future. Real Stories Not Tales (RSNT) is a dedicated team in and out of Myanmar that aims to bring awareness to the reality of young people’s lives since the Myanmar military staged a coup on February 1st, 2021. Stories are collected through interviews with each protagonist by the team, either in Burmese or in English. Each character is drawn by a professional illustrator bringing a visual context to the story. The RSNT report also proposes some tips on how it is possible to support Myanmar these days. They are pleased to share selections from their first report and are now in the process of collecting more stories all around the country..."
Source/publisher: Tea Circle (Myanmar)
Date of entry/update: 2021-08-23
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Title: Myanmar military arrests more journalists
Description: "Myanmar's military government has arrested two more local journalists, army-owned television reported on Saturday, the latest among dozens of detentions in a sweeping crackdown on the media since a Feb. 1 coup. Sithu Aung Myint, a columnist for news site Frontier Myanmar and commentator with Voice of America radio, and Htet Htet Khine, a freelance producer for BBC Media Action, were arrested on Aug. 15, Myawaddy TV reported. Sithu Aung Myint was charged with sedition and spreading false information that Myawaddy said was critical of the junta and had urged people to join strikes and back outlawed opposition groups. Htet Htet Khine was accused of harbouring Sithu Aung Myint, a criminal suspect, and working for and supporting a shadow National Unity Government. BBC Media Action said in a statement it was concerned about Htet Htet Khine's safety and the charges against her, and was closely monitoring the situation. Reporters Without Borders (RSF) said the pair were being held incommunicado. "We strongly condemn the arbitrary conditions of their detention, which reflect the brutality with which the military junta treats journalists," said its Asia-Pacific desk head Daniel Bastard. Myanmar remains fraught with instability and opposition to army rule, under which more than 1,000 people have been killed, according to an activist group that has tracked killings by security forces. The military, which has revoked the licenses of many news outlets, says it respects the role of media but will not allow news reporting it deems false or likely to create public unrest. A report by the Committee to Protect Journalists last month said Myanmar's rulers had effectively criminalised independent journalism. Human Rights Watch late last month said the army government had arrested 98 journalists since the coup and should stop prosecuting media staff. Of those arrested, 46 remained in custody as of the end of July..."
Source/publisher: "Reuters" (UK)
Date of entry/update: 2021-08-22
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Title: Daily Briefing in Relation to the Military Coup (Updated 21 August 2021)
Description: "As of 21 August, (1009) people are now confirmed killed by this junta coup. AAPP compiled and documented (1) fallen heroes today. (1) from Gantgaw Township in Magway Region died today and (1) from Shwepyithar Township in Yangon Region was killed on August 19 and was documented today. This is the number verified by AAPP, the actual number of fatalities is likely much higher. We will continue adding as and when. As of August 21, a total of (5787) people are currently under detention. (255) people have been sentenced in person, of them 26 have been sentenced to death (incl. 2 children). 1984 are evading arrest warrants. 118 people have been sentenced in absentia, of them 39 sentenced to death in absentia. In total 65 sentenced to death, in person and absentia. We are also continuing to verify the recently released detainees. On the evening of August 18, terrorist junta soldiers raided Hnan Khar Village in Gantgaw Township, Magway Region. 72 years old Kan Htaunt who was not able to run away from the village because of his age was punched and kicked continuously by entering junta troops. Kan Htaunt died on the morning of August 21 from this torturous assault. On the evening of August 19, a large number of security forces raided a hostel in Shwepyithar Township, Yangon Region, having accused it of housing the PDF. A young man named Lin Lin Tun a.k.a Bo Phyu was shot in the stomach and died on the spot while he was attempting to jump out of the window to escape. In addition to this, Hnin Ei Khaing, a young woman, was arrested. Tun Win, living in Shan State’s Muse Town, who contracted COVID-19, was arrested at his home by terrorist junta troops on August 20 as they did not find his son they were looking for. AAPP will continue to keep you informed of verified daily arrests, charges, sentences and fatalities in relation to the attempted coup, and update our lists to the details of these alleged offences. If you receive any information about detentions of, or charges against CSO leaders, activists, journalists, CDM workers, other civilians and fallen heroes in relation to the military and police crackdown on dissent. Please submit to the following addresses: [email protected] [email protected] ..."
Source/publisher: Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP)
Date of entry/update: 2021-08-21
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Title: More than 1000 Junta Killings of the Pro-Democracy Movement against the Coup - အာဏာသိမ်း ရက် ၂၀၀ အတွင်း စစ်အုပ်စုက အပြစ်မဲ့ပြည်သူ ၁၀၀၀ ကျော် သတ်ဖြတ်
Description: "In 200 days, the terrorist-like so-called ‘State Administrative Council’ has murdered (1007) civilians from the pro-democracy movement against the illegitimate coup attempt. Our organization, the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners has been monitoring human rights violations since long before the military coup and began documenting recent fatalities with the fatal shooting of Mya Thwate Thwate Khaing on 9 February in Naypyidaw. Proportionately, an average of five innocent civilians is killed each day by junta. “We’ve seen how the military junta followed a pattern with its escalation of deadly and arbitrary force” said AAPP, “At first they used rubber bullets and tear gas, when this did not produce the desired subordination to dictatorial rule, a campaign of terror began in March”. Cases of arson, looting, arbitrary assaults, torture, artillery, and massacres are no widespread across the country. The paragraphs below detail categories of occupations, demographics, and events to illustrate the sweeping destruction this murderous military coup was wrought. Professions At the onset of the coup, teachers, doctors, have been some of those most systematically targeted for their involvement in anti-coup protests, the civil disobedience movement, and offering support in crackdowns. Since the coup, (6) medics, (7) engineers, (10) teachers and (71) students have been killed by the junta. Deadliest Day On 27 March, AAPP documented the deadliest day of the military’s brutal crackdown attempts. (164) courageous civilians lost their lives, across the country including in Insein and Dala Township, Yangon, in Meiktila and Pyin Oo Lwin, Mandalay, in Monwya and Shwebo, Sagaing, in Kawthaung, Tanintharyi Region. (2) 18-year-olds and (14) under-18’s were killed by the junta. Total (16) 18 and under killed on this day. Regions The inhumanity of this terrorist like military has forced people Burma across the country in daily life-threatening situations. Since the coup (241) people have been murdered in Yangon Region, (217) people murdered in Mandalay Region, and (204) in Sagaing Region. Vulnerable Groups International humanitarian law has requirements for the protection of children, found throughout the Fourth Geneva Convention and in its additional protocols. The Convention on the Rights of the Child also states that parties must take “all feasible measures to ensure protection and care of children who are affected by armed conflict”. Yet, since the coup in Burma, (20) 18-year-olds and (62) under-18’s were killed. Total (82) 18 and under have been murdered by the junta. Since the coup at least (70) women people been murdered according to AAPP’s most recently published fatality list. International humanitarian law recognizes that males are afforded the same protection as women and vice versa, but specific vulnerabilities guarantee protection for females. This equally applies to persons not confirming to traditional gender roles, who are systemically exposed to egregious human rights violations. On 4 June Thaw Thaw, a transgender woman, was shot in the arm and rib by junta troops in in Kyaukpadaung Township, Mandalay, and died from lack of medical treatment. Protests People are being killed at peaceful protests, often spontaneous gatherings but always the movement has remained a leaderless organic rejection of an illegitimate coup attempt. (649) have been killed at pro-democracy demonstrations since 1 February. Some of the most violent and least indefensible, even for this murderous junta, have been the unprovoked shootings and raids in neighbourhood and homes. Even on streets in the middle of day, youths racing to get back home are murdered by junta terrorists in unmarked vehicles. One of the most heinous atrocities was on 23 March when the junta troops raided a family home in Mandalay City. Khin Myo Chit a 6 year-year-old, was shot covering in her fathers’ arms. When a teenager is shot in the back of the head, it signifies hostility and intent of the perpetrator. An incident which garnered international attention was the murder of Kyal Sin Lin also known as ‘Angel’, who on 3 March was gunned down running back from a barrier at a pro-democracy protest in Mandalay City. Since the coup (107) have been shot dead in the head. Torture to Death There are many other strategies a violent institution like this military will practice, and it does not stop at indiscriminate but intentional shootings. Torturing activists, striking workers, or every-day civilians has been a tactic of this junta. Since the coup (106) have been murdered this way. Conclusion The evidence is overwhelming, the intent has been to suppress dissent against dictatorship and for democracy by inflicting crimes against humanity on an entire country. The international response should have been swift and remains to be significant enough to end the impunity. International recognition of the political legitimacy to the National Unity Government sends a message that these crimes will not be tolerated and will begin the process of accountability..."
Source/publisher: Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP)
Date of entry/update: 2021-08-21
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Title: Daily Briefing in Relation to the Military Coup (Updated 19 August 2021)
Description: "As of 19 August, (1007) people are now confirmed killed by this junta coup. AAPP compiled and documented (1) fallen hero today. This (1) fallen hero from Myingyan Township in Mandalay Region died today and was documented today. This is the number verified by AAPP, the actual number of fatalities is likely much higher. We will continue adding as and when. As of August 19, a total of (5747) people are currently under detention. (255) people have been sentenced in person, of them 26 have been sentenced to death (incl. 2 children). 1984 are evading arrest warrants. 118 people have been sentenced in absentia, of them 39 sentenced to death in absentia. In total 65 sentenced to death, in person and absentia. We are also continuing to verify the recently released detainees. Thet Naing Oo from Kyauk Kan Village in Mandalay Region’s Myingyan Townshipwho, who was arrested by the terrorist junta’s troops on the night of August 18, died on the morning of August 19. Thet Naing Oo was reportedly beaten and tortured the whole night. He was stopped and arrested because of his flashlight while he was returning home from the south of a school where the terrorist junta had set up camp. On the afternoon of August 18, junta police and soldiers raided the homes of three NLD MPs of Tabayin Township in Sagaing Region and arrested some family members as hostages. In Sai Pyin Town, the home of Pyithuhluttaw MP Win Myint Aung was raided and his wife Khin Ohn Myint, the son, and younger brother San Lin were all arrested. In the raid of Moe Min Win’s home, regional hluttaw MP for No (2) constituency, his older brother Hmet San and nephew were also arrested. In addition to this, the terrorist junta raided the home of Hnin Khaing Soe, regional hluttaw MP for No (1) constituency in Sai Pyin Town. The father of Hnin Khaing Soe was reportedly not arrested because he contracted COVID-19 and was having to breathe from oxygen supplies. Political analyst Si Thu Aung Myint, who has been charged under Section 505(a) of the Penal Code, was arrested on the night of August 15 whilst evading arrest in an apartment in Yangon Region’s Bahan Township. He is a regular columnist for Frontier Myanmar and VOA and wrote articles and satire criticising the coup council for which he was charged. AAPP will continue to keep you informed of verified daily arrests, charges, sentences and fatalities in relation to the attempted coup, and update our lists to the details of these alleged offences. If you receive any information about detentions of, or charges against CSO leaders, activists, journalists, CDM workers, other civilians and fallen heroes in relation to the military and police crackdown on dissent. Please submit to the following addresses: [email protected] [email protected]..."
Source/publisher: Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP)
Date of entry/update: 2021-08-19
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Type: Individual Documents
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Size: 1.41 MB 5.64 MB 1.86 MB
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Title: Myanmar Junta Continues to Detain Journalists
Description: "Myanmar’s military junta continues its crackdown on journalists with arrests and lawsuits to silence independent coverage of its daily atrocities. This week, two more journalists were detained, bringing the number of journalists and media staff detained since the February coup to 95. The junta’s forces arrested freelance journalist and outspoken regime critic U Sithu Aung Myint and a reporter from BBC Media Action, the corporation’s international development charity, Ma Htet Htet Khine on August 15 from a hideout in Yangon. According to Bahan Township police, the two were taken to a military interrogation center. No more information has been heard about them. In April, U Sithu Aung Myint was charged under Article 505(a) of the Penal Code, which criminalizes spreading comments or false news that could cause fear or criminal offenses against government employees. It carries up to three years’ imprisonment. On July 20, three women journalists – a mother and her two daughters – from the Shan State-based Thalwin Thwaychin news agency were detained at their homes in the state capital, Taunggyi. The daughters have been released but Mya Wunn Yan, chief editor of the agency, remains in custody. The junta has targeted journalists with arrests, lawsuits, raids on newsrooms and violence. On Wednesday, at least 42 media staff were still behind bars, according to Reporting ASEAN, an independent regional news outlet. Almost all detained journalists said they were interrogated, beaten and tortured. COVID-19 has spread rapidly in Myanmar’s crowded prisons, increasing dangers for all political prisoners. Four media organizations, including The Irrawaddy, have been charged under Article 505(a) and eight firms have been banned. On June 30 the junta’s Ministry of Information told the media to stop describing the military-appointed State Administration Council as a “junta” or face prosecution. It also warned foreign news agencies to cease using the terms “military council” or “military junta” and to stop “disseminating false news”. The order said international media groups would face action “if they apply wrong usages, quote and exaggerate fake news and disseminate false information”. “Myanmar is now one of the world’s worst jailers of journalists,” the Committee to Protect Journalists reported in July..."
Source/publisher: "The Irrawaddy" (Thailand)
Date of entry/update: 2021-08-19
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Title: Myanmar: Engage the International Criminal Court to Hold Military Perpetrators of Mass Atrocity Crimes Accountable
Sub-title: New report finds Myanmar’s National Unity Government can grant jurisdiction to ICC
Description: "The National Unity Government (NUG) of Myanmar can delegate jurisdiction to the International Criminal Court (ICC) to investigate and prosecute mass atrocity crimes that occurred in the country since 2002, according to a legal analysis published by Fortify Rights today. The NUG can do this in two ways: First, by lodging what is known as an “Article 12(3) declaration” with the ICC, and second, by formally acceding to the Rome Statute, the treaty that established the Court. “The NUG has an opportunity to bring Myanmar significantly closer to justice and accountability,” said Matthew Smith, Chief Executive Officer of Fortify Rights. “Our analysis finds that the NUG can enter Myanmar into the Rome Statute under international law, and U.N. member states would do well to support these efforts.” The 48-page legal analysis, entitled Ending Impunity in Myanmar, explains how the NUG could address past, present, and future atrocity crimes in the country by issuing a declaration under Article 12(3) of the Rome Statute while also initiating the process to accede to the Rome Statute. An Article 12(3) declaration could provide immediate jurisdiction to the Court to address specific atrocity crimes in Myanmar, including past and future crimes. Full accession to the Statute would further entitle Myanmar to all the rights of a State Party to the Statute. Fortify Rights recommended the NUG pursue both paths without delay. Only State Parties to the Rome Statute can challenge a validly deposited accession to the Statute. As explained in the Fortify Rights report, the states that would be expected to challenge the NUG’s ability to accede to the Rome Statute—such as China, the Russian Federation, or certain Southeast Asian governments—are not parties to the Rome Statute, meaning they have no standing to challenge or contest the NUG’s accession to the Court. The Myanmar junta also could not challenge an accession to the Rome Statute by the NUG unless the junta itself became a State Party to the Statute. Therefore, according to the legal analysis, a successful challenge to the NUG’s accession to the Rome Statute is unlikely. “There are limits to the power of spoiler states to block international justice and accountability,” said Matthew Smith. “States that historically protected the Myanmar military from legal accountability would have no direct power to block this. The people of Myanmar are demanding justice, and while it will take time, the NUG can do its part to help deliver it.” In recent months, Fortify Rights presented the findings of this report to NUG Vice-President Duwa Lashi La and four NUG ministers in separate briefings. Representatives of the NUG have spoken publicly about engaging the ICC since the coup. Fortify Rights recommended the NUG delegate jurisdiction to the ICC for any atrocity crimes that may have occurred since 2002—the date that the Rome Statute came into force—and all future crimes. Myanmar’s many diverse ethnic minorities—the NUG’s constituents—collectively comprise a sizable share of the national population. They have faced mass atrocity crimes for decades with little to no access to justice or accountability. By lodging an Article 12(3) declaration and acceding to the Rome Statute, the NUG could help deter future crimes in Myanmar by requiring military leaders to consider the possibility of prosecution by a neutral international court. “While these measures alone would not suffice to end and remedy all ongoing atrocities, they would bring the country closer to ending deadly cycles of impunity,” the report says. As Ending Impunity in Myanmar explains, past practice suggests that governments with some level of international recognition can represent and act on behalf of the state even in situations where the government does not exercise effective control over the territory or people, such as in the case of a coup d’état. The people of Myanmar overwhelmingly recognize the NUG as their democratically elected government, and the NUG already has significant support from members of the international community. In September, the military junta and the NUG are expected to seek official credentials to represent Myanmar at the United Nations General Assembly. On August 6, U.S. authorities arrested two Myanmar men for allegedly plotting to harm or kill Myanmar’s U.N. ambassador, Kyaw Moe Tun—who denounced the coup at the U.N. General Assembly—unless he stepped down from his position as Permanent Representative of Myanmar to the U.N. On August 9, in a statement, the Myanmar junta denied any involvement in the plot but demanded the U.S. extradite Ambassador Kyaw Moe Tun in order to prosecute him for high treason. Successfully engaging the ICC in the ways outlined in this report would help confer deserved political legitimacy on the NUG. It would also help deny the Myanmar junta political legitimacy, which is “crucial for promoting and protecting human rights and preventing atrocity crimes,” said Fortify Rights. The Rome Statute is a multilateral treaty that came into force in 2002, providing the legal framework to establish the ICC in The Hague, the Netherlands. The ICC has the authority to investigate and prosecute mass-atrocity crimes as a “court of last resort”—that is, in situations in which the home state is unwilling or unable to investigate and prosecute atrocities. There are 123 States Parties to the Rome Statute of the ICC. By ratifying or acceding to the Rome Statute, states may delegate their jurisdiction to the ICC to prosecute individuals responsible for atrocities committed on their territory or by their nationals. For states that have not delegated jurisdiction to the Court, the ICC can only consider situations referred by the U.N. Security Council. For years, China and Russia have effectively blocked any meaningful action by the Security Council in response to atrocity crimes in Myanmar. On February 1, 2021, Senior General Min Aung Hlaing and the Myanmar military overthrew the elected Government of Myanmar in a coup d’état. The junta immediately arrested President Win Myint, State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi, and other senior civilian leaders. The military and police have since killed more than 900 men, women, and children—primarily peaceful protesters—and imprisoned several thousand others for opposing the junta’s rule..."
Source/publisher: "Fortify Rights"
Date of entry/update: 2021-08-19
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Size: 4.98 MB 7.46 MB 172.58 KB
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Title: Real Stories Not Tales, A Collection of Youth Stories (Part 2): Hope is the last to die
Description: "In Part 2 of a 3-part series by Real Stories Not Tales (RSNT), Ko Democracy (pseudonym) tells us how the coup has affected his life and his loved ones in Myitkyina. Editor’s note: This is part 2 of a 3-part special feature of stories from a report by Real Stories Not Tales. Access to the full report will be available in Part 3 of this series. Ko Democracy is a young Gorkha man working for a social enterprise in Kachin State. He was interviewed on May 6. We live in a globalized world. A fight for democracy in one place is a fight for democracy everywhere, for all citizens. I want to ask the world to help us, not as hypocrites but honestly and truly as human beings. KO DEMOCRACY When I woke up on the morning of February 1, I noticed I had no phone signal. Then my dad came back from the bazaar and said the Myanmar military was everywhere, especially around the NLD party headquarters and residences of NLD representatives. I decided to go for a ride on my motorbike to see what was going on, and indeed there were military trucks and soldiers with guns blocking the roads. It felt so wrong—as if we were going backwards. I feared we would be disconnected from the outside world very soon. I had all these thoughts spinning around in my head, and I knew that the military was going to torture us. Despite the tragic news, I decided to go to the office. On the way, I got stopped by a soldier that wouldn’t let me enter the district where our office was. I had to talk to him for a while, until he finally let me go. When the coup happened, I was working as a field staff and interpreter in a social enterprise. Our main office was in Myitkyina, but we mostly worked in villages close to the Chinese border. Everything became so difficult for us after the coup. First off, we suddenly had no access to money because the banks closed, so we couldn’t pay salaries or transport fees. Then, because of the internet shutdown, it became challenging for us to communicate with the local partners implementing our projects. After two months, we finally decided we couldn’t keep the enterprise running, so I’m jobless now. All my work worries haven’t stopped me from participating in the resistance movement. As soon as the coup happened, we went out into the streets, and we continue to do so, this time in the form of so-called ‘guerrilla strikes’. Unfortunately, one of my friends from the student union has already been arrested, and we don’t even know where he is. Another friend is in jail and has been charged under Section 505(a) of the Penal Code. I have just come back from hiding myself. I was away from home for a month: I feared the military would come look for me after arresting my friends. As I have been very involved in the movement, I am paranoid now. I am scared that one day they’ll take my phone and find out all about my involvement and my contacts. I am not directly involved with the KIA or KIO, but I do have some contacts, and I have been giving them to people who want to join the armed resistance. I encourage them and would also do it myself if it weren’t for my parents. I am their only child, and I know it would break their heart. Still, we have agreed that if things get worse, they will allow me to go and fight for our freedom. Until then, I will continue practicing ‘civil resistance’: not paying taxes and not attending university. The military sees young people across the country as their enemies. They have been arresting, kidnapping, and killing people every single day. People are under serious pressure to go back to work, since the military arrests anyone participating in the CDM. If they don’t or can’t find the strikers, they arrest their family members instead. Recently the focus has been on teachers and students who do not want to go to school. Last night we heard six bomb explosions very close to our house. These terrible troubles are what dominate our lives now. It is a difficult time for us all. To stay strong, I listen to spiritual leaders. I very much like Sadhguru, who said that that no one can torture you unless you accept the torturing yourself. What he meant by that is that the power inside of us cannot be taken away unless we give it away ourselves. I also get inspired by the strength and resilience of IDPs in the Kachin and Karen Hills. I tell myself that I still have food and shelter, so I shouldn’t complain. We live in a globalized world. A fight for democracy in one place is a fight for democracy everywhere, for all citizens. I want to ask the world to help us, not as hypocrites but honestly and truly as human beings. We do not have that much hope in the UN anymore due to its bureaucracies, but we do need the National Unity Government (NUG) to be recognized in order for other countries to be able to legally sell arms to them. So please help us with this. At the same time, the military regime must not be recognized as a legal government. Please also allow our Myanmar citizens to get visa extensions in your countries; don’t force them to return to an unsafe place. And finally, I would like to ask the international world to send humanitarian assistance to Myanmar. We need urgent help. Read Part 1 and Part 3 here. (Link for Part 3 will be live on August 23) Real Stories Not Tales (RSNT) is a dedicated team in and out of Myanmar that aims to bring awareness to the reality of young people’s lives since the Myanmar military staged a coup on February 1st, 2021. Stories are collected through interviews with each protagonist by the team, either in Burmese or in English. Each character is drawn by a professional illustrator bringing a visual context to the story. The RSNT report also proposes some tips on how it is possible to support Myanmar these days. They are pleased to share selections from their first report and are now in the process of collecting more stories all around the country..."
Source/publisher: Tea Circle (Myanmar)
Date of entry/update: 2021-08-19
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Title: Massacres in Kani Township, Yinmabin District, Sagaing Region - ကနီဒေသ တဝိုက် အစုလိုက်အပြုံလိုက် သတ်ဖြတ်ခံရမှုများ
Description: "မြန်မာနိုင်ငံတွင် နှစ်ပေါင်း (၇၀) ကျော်ကြာ ဖြစ်ပွားနေသော ပြည်တွင်းစစ်အတွင်း တိုင်းရင်းသားပြည်သူ အများစု မှာ စစ်အုပ်စု၏ နယ်မြေရှင်းလင်းရေးမူဝါဒအောက်တွင် မတရား ညှဉ်းပန်းနှိပ်စက်ခံရခြင်း၊ တရားမဲ့ သတ်ဖြတ် ခံရခြင်း၊ အဓမ္မပြုကျင့်ခံရခြင်း၊ မြို့ရွာများကို မီးရှို့ခြင်း၊ အစုလိုက်အပြုံလိုက် သတ်ဖြတ်ခံရခြင်း၊ အတင်းအကြပ် နေရာရွှေ့ပြောင်းခံရခြင်း စသည်များကို ခံစားနေရကြရသည်။ ထိုအခြေအနေများကို နိုင်ငံတဝှမ်းရှိ လူ့အခွင့် အရေးအဖွဲ့အစည်းများနှင့် အရပ်ဘက် လူမှုအဖွဲ့အစည်းများမှ အစဉ်တစိုက် ထောက်ပြခဲ့ပြီး စစ်အုပ်စုအားအရေး ယူရန် တိုက်တွန်းချက်များ အကြိမ်ကြိမ်ပြုလုပ်ခဲ့ကြသည်။ ကုလသမဂ္ဂမှလည်း အချက်အလက်ရှာဖွေရေးအဖွဲ့ကို (၂၀၁၈) တွင် ဖွဲ့စည်းပြီး စစ်အုပ်စု၏ လူ့အခွင့်အရေးချိုးဖောက်မှုများကို စုံစမ်းမှတ်တမ်းတင်သည်အထိ ဆောင် ရွက်မှုများရှိနေသည်။ သို့သော် စစ်အုပ်စုသည် လူ့အခွင့်အရေး ချိုးဖောက်မှုများကို ရပ်တန့်သည်မရှိဘဲ စစ်ရာဇ ဝတ်မှုနှင့် လူသားဖြစ်တည်မှုကို ဆန့်ကျင်သည့်ရာဇဝတ်မှုကို ဆက်လက်ကျူးလွန်သည်အထိ ဆိုးဝါးရက်စက် လှသော ရာဇဝတ်မှုများကို ကျူးလွန်လျက်ရှိသည်။ (၂၀၂၁) ခုနှစ်၊ ဖေဖော်ဝါရီလ (၁) ရက်နေ့တွင် ပြည်သူ့ဆန္ဒဖြင့် ရွေးချယ်ထားသည့် အရပ်သားရွေးကောက်ခံ ကိုယ်စားလှယ်များနှင့် နိုင်ငံ့ခေါင်းဆောင်များကို မတရားဖမ်းဆီးပြီး နိုင်ငံတော်အာဏာကို အကြမ်းဖက် လုယူ သွားသည့် စစ်အာဏာရှင်ကို တစိုက်မတ်မတ် တွန်းလှန်ခုခံလျက်ရှိသည့် မြန်မာနိုင်ငံအနှံ့အပြား ဒေသအသီးသီး အနက် စစ်ကိုင်းတိုင်းဒေသကြီး ယင်းမာပင်ခရိုင်အတွင်းရှိ ကနီမြို့နယ်သည် စစ်အာဏာရှင်ကို နည်းလမ်းပေါင်းစုံ အသုံးပြု၍ ဆန့်ကျင်တော်လှန်နေသည့် ထင်ရှားသော အရပ်ဒေသတစ်ခု ဖြစ်သည်။ ထို့အတွက်ကြောင့်လည်း အာဏာသိမ်းစစ်ကောင်စီက အညှိုးတကြီးဖြင့် နယ်မြေစိုးမိုးရေးအကြောင်းပြကာ ကနီ မြို့ပေါ်နှင့် အနီးအနားပတ်ဝန်းကျင် ကျေးရွာများတွင် ပစ်ခတ်ဖမ်းဆီးမှုများ၊ တောနင်းရှာဖွေမှုများ ပြုလုပ်လျက် ရှိနေသလို ကျေးရွာများအတွင်း စစ်အင်အားအလုံးအရင်းဖြင့် ဝင်ရောက်စီးနင်းမှုများကြောင့် ဒေသခံ ထောင် ပေါင်းများစွာမှာ နီးစပ်ရာ ကျေးရွာများ၊ တောအုပ်များအတွင်း ထွက်ပြေးတိမ်းရှောင်နေရလျက်ရှိသည်။ ထို့အပြင် ကျေးရွာများအတွင်းဝင်ရောက်ကာ ကျွဲ၊ နွားများ အပါအဝင် ပစ္စည်းဥစ္စာများ လုယူခြင်း၊ သိမ်းပိုက်ခြင်းများကိုပါ ပြုလုပ်လာခဲ့သည်။ ကလေးမြို့ အခြေစိုက် တပ်ရင်း (၂၂၈) အပါအဝင် တပ်မ (၄၄) နှင့် (၉၉) လက်အောက်ခံတပ်ရင်းများမှ ဗျူဟာ သုံးခုခွဲ၍ အင်အားတစ်ထောင်ခန့်ဖြင့် ကနီမြို့နယ်အတွင်း ကျေးရွာတိုင်းနီးပါးသို့ ဝင်ရောက်စီးနင်းလျက်ရှိရာ ဒေသခံ အများအပြားမှာ အကြမ်းဖက်ဖမ်းဆီးခံရခြင်း၊ ညှဉ်းပန်းနှိပ်စက်ခံရခြင်း၊ အသက်သေဆုံးသည်အထိ လူ မဆန်စွာ သတ်ဖြတ်ခံရခြင်းများကိုလည်း ရင်ဆိုင်ကြုံတွေ့နေရသည်။ ထို့အပြင် စစ်ဘေးရှောင် ပြည်သူများမှာ စားနပ်ရိက္ခာနှင့် ဆေးဝါးပြတ်လပ်မှုဒဏ်ကို ခံစားနေကြရပြီး မုံရွာနယ် ဘက်သို့ သွားရောက်ဝယ်ယူရာတွင်လည်း အကြမ်းဖက်စစ်အုပ်စု၏ လက်ပါးစေများက ပမာဏများပြားသော ငွေကြေးများ ကောက်ခံခြင်းအပြင် စစ်ဖိနပ်ဖြင့်ကန်ခြင်း၊ သေနတ်ဒင်ဖြင့်ထုခြင်းစသည့် အနိုင်ကျင့်မှုများကို လည်း ပြုလုပ်လျက်ရှိနေကြောင်း သိရသည်။ ကနီမြို့နယ်ရှိ ကျေးရွာအချို့တွင်လည်း ဇူလိုင် (၉) ရက်နေ့မှစ၍ အူရီဒူးနှင့် တယ်လီနောအော်ပရေတာများ၏ အင်တာနက်နှင့်ဖုန်းလိုင်းများ ပြတ်တောက်ခဲ့ပြီး ဩဂုတ်လ (၂) ရက်နေ့တွင် MPT လိုင်းပါ ထပ်မံ ပြတ်တောက် ခဲ့ရာ လက်ရှိအချိန်တွင် စစ်တပ်ပိုင် Mytel အော်ပရေတာ၏ ဖုန်းနှင့်အင်တာနက်လိုင်းသာ ရွာအချို့တွင် အသုံးပြု ၍ရနေကြောင်း ဒေသခံများကဆိုသည်။ ဤလုပ်ရပ်မှာ စစ်အုပ်စုသည် အရပ်သားပြည်သူများအပေါ် ဖြတ် လေးဖြတ်ဗျူဟာကိုအသုံးပြု၍ တိုက်ခိုက်ခြင်းပင်ဖြစ်သည်။ ထိုကဲ့သို့ အကြမ်းဖက်စစ်တပ်၏ ရည်ရွယ်ချက်ရှိရှိဖြင့် အရပ်သားပြည်သူများအပေါ် လူမဆန်စွာ ပြုလုပ်မှုများ ကြောင့် ဇူလိုင်လ တစ်လတည်းမှာပင် ကနီမြို့နယ်ရှိ ကျေးရွာများ၌ အရပ်သားများ၏ အလောင်းများ အစုလိုက် အပြုံလိုက် သတ်ဖြတ်စွန့်ပစ်ထားသည်ကို လေးကြိမ်တိုင်တိုင် တွေ့ရှိခဲ့ကြသည်။ သတ်ဖြတ်စွန့်ပစ်ထားသည့် ရုပ် အလောင်းစုစုပေါင်းမှာ အနည်းဆုံး (၄၃) ဦး ရှိနေသည်။ ပထမအကြိမ်ဖြစ်စဉ် (ရုပ်အလောင်း ၄ လောင်း) စစ်ကိုင်းတိုင်းဒေသကြီး ယင်းမာပင်ခရိုင် ကနီမြို့နယ်အတွင်းရှိ မုံအိုကျေးရွာနှင့် ရွာသာကျေးရွာအကြား ရှစ်ခိုး တက် တောပြင်၌ ဇူလိုင်လ ၁ ရက်နေ့ ညနေ ၄ နာရီနှင့် ၆ နာရီကြားအချိန်တွင် အမျိုးသား (၄) ဦးကို အကြမ်း ဖက်စစ်အုပ်စုမှ ဖမ်းဆီး၍ညှဉ်းပန်းနှိပ်စက်ကာ ဦးခေါင်းများကို သေနတ်နှင့်တေ့ပစ်ပြီး အစုလိုက်အပြုံလိုက် သတ်ဖြတ်ခဲ့သည်။ ထိုရုပ်အလောင်း (၄) လောင်းကို ဇူလိုင်လ (၃) ရက်နေ့တွင် ရှာဖွေတွေ့ရှိခဲ့ရာ ရုပ်အလောင်းများမှာ ဦးခေါင်းများ မရှိတော့သကဲ့သို့ ပျက်စီးနေပြီး အနီးတဝိုက်တွင်လည်း ဆိုင်ကယ် (၂၅) စီးခန့်ကို မီးရှို့ဖျက်ဆီးထားသည်ကို တွေ့ မြင်ခဲ့ရကြောင်း ဒေသခံများကဆိုသည်။ သတ်ဖြတ်ခြင်းခံရသည့် ရုပ်အလောင်း (၄) လောင်းမှာ စိန်ကုန်းရွာမှ (၁) ဦး၊ ဖန်ခါးကုန်းရွာမှ (၁) ဦး၊ ဆူးလေကုန်း ရွာမှာ (၁) ဦးနှင့် အင်ချောင်ရွာမှ (၁) ဦး တို့ဖြစ်ကြသည်။ ဒုတိယအကြိမ်ဖြစ်စဉ် (ရုပ်အလောင်း ၁၆ လောင်း) ချင်းတွင်းမြစ် အရှေ့ဘက်ကမ်းရှိ ယင်းရွာ၊ ကုန်းသာရွာ၊ ကျောက်လှေကားရွာများသို့ ဇူလိုင် (၉) ရက် နှင့် (၁၀) ရက်နေ့များ၌ အကြမ်းဖက်စစ်တပ်မှ အလုံးအရင်းဖြင့် ဝင်ရောက်လာသောကြောင့် ရွာလုံးကျွတ် ထွက်ပြေး တိမ်းရှောင်ကြရသည်။ ထိုထွက်ပြေးတိမ်းရှောင်နေသူ ဒေသခံများအနက် (၂၆) ဦး ပျောက်ဆုံးနေသဖြင့် လိုက်လံ ရှာဖွေရာ စစ်ကိုင်းတိုင်း၊ ကနီမြို့နယ်၊ ယင်းရွာ၏ အရှေ့ဘက် ခင်တန်းရှည် တောင်ကုန်းပေါ်မှ ချိုင့်ထဲတွင် တောထဲတွင် ဒဏ်ရာများဖြင့် ရုပ်ပျက်ဆင်းပျက်ဖြစ်နေသည့် အလောင်း (၁၅) လောင်းနှင့် နောက်တစ်ရွာတွင် အလောင်း (၁) လောင်းကို ထပ်မံ ရှာဖွေတွေ့ရှိခဲ့သည်။ အလောင်းများကို ဇူလိုင် (၁၁၊ ၁၂) ရက်နေ့များတွင် ယင်းရွာ၏ အရှေ့ဘက်တောင်ကုန်းပေါ်မှ ရှာတွေ့ခဲ့ ခြင်းဖြစ်ပြီး ယင်းရွာမှ (၁၃) ဦး၊ ကုန်းသာရွာမှ (၁) ဦး၊ ပလူဇဝ ရွာမှ (၁) ဦးနှင့် ထောက်ကြံ့ကုန်းရွာမှ (၁) ဦး စုစုပေါင်း (၁၆) ဦး ဖြစ်ကြောင်း ယင်းရွာဒေသခံက ဆိုသည်။ သတ်ဖြတ်ခံရသူများအနက် အများစုမှာ အသက် (၃၀) နှင့် (၅၀) ကြားအရွယ် အမျိုးသားများဖြစ်ပြီး အသက် (၆၀) ကျော်အရွယ် (၁) ဦးလည်း ပါဝင်သည်။ ရုပ်အလောင်းအားလုံးတွင် ပြင်းပြင်းထန်ထန် နှိပ်စက်ညှဉ်းပန်းခံထားရသည့် လက္ခဏာများတွေ့ရပြီး အဆိုးရွား ဆုံးမှာ မျက်နှာနှင့် လည်ပင်းများကို လှီးဖြတ် နှိပ်စက်ညှဉ်းပန်းထားသည့် ဒဏ်ရာများတွေ့ရှိရခြင်းပင်ဖြစ်သည်။ တတိယအကြိမ်ဖြစ်စဉ် (ရုပ်အလောင်း ၁၂ လောင်း) စစ်ကိုင်းတိုင်း၊ ကနီမြို့နယ်၊ ဇီးပင်တွင်းကျေးရွာအနီး ဇူလိုင် (၂၆) ရက် ညနေပိုင်းက အကြမ်းဖက်စစ်တပ်နှင့် ဒေသခံကာကွယ်ရေးအဖွဲ့ (PDF) တို့ တိုက်ပွဲဖြစ်ခဲ့ရာ ရွာသားတချို့နှင့် PDF အဖွဲ့ဝင်တချို့ ပျောက်ဆုံးနေ ၍ လိုက်လံရှာဖွေရာမှ ဇီးပင်တွင်းရွာ အနောက်ဘက်ယာတောထဲတွင် ဒဏ်ရာများနှင့် ရုပ်အလောင်း (၅) လောင်း ကို ပထမအကြိမ်ရှာဖွေမှုတွင်လည်းကောင်း၊ နောက်ထပ် အလောင်း (၇) လောင်းကို ဒုတိယအကြိမ် ရှာဖွေမှု တွင်လည်းကောင်း စုစုပေါင်း ရုပ်အလောင်း (၁၂) လောင်းကို ဇူလိုင်လ ၂၇ ရက်နေ့၌ ရှာဖွေတွေ့ရှိခဲ့ပြန်သည်။ ဒုတိယအကြိမ်ရှာဖွေမှုတွင် ရွာသားများက မြေကျင်းတစ်ခုကို တူးဖော်ခဲ့ရာ မြှုပ်နှံထားသည့် အလောင်း (၄) လောင်း၊ သစ်ပင်တွင် ကြိုးဖြင့် ချိတ်ဆွဲထားသည့် အလောင်း (၁) လောင်း၊ မြေပြင်တွင် လဲကျနေသော ရုပ်အလောင်း (၂) လောင်းကို တွေ့ရှိခဲ့သည်ဟု သိရသည်။ အဆိုပါ ရုပ်အလောင်း (၇) လောင်းမှာ အသက် (၆၀) ကျော်အရွယ် သက်ကြီးပိုင်း (၂) ဦး၊ ကိုယ်လက်အင်္ဂါမသန်စွမ်းသူ (၁) ဦး၊ အသက် (၁၈) မှ (၃၀) ကြား (၄) ဦး၏ ရုပ်အလောင်းများ ဖြစ်ကြသည်။ ဇူလိုင်လ (၂၇) ရက်နေ့က ရှာဖွေမှုနှစ်ခုတွင် တွေ့ရှိခဲ့သည့် ရုပ်အလောင်း (၁၂) လောင်းမှာ ဇီးပင်တွင်းရွာမှ (၂) ဦး၊ ချင်းဖုန်းရွာမှ (၁) ဦး၊ သမင်ဇပ်ရွာမှ (၁) ဦး၊ သလောက်ရွာမှ (၁) ဦးနှင့် မုံရွာမှ (၇) ဦး ဖြစ်ကြောင်းသိရသည်။ ရုပ်အလောင်းအားလုံး၏ ခန္ဓာကိုယ်တွင် တူညီသည့်အချက်မှာ ရိုက်နှက်၊ နှိပ်စက်ညှဉ်းပမ်းခြင်းကြောင့် ဒဏ်ရာ အများအပြား ရှိနေခြင်းဖြစ်သည်ဟု ဒေသခံများက ဆိုသည်။ စတုတ္ထအကြိမ်ဖြစ်စဉ် (ရုပ်အလောင်း ၁၁ လောင်း) အာဏာသိမ်း စစ်ကောင်စီ၏ အကြမ်းဖက်တပ်များနှင့် ကနီမြို့နယ် ပြည်သူ့ကာကွယ်ရေးတပ်များ ဇူလိုင်လ (၂၆) ရက်နှင့် (၂၇) ရက်နေ့တို့တွင် ကနီမြို့နယ် တောင်ပေါက်အုပ်စု ထူးကျေးရွာအနီးတွင် အကြမ်းဖက်စစ်တပ်၏ ဝင်ရောက်တိုက်ခိုက်မှုကြောင့် ဒေသခံများက ပြန်လည်ခုခံရင်း တိုက်ပွဲဖြစ်ပွားခဲ့သည်။ ထို့နောက် နောက်တစ်ရက် (၂၈) ရက်နေ့ နံနက်တွင် အကြမ်းဖက်စစ်တပ်က ကြပ်ချောင်းတောတိုက်တွင် တောင်သူလုပ်ကိုင်နေသော သရက်တောရွာသား ကိုအောင်ကျော်မြင့်၏ တဲအိမ်အတွင်းဝင်ရောက်၍ ကိုအောင်ကျော်မြင့်အပါအဝင် ထမင်းစား နေသောအမျိုးသား (၁၁) ဦးအား ဖမ်းဆီးခဲ့ပြီး တဲကိုပါ မီးရှို့ဖျက်စီးခဲ့သည်။ ထို့နောက် နံနက် (၁၀) နာရီခန့်အချိန်တွင် သရက်တောရွာသား ကိုမြင့်သိန်း၏ ယာခင်းအစပ်မှ သေနတ်သံ ဆယ်ချက်ကျော်ခန့် ကြားရကြောင်းကို သတ်ဖြတ်ခံရသည့်အထဲတွင် ပါဝင်သူ၏ ဇနီးပြောကြားချက်အရ သိရ သည်။ ဒေသခံများက လိုက်လံရှာဖွေရာ ကနီမြို့နယ် တောင်ပေါက် ကျေးရွာအုပ်စု ကျောက်တံခါးချောင်းနှင့် ကြပ်ချောင်း အဆုံ၊ ကိုမြင့်သိန်း (သရက်တောရွာ)၏ ယာခင်းအတွင်း အမျိုးသား (၁၁) ဦးအား အစုလိုက်အပြုံလိုက် သတ်ဖြတ် ခံထားရပြီး ဆိုင်ကယ် (၂) စီး နှင့်အတူ မီးရှို့ခံထားရသည်ကို ဇူလိုင်လ (၃၁) ရက်နေ့က တွေ့ရှိခဲ့သည်။ သေဆုံးသူများမှာ အမျိုးသားများဖြစ်ပြီး ခိုတွင်းရွာမှ (၁) ဦး၊ သရက်တောရွာမှ (၆) ဦး၊ ကနီမြို့ပေါ်မှ (၃) ဦး နှင့် ညောင်သူများရွာမှ (၁) ဦး စုစုပေါင်း (၁၁) ဦးဖြစ်သည်။ ကနီမြို့ပေါ်မှ (၃) ဦးမှာ ညီအစ်ကိုများဖြစ် ပြီး သရက်တောရွာရှိ ဆွေမျိုးများထံ တောင်သူအလုပ်လုပ်ရင်း မီးသွေးဖုတ်နေကြသူများ ဖြစ်သည်ဟု သိရသည်။ တွေ့ရှိရသည့် ရုပ်အလောင်းများအနက် (၃) လောင်းတွင် မျက်နှာနှင့် ခန္ဓာကိုယ်အနှံ့ ညိုမည်းဒဏ်ရာများဖြစ်ပေါ် နေခြင်း၊ ဦးခေါင်းနှင့် ရင်ဘတ်များတွင် သေနတ်ဖြင့်ပစ်ခတ်ထားခြင်း၊ မျက်နှာများအား ဓါတ်ဆီလောင်း မီးရှို့ ထားခြင်းစသည့် ဒဏ်ရာများလည်းတွေ့ရှိခဲ့ပြီး အလောင်းများမှာလည်း ပုပ်ပွလျက်ရှိသည်။ ထိုအခင်းဖြစ်ပွားပြီး နောက်ဆက်တွဲအနေနှင့် ကနီမြို့နယ် ကင်းတောင်အုပ်စု ခိုတွင်းကျေးရွာနေ ဦးမောင်မြင့်က စစ်အုပ်စု၏အကြမ်းဖက် သတ်ဖြတ်မှုများကြောင့် စိတ်ဖေါက်ပြန်သွားပြီး နောက်တစ်ရက် ဩဂုတ်လ (၁) ရက်နေ့ ညနေတွင် ကနီမြို့ပေါ်ရှိ အထက ကျောင်းနားသို့ ဆိုင်ကယ်ဖြင့် သွားရောက်ခဲ့သည်။ ထို့နောက် ကျောင်းအတွင်း စခန်းချနေသော အကြမ်းဖက်တပ်သားများကို “မင်းတို့တွေကြောင့် တို့ပြည်သူတွေ သေရတာ” ဟုအော်ဟစ်ပြီး ကျောင်းအုတ်တံတိုင်းနားသို့ ကပ်သွားစဉ် မည်သည့်လက်နက်မျှမပါသော ဦးမောင်မြင့်အား အကြမ်းဖက်အဖွဲ့၏ တပ်သားများမှ ပစ်သတ်ခဲ့ကြပြီး အလောင်းအား ညတွင်းချင်းဖျောက်ဖျက်လိုက်ကြကြောင်း မိသားစုထံမှ သိရ သည်။ အကြမ်းဖက်စစ်အုပ်စု၏ ရက်စက်သော လူမဆန်စွာကျူးလွန်မှုများမှာ မြန်မာနိုင်ငံနေရာအနှံ့အပြားတွင် နေ့စဉ် နှင့်အမျှ ဖြစ်ပေါ်နေလျက်ရှိပြီး အထက်ပါ ကနီမြို့နယ်ဖြစ်စဉ်များမှာ တိကျသော သက်သေအထောက်အထား များဖြင့် ပေါ်ပေါက်လာရသည့် ဖြစ်ရပ်တစ်ခုပင်ဖြစ်သည်။ အဆိုပါဖြစ်ရပ်များမှာ အစုလိုက် အပြုံလိုက် သတ်ဖြတ် မှုအပါအဝင် လူသားမျိုးနွယ်အပေါ် ကျူးလွန်သည့် ဆိုးဝါးရက်စက်သော ရာဇဝတ်မှုမြောက်ပြီး မြန်မာပြည်သူ လူထုတစ်ရပ်လုံး၏ အသက်အိုးအိမ်စည်းစိမ်ကို စစ်အုပ်စုက အကြီးအကျယ် ခြိမ်းခြောက်လျက်ရှိကြောင်း သက်သေခံလျက်ရှိသည်။ စစ်အုပ်စုသည် ၎င်းတို့ ကျူးလွန်သော ရာဇဝတ်မှုများကို တာဝန်ယူ၊ တာဝန်ခံရမည် ဖြစ်သည်။ ကနီမြို့နယ်တွင် ဖြစ်ပွားခဲ့သည့် အစုလိုက်အပြုံလိုက် သတ်ဖြတ်ခံရမှုများသည် နိုင်ငံတကာဥပဒေအရ အမြစ် ပြတ် သုတ်သင်ရှင်းလင်းရေးလုပ်ရပ်တစ်ခုဖြစ်သည်။ (၁၉၄၉) ခုနှစ် ဂျီနီဗာကွန်ဗင်းရှင်းနှင့် (၁၉၇၇) ခုနှစ်၊ ဇွန်လ (၈) ရက်နေ့၌ ထပ်မံ ဖြည့်စွက်ထားသော နောက်ဆက်တွဲစာချုပ်များတွင် ပြည်တွင်း/ပြည်ပ စစ်ပွဲများကြောင့် အရပ်သားနှင့် အရပ်သားများ၏ ပစ္စည်းဥစ္စာများ၊ ယဉ်ကျေးမှုဆိုင်ရာ၊ ဘာသာရေးဆိုင်ရာ အဆောက်အဦများကို ပစ်မှတ်ထားမတိုက်ခိုက်ရန် အစရှိသည့် စံနှုန်းများကိုလည်း တိကျစွာ ဖော်ပြထားသည်။ ဂျီနီဗာသဘောတူ စာချုပ် (၄) ဖြစ်သော စစ်အတွင်း၌ အရပ်သားများကိုကာကွယ်ခြင်းဆိုင်ရာသဘောတူစာချုပ် (၁၉၄၉) ၏ အပိုဒ်(၃၂) အရ စစ်ပွဲအတွင်း ကာကွယ်ပေးရမည့်ပုဂ္ဂိုလ်များအား ရုပ်ပိုင်းဆိုင်ရာနာကျင်မှုဖြစ်စေရန် ဆောင်ရွက်မှု (သို့) အစုလိုက်အပြုံလိုက်သတ်ဖြတ်မှု ဖြစ်စေနိုင်သော ဆောင်ရွက်မှုများကို တားမြစ်ထားသည်။ သတ်ဖြတ်ခြင်း၊ ညှဉ်းပန်းနှိပ်စက်ခြင်း၊ ရိုက်နှက်အပြစ်ပေးခြင်း၊ ဆေးပညာ (သို့) သိပ္ပံပညာအတွက် အသုံးချခြင်းတို့ကို အရပ်သားပြည်သူများ သာမက စစ်ဘက်ဆိုင်ရာအေးဂျင့်များကပင် ပြုလုပ်ခွင့်မရှိဟု ပြဌာန်းထားသည်။ ကနီဖြစ်စဉ်သည် ဂျီနီဗာကွန်ဗင်းရှင်းကို ပြောင်ပြောင်တင်းတင်းချိုးဖောက်ပြီး အရပ်သားများကို ပစ်မှတ်ထား၍ အမြစ်ပြတ် သတ်ဖြတ်ခြင်းပင်ဖြစ်သည်။ ထို့ကြောင့် နိုင်ငံတကာ အသိုင်းအဝိုင်းအနေဖြင့် ထိုသို့ လူသားမျိုးနွယ် အပေါ် ကျုးလွန်သော ရာဇဝတ်မှုကို ပြစ်တင်ရှုတ်ချရမည်ဖြစ်ပြီး ထိထိရောက်ရောက် တရားစွဲဆိုရမည်ဖြစ်သည်။ ယခုကဲ့သို့သော ဖြစ်ရပ်များမှာ ကနီဒေသ တစ်ခုထဲတင်မဟုတ်ဘဲ ဒီပဲယင်းမြို့နယ်နှင့် အခြားသော မြို့နယ်များ တွင်လည်း ဖြစ်ပွားလျက်ရှိသည်ကို သိရှိရပြီး အဆိုပါဖြစ်ရပ်များနှင့်ပတ်သက်၍ နောက်ပိုင်းတွင် ဆက်လက် ထုတ်ပြန်သွားမည်ဖြစ်သည်။ ဒုတိယဖြစ်စဉ်တွင် အသက် (၆၀) ကျော် (၂) ဦးနှင့် မသန်စွမ်းသူ (၁) ဦး သတ်ဖြတ်ခြင်းခံရသည်။ စစ်အုပ်စုသည် လူ့အဖွဲ့အစည်းအတွင်းတွင် အားနွဲ့ပြီးထိခိုက်အလွယ်ဆုံးဖြစ်သည့် ကလေးသူငယ်များနှင့် မသန်စွမ်းသူများကိုပင် ပစ်မှတ်ထား၍ ညှဉ်းပန်းနှိပ်စက်သည့် လုပ်ရပ်များကို အကြိမ်ကြိမ်ကျူးလွန်လျက်ရှိသည်။ ထိုကဲ့သို့ ထိခိုက်နစ်နာ ခံစားလွယ်သော လူအုပ်စုများကို နိုင်ငံတကာ အသိုင်းအဝိုင်းအနေဖြင့် အကာအကွယ်ပေးရမည်ဟု တိကျသော ကတိကဝတ်များ ပြုထားသည်။ မြန်မာနိုင်ငံအပါအဝင် နိုင်ငံပေါင်း (၁၈၂) နိုင်ငံက အတည်ပြုခဲ့ရေးထိုးခဲ့သည့် ကုလသမဂ္ဂ မသန်စွမ်းသူများ အခွင့် အရေးဆိုင်ရာ သဘောတူစာချုပ် အပိုဒ် (၁၅) ၌ “စာချုပ်အဖွဲ့ဝင်နိုင်ငံများသည် မသန်စွမ်းသူများအား ညှဉ်းပန်း နှိပ်စက်ခြင်းမှ ကာကွယ်ရမည်” ဟု အသေးစိတ် ဖော်ပြထားသည်။ ထိုသူများအား လိုအပ်သော အကာအကွယ် ပေးမှုရရှိစေရေးအတွက် နိုင်ငံတကာအသိုင်းအဝိုင်းအနေဖြင့်လည်း တာဝန်ရှိမှုကို စောင့်ထိန်းလိုက်နာရမည် ဖြစ်သည်။ ထို့ကြောင့် နိုင်ငံတကာအသိုင်းအဝိုင်းမှ ထိုကဲ့သို့သော ကိစ္စရပ်များအတွက် အကြမ်းဖက်အာဏာသိမ်းစစ်အုပ်စု၏ လုပ်ရပ်များကို အရေးယူ တုံ့ပြန်ဆောင်ရွက်မှုများ ပြုလုပ်ရန်လိုအပ်သည်ကို ရှင်းရှင်းလင်းလင်း တွေ့နိုင်သည်။ သို့ဖြစ်၍ ကုလသမဂ္ဂအထွေထွေညီလာခံတွင် အကြမ်းဖက်အာဏာသိမ်းစစ်အုပ်စု၏ တရားမဝင်အာဏာသိမ်းခြင်း ကို ငြင်းပယ်ရမည်မှာ အသေအချာပင်ဖြစ်သည်။ တဆက်တည်းတွင် မြန်မာပြည်သူတရပ်လုံး၏ သဘောထားကို ထင်ဟပ်သည့် အမျိုးသားညီညွတ်ရေးအစိုးရ (National Unity Government) ကို မြန်မာနိုင်ငံ၏ တရားဝင် အစိုးရအဖွဲ့အဖြစ် နိုင်ငံတကာမှ သတ်မှတ်ပေးရန် လိုအပ်ပါသည်။ NUG အစိုးရအဖွဲ့အနေဖြင့်လည်း ရောမ စာချုပ်ကို အတည်ပြုလက်မှတ်ရေးထိုးပြီး အကြမ်းဖက်အာဏာသိမ်းစစ်အုပ်စုအား အပြည်ပြည်ဆိုင်ရာ ရာဇဝတ်မှုတရားရုံး (International Criminal Court, ICC) သို့ တင်ရမည်ဖြစ်သလို အပြည်ပြည်ဆိုင်ရာတရားရုံး (International Court of Justice, ICJ) ၌လည်း မြန်မာနိုင်ငံကို တရားဝင်ကိုယ်စားပြုပေးရမည်ဖြစ်သည်။..."
Source/publisher: Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, Nyan Lynn Thit Analytica and Network for Human Rights Documentation - Burma
Date of entry/update: 2021-08-18
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Title: Daily Briefing in Relation to the Military Coup (Updated 18 August 2021)
Description: "As of 18 August, (1006) people are now confirmed killed by this junta coup. AAPP compiled and documented (7) fallen heroes today. These (7) fallen heroes from Minkin Township and Shwebo Township in Sagaing Region and Pauk Township in Magway Region were killed on previous days and documented today. This is the number verified by AAPP, the actual number of fatalities is likely much higher. We will continue adding as and when. As of August 18, a total of (5730) people are currently under detention. (255) people have been sentenced in person, of them 26 have been sentenced to death (incl. 2 children). 1984 are evading arrest warrants. 118 people have been sentenced in absentia, of them 39 sentenced to death in absentia. In total 65 sentenced to death, in person and absentia. We are also continuing to verify the recently released detainees. Terrorist junta’s soldiers who were drunk pointed a gun to the temple of Zaw Myo Myint and shot him dead at close range among people at a port in Minkin Town, Sagaing Region on the evening of August 17. Junta troops beat and then shot Zaw Myo Myint for not wearing a face mask while he was sitting and chewing the betel nut in the port. Zin Mar Win from Min Sar village in Minkin Township who heard the sound of gunshots and witnessed Zaw Myo Myint’s dead body, died on the spot from a heart attack. Terrorist junta’s troops raided Kyauk Khel Tat Village in Sagaing Region’s Minkin Township and arrested three villagers named Bo Aung, Chit Lwin and Phoe Toke on August 16. They killed these three villagers on August 17 and concealed the bodies in Chindwin River. Hla Myint Oo, living in Thapyay Yay Village in Magway Region Pauk Township, who had opened a shop, was shot with a tumee (traditional hunting) rifle used by junta troops on the evening of August 13. The junta then set a bomb on an old motorbike in front of his shop. In addition, junta troops raided Paline, Gonetan and Kanthar Villages in Sagaing Region’s Shwebo Township, then arrested and shot dead a local from Gonetan Village called Nan, on August 12. The incident happened at a school in Paline Village where they had set up camp after they questioned Nan who came past but failed to reply. AAPP will continue to keep you informed of verified daily arrests, charges, sentences and fatalities in relation to the attempted coup, and update our lists to the details of these alleged offences. If you receive any information about detentions of, or charges against CSO leaders, activists, journalists, CDM workers, other civilians and fallen heroes in relation to the military and police crackdown on dissent. Please submit to the following addresses: [email protected] [email protected]..."
Source/publisher: Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP)
Date of entry/update: 2021-08-18
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Title: Death toll since Myanmar coup tops 1,000, says activist group
Description: "The death toll as a result of Myanmar's Feb. 1 coup topped 1,000 on Wednesday, according to an official of the Assistance Association of Political Prisoners (AAPP) activist group, which has been recording killings by security forces. A spokesman for the ruling junta did not respond to a call to request comment. The military authorities have previously said the AAPP figures, widely cited by international organisations, are exaggerated. The army has also said scores of members of the security forces have been killed. The AAPP does not include them in its count. "According to AAPP records, 1,001 innocent people have been killed," AAPP secretary Tate Naing told Reuters. "The actual number of victims is much higher." The Southeast Asian country has sunk into chaos since the coup, with protests continuing daily, insurgencies flaring in border regions and widespread strikes that have severely damaged the economy. The army overthrew elected leader Aung San Suu Kyi, alleging irregularities in an election swept by her National League for Democracy party in November 2020. The then electoral commission and international monitors said the army accusations were wrong. The military authorities say their seizure of power should not be called a coup because it was in line with the constitution..."
Source/publisher: "Reuters" (UK)
Date of entry/update: 2021-08-18
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Title: Massacres in Kani Township, Yinmabin District, Sagaing Region
Description: "In over (70) years of civil war in Burma, ethnic nationalities have suffered torture, extrajudicial killings, massacres, rape, villages burned to the ground, and residents forced to flee their homes in indiscriminate junta military so-called ‘Military Clearance Policy’. Human rights and civil society organizations across Burma have repeatedly called for action to end this military’s impunity. The UN formed a fact-finding mission in 2017 to investigate the repeated human rights violations. And yet, the junta has continued to perpetrate human rights abuses, war crimes, and crimes against humanity. The military junta seized power and arbitrary arrested the country’s elected leaders on February 1, 2021. People across the regions and states have been resisting the junta in various ways. Kani Township, Yinmabin District, Sagaing Region is known as a prominent area of opposition to the coup. The juntas’ response has been to target and destroy areas in Kani Township, and surrounding villages and forests with shootings, arrests, and raids in military incursions. Thousands of residents have fled to nearby villages and forests. The junta has also entered these villages and killed buffaloes, cows, and looted property from the villages. 44th and 99th Light Infantry Division, including battalion 228th based in Kale Township, have attacked almost every village in Kani Township, using some thousand troops in three different strategic divisions. Many locals have endured inhumane atrocities by the junta. Arbitrary arrest, torture, and sometimes being killed through torture. It has also been reported that internal displaced persons are suffering from food and medical shortages. The terrorist (junta) group has been collecting money through extortion, as well as assaulting, intimidating, and beating locals like with rifle stocks when they travel to Monywa Township to purchase necessities. Ooredoo and Telenor tele-com operators’ internet and phone lines were suspended on July 9, and MPT was cut off on August 2 in some villages in Kani Township. According to locals, only the military owned Mytel internet and phone line are currently available in some villages. The junta has been uses its four cuts doctrine to indiscriminately target civilians. In July alone, the junta committed 4 massacres in Kani Township villages. At least 43 people have been discovered killed in this way. First massacre (4 fatalities) Four men were arrested, tortured, and shot in the head on July 1, between 4 – 6 pm in Shitkoetat Forest between Mone O Village and Ywar Thar Village, Kani Township, Yinmabin District, Sagaing Region. According to locals, the (4) corpses were found headless from shootings on July 3. Some (25) motorcycles were found burned in a nearby fire. The (4) men were each from Sein Kone Village, Phan Khar Kone Village, Sule Kone Village, and Inn Chaung Village. Second massacre (16 fatalities) The junta stormed Yin Village and Kone Thar Village, located on the eastern bank of Chindwin River. They entered the village, forcing residents to flee to Kyauk Hle Ka Village on July 9 and 10. Missing were twenty-six villagers. When locals went searching for them, (15) dead bodies were discovered in the valley on Khin Tan Shay Hill, east of Yin Village, Kani Township, Sagaing Region, and (1) dead body was found in another nearby village. According to locals from Yin Village, the dead bodies were found on July 11 and 12 on the hill east of Yin Village. The (16) murdered persons were from Yin Village (13), Kone Thar Village (1), Paluzawa Village (1), and from Htauk Kyan Kone Village (1). Most of the victims were men, aged between (30) and (50), one of the victims was a male in his 60’s. All the corpses were found with signs of severe torture, some with cuts and bruises on faces and necks. Third massacre (12 fatalities) A clash between the military junta and People Defense Force (PDF) happened near Zee Pin Dwin Village, Kani Township, Sagaing Region, on the evening of July 26. Some villagers and PDF went missing. Five dead bodies were found in the first search, by the paddle field behind Zee Pin Dwin Village, and another seven dead bodies were found in a second search. Total of (12) corpses were discovered on July 27. During the second search, the villagers dug a pit and found (4) victims, (1) hanging from a tree, and (2) lying on the ground. Of these (7) fatalities found in the second search, (2) were elderly over the age of 60, (1) was disabled, and (4) others were aged between 18 – 30. The (12) fatalities from this third massacre were from Zee Pin Dwin Village (2), Chin Phone Village (1), Thamin Zat Village (1), Tha Lauk Village (1), and Monywa Township (7). According to locals all the victims were found with wounds and injuries from beatings and torture. Fourth massacre (11 fatalities) Junta troops raided a small village near Htoo Village, Taungpauk Village Tract, Kani Township. A local People Defense Force (PDF) from Kani Township resisted the attack and a clash unfolded on July 26 and 27. On the morning of July 28, the junta raided Ko Aung Kyaw Myint’s house, a farmer from Thayat Taw Village, who was working in Kyat Chaung Taw Tike. (11) men, including Ko Aung Kyaw Myint, were detained, and his house burned down by the terrorist group. According to one of the victims’ wives, she heard (10) gunshots around 10 am close by to Ko Myint Thein’s farm, a local in Thayat Taw Village. On July 31, the villagers went on a search and found (11) men massacred in Ko Myint Thein’s farm, in Thayat Taw Village. (2) motorbikes had also been set on fire at the intersection of Kyauktaga and Kyat Creeks, Taungpauk Village Tract, Kani Township. The (11) victims were all men and from Kho Dwin Village (1), Thayat Taw Village (6), Kani Township (3), and Nyaung Thu Village (1). The (3) from Kani Township were brothers working as farmers in coal manufacturing in their relatives’ village. Among the dead, (3) had bruises on their faces and all over their bodies, they had been shot in the head and chest, with burns on their faces from gasoline. All the bodies were rotting by the time they were found. In the aftermath of the incident, U Maung Myint, a resident from Kho Dwin Village, Kintaung Village Tract, Kani Township, was mentally distressed by the massacre and drove his motorcycle to a high school in Kani Township where junta troops were based on the evening of August 1. U Maung Myint shouted “civilians died because of you”. He went close to the school’s wall unarmed, the junta then shot. According to his family, junta troops disappeared the body over the night. Atrocities committed by this terrorist group are happening across Burma daily. The massacres in Kani Township are but incidents which have emerged with concrete evidence. These events testify that the junta is committing crimes against humanity. It is the junta which is responsible for these crimes threatening the lives and property of civilians all over Burma. The massacres in Kani Township are an act of extermination under the international law. The (1949) Geneva Convention and its June 8, (1977) additional protocols established international humanitarian law norms such as protection of the civilian population, objects indispensable to the survival of the civilian, cultural objects and places of worship due to international or non-international armed conflicts. According to article (32) of the Fourth Geneva Convention, the Geneva Convention related to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War, taking any measure of such a character as to cause the physical suffering or extermination of protected persons in their hands is prohibited. This applies not only to murder, torture, corporal punishment, mutilation and medical or scientific experiments not necessitated by the medical treatment of a protected person, but also to any other measures of brutality whether applied by civilian or military agents. The Kani Township massacres and targeting of civilians is a clear violation of the Geneva Conventions. The junta’s torture and murder of civilians in Kani Township must be condemned by the international community as crimes against humanity and litigated accordingly. Similar incidents to Kani Township occurred in Depayin Township and other townships. These incidents will consequently be examined by civil society organizations. (2) persons over the age of 60, and (1) disabled person were killed in the second massacre. This junta has repeatedly committed torture towards the most vulnerable members of society, such as children and the disabled. Groups which the international community has made specific pledges to protect. Article (15) of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, ratified by (182) countries, including Burma, states that “States Parties shall protect persons with disabilities from being subjected to torture”. The international community must adhere to its vital responsibility to ensure these groups are protected. It is therefore necessary for the international community to act against this terrorist group and reject a murderous junta and illegitimate coup at the United Nations General Assembly. At the same time, the National Unity Government, with legitimacy granted by Burma’s people, must be recognized and given appropriate credentials by the international community as the legitimate government in Burma. Upon ratifying the Rome Statue, the NUG must refer the junta to the International Criminal Court (ICC) and represent Myanmar at the International Court of Justice (ICJ)..."
Source/publisher: Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, Nyan Lynn Thit Analytica and Network for Human Rights Documentation - Burma
Date of entry/update: 2021-08-18
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Title: Women’s League of Burma - Situation Update, July 2021
Sub-title: As part of an ongoing monthly analysis, WLB would like to share our July briefer on the situation of human rights amid the military coup in Burma/Myanmar and the recent outbreak of COVID-19.
Description: "Six months have passed since the Burmese Army seized power in a coup. Since that dark day, the people of Burma/Myanmar have continued to suffer the consequences. In the months following Feb 1, it has become abundantly clear that the terrorist junta has neither the political will nor the ability to govern with compassion and humanity. Something must be done to reverse the devastation. But dismantling the junta’s legacy of violence and impunity is not without its challenges. Yet, the on-going civil movements and growing calls for action alongside campaigns for accountability, signals that the struggle for freedom, equality and peace for the people of Burma/Myanmar will continue. The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated an already devastating political, economic and social climate. At the time of this writing, the country has reported over 300,000 confirmed cases Ethnic areas are also seriously affected by the pandemic. Exploitation of the pandemic has led to countless preventable deaths. The junta’s negligence has been made clear in their hoarding of oxygen tanks for themselves as they threatened health care workers, forcing many to go underground. Pharmacies have been forced to close due to insufficient stock, and those that remain open are inaccessible to many due to price inflation. For displaced populations and refugees, their situation comes with a lack of direct access to healthcare facilities. Children and the elderly are facing many difficulties because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The ‘war on health’ is the latest battle the people of Burma/ Myanmar are now facing. The military is moving backwards by arresting health care workers who share anti-coup views. According to recent statistics, the majority of health workers involved in the Civil Disobedience Movement (CDM) are women, and they too are putting themselves at risk providing medical services to the infected. In this new struggle, women are disproportionately impacted. Across generations, women take on many responsibilities in the household, including being a primary caretaker. As they give their energy to their infected loved ones, they put themselves at more risk of catching the virus. Meanwhile, unlawful arrests and persecution of pro-democracy activists continues. According to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, 1,084 women have been arrested and 65 killed since Feb 1. Another 100 youth have been killed by the junta, including 75 children. Additionally, 1,000 young people between the ages of 10 and 19 have been detained. Of those arrested, 65 have been sentenced to death through military tribunals, including four women. Burma/Myanmar has not evoked the death penalty since 1988. These sentences are excruciatingly punitive and they lack legitimacy. Peaceful protest is not a crime, and yet under the junta’s control, those with different views are persecuted. Impact of the Military Coup: The junta continues to deny and dismiss the severity of the multiple crises unfolding within the country. International intervention to curb the rate of infections and carry out an effective humanitarian response is urgently needed. Women and children have suffered enormous consequences since the junta’s ruthless takeover. Surviving under an authoritarian regime has been immeasurably difficult for the most vulnerable. In Burma/Myanmar, women are unfairly recognized as the weaker gender. The military often treats them with severe disrespect, abusing and intimidating them to maintain their control. Since the military overthrew the democratically elected government, sexual harassment, rape, and arrests have increased. There is no compassion shown for the elderly, the sick, people with disabilities or young. To the Burmese Army, they are simply the threats to their new political order. Women have also been threatened by the junta for their pro-democracy activities. A weak legal system has undermined all prospects for justice and accountability. Women’s access to justice referral pathways is also limited by patriarchal and cultural stereotypes. Isolating civilians from life-saving services is another branch of the junta’s deceitful tactics. Many of the victims of their atrocities are from low-income communities who lack the financial capacity and legal literacy to access services. The junta has a long history of committing sexual abuse against young women and girls. The abuse leaves survivors traumatized, often without reparations for the crimes committed against them. In detention, prisoners are allowed limited access to water. Due to the unsanitary conditions, women in the prison often take contraceptives. Even though there may be consequences to their health, women political prisoners in Dawei Township have no choice but receive the contraceptive injections through the clinics in the prison. Inadequate access to sanitary conditions while unlawfully detained is yet another violation they are forced to endure. As tens of thousands of positive cases and hundreds of deaths from COVID-19 are being reported, prisons throughout the country are also affected by the coronavirus. Making it worse is the military’s unwillingness to contain the pandemic and provide proper medical care. Dr. Htar Htar Lin, the Director of the National Immunization Program and one of the leading experts on COVID-19 in Burma/ Myanmar, who was arrested with her family on June 20, is now infected with the virus. While two women reportedly died in Insein Prison in the month of July due to being denied medical care. One was Moe Thu, a 42-year-old anti-coup protest leader from Khayan Township in Yangon Region, whose colleagues believed she died of COVID-19. In response to the negligence of the prison’s management over the deteriorating COVID-19 pandemic and its discriminatory medical treatment within prison, women from the two female detention blocks in Insein Prison staged a protest in the morning of July 23 spreading across the prison. Young children are not exempt from this horrendous treatment. Ko Soe Htay, a Burmese human rights activist, says his five-year-old daughter was arrested and detained in his place with his wife and elder daughter. The family was forced to endure stress positions by the junta. Since her release, he says his young daughter has been traumatized. His eldest, who remains in prison, is suffering from life-threatening injuries..."
Source/publisher: Women’s League of Burma
Date of entry/update: 2021-08-18
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Title: Daily Briefing in Relation to the Military Coup (Updated 17 August 2021)
Description: "As of 17 August, (999) people are now confirmed killed by this junta coup. AAPP compiled and documented (1) fallen hero today. This (1) fallen hero from Kyauksei Township in Mandalay Region died on August 16 and was documented today. This is the number verified by AAPP, the actual number of fatalities is likely much higher. We will continue adding as and when. As of August 17, a total of (5712) people are currently under detention. (255) people have been sentenced in person, of them 26 have been sentenced to death (incl. 2 children). 1984 are evading arrest warrants. 118 people have been sentenced in absentia, of them 39 sentenced to death in absentia. In total 65 sentenced to death, in person and absentia. We are also continuing to verify the recently released detainees. Than Sein, a local villager from Kyauk Sauk Kalay Village in Kyauksei Township, Mandalay Region, who was arrested by the terrorist junta’s troop around 10 am on August 15, died on the morning of August 16 due to severe beatings. Three of his teeth fell out due to the punching, and beating with wire and bamboo sticks because Than Sein did not open his phone lock. Than Sein was beaten this way until in the evening, according to locals. Than Sein was actively involved in his community and in-hiding after the terrorist junta came to search and arrest NLD supporters. He was arrested because a junta-appointed administrator informed that he had arrived home from hiding. Kyaw Thiha, a protest leader with the Mandalay Boycott Forces Column, was hit by a private car driven by the terrorist junta’s troop wearing plain clothes yesterday. Kyaw Thiha was beaten and arrested at gunpoint at 5pm on August 16 on his way driving a motorbike. In addition to this, the terrorist junta raided houses where protestors were hiding and Pi Ti, one of the protestors in that boycott column, was arrested that day. AAPP will continue to keep you informed of verified daily arrests, charges, sentences and fatalities in relation to the attempted coup, and update our lists to the details of these alleged offences. If you receive any information about detentions of, or charges against CSO leaders, activists, journalists, CDM workers, other civilians and fallen heroes in relation to the military and police crackdown on dissent. Please submit to the following addresses: [email protected] [email protected]..."
Source/publisher: Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP)
Date of entry/update: 2021-08-17
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Title: Military arrests leader of Mandalay protest alliance
Sub-title: Kyaw Thiha, the youth head of an alliance of multiple protest columns, was stopped on his motorbike, beaten and arrested at gunpoint by plainclothes junta soldiers
Description: "A youth leader from the Mandalay Protest Alliance Force, was arrested by the junta’s forces while driving near Mandalay University at around 5pm on Monday. Plainclothes soldiers, arriving in domestic vehicles, stopped a motorbike driven by activist Kyaw Thiha—who is in his 20s—beat him, and took him with them at gunpoint, according to an eyewitness. Thura Aung, a friend who had been staying with him and another leader of the alliance, said that over 20 troops later inspected Kyaw Thiha’s former home in Patheingyi Township at 8pm that night. “They also raided the place where we were staying. We’re all on the run now. I still don’t know about our other comrades, but I’m in a safe place now,” Thura Aung told Myanmar Now. The Mandalay Protest Alliance Force has been a frequent target of the brutal crackdowns by the military on anti-coup resistance. Junta vehicles drove into the protest column in both May and June, injuring demonstrators. Six protesters including a university lecturer were arrested near Mandalay University on the morning of June 14 after the column was hit by a car driven by military personnel. The Mandalay Protest Alliance Force formed when multiple Mandalay protest columns joined forces to revolt against the dictatorship. They include Daung Sit Thi (Peacock Warriors); All Burma Federation of Student Unions (ABFSU); Academics; Labourers; Farmers; Mandalay University Students; BEHS (7) Students; and Sein Pan. Thura Aung said that they would not be stopping their resistance to military rule. “They can arrest us all they want but they can’t break our revolutionary spirit. We’re not backing down, not by an inch. We will fight for the truth until the end,” he said..."
Source/publisher: "Myanmar Now" (Myanmar)
Date of entry/update: 2021-08-17
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Title: Myanmar’s Junta Seen Moving to Dissolve NLD to Ensure Grip on Power
Sub-title: The military has arrested more than 300 party members, including 98 lawmakers, since February.
Description: "Myanmar’s junta is targeting members of the deposed National League for Democracy (NLD), including its leader Aung San Suu Kyi and dozens of lawmakers, in a bid to disband the party and secure its tenuous hold on power six months after overthrowing the government, ousted lawmakers and analysts said Monday. A member of the NLD’s Central Committee told RFA’s Myanmar Service that the military regime has arrested a total of 324 NLD members—98 of whom are members of parliament (MPs)—since its Feb. 1 coup d’état. Among the detained are 15 members of the NLD’s Central Committee, as well as five regional and state chief ministers, the committee member said, speaking on condition of anonymity due to security concerns. Other senior NLD members have died in detention since the coup, including Aung San Suu Kyi’s personal attorney Nyan Win on July 20 and Bago region MP Nyunt Shwe, who died of COVID-19 in prison on Monday. Three party members—Khin Maung Latt and Zaw Myat Lin of Myanmar’s largest city Yangon and Kyaw Kyaw from the capital Naypyidaw—were allegedly tortured to death at interrogation centers, according to the committee member. Meanwhile, 10 people, including Magway Region Chief Minister Dr. Aung Moe Nyo, have been sentenced by the military to between two and three years in prison and face additional charges. NLD chairwoman Aung San Suu Kyi, former president Win Myint, and several other party leaders remain in detention on a variety of anti-state charges after being rounded up in the aftermath of the coup. The Central Committee member told RFA that the junta is targeting the NLD with the goal of removing the party from politics altogether. “The junta is afraid of losing the state authority it unlawfully seized,” they said. The committee member said they believe the military’s leadership was unhappy with the socio-economic development, transparency, and other reforms that the NLD delivered after winning the country’s 2015 elections, and afraid of being held to account for the corruption and other crimes it had committed during its 1962-2011 rule. “That must be why they are trying to completely remove the NLD from Myanmar politics, hoping that afterwards they’d be free to do what they want,” the committee member said. “[NLD] party leaders and party members are being unlawfully persecuted, and people are being brutally suppressed so that they cannot interact with the party.” Holding on to power The junta says a landslide victory by the NLD in the country’s November 2020 general election was the result of voter fraud, but has yet to provide evidence of its claims and has violently repressed widespread prot4ests, killing 998 people and arresting 5,711 since the coup, according to the Bangkok-based Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP). The regime’s Union Election Commission (UEC) announced on July 26 that the 2020 election results had been officially annulled, although the NLD has dismissed the decision as illegal, saying it invalidates the will of the people. The military has called for a change in the format of the election to include proportional representation ahead of a new ballot. Political analyst Than Soe Naing told RFA that the military’s actions are aimed at holding on to power. “It doesn’t matter when elections are held—as long as the people wholeheartedly support the NLD, it will be difficult for the military to maintain power,” he said. “This is why the junta is working towards the abolition of the NLD and the long-term imprisonment of its leaders.” In the aftermath of the coup, the military raided NLD offices across the country, confiscating documents and office equipment and destroying party signboards. Party officials say grassroot-level NLD offices have since removed all signs, citing security concerns. Aung Kyi Nyunt, a member of the NLD Central Committee, said that despite the military’s efforts, the party will endure because it continues to represent the will of the people. “I don’t believe that the people will accept the annulment of the election results or participate in new elections, as they already made their decision,” he said. “As long as the people are there, the party will be there.” Little hope for justice Meanwhile, family members of imprisoned NLD lawmakers told RFA on Monday that they have little hope for justice while the junta remains in charge of the country. Lin Naing, the husband of jailed Taungup township MP Ni Ni May Myint, said that the military had arrested his wife and many other NLD members with complete impunity. “We didn’t know where people were interrogated after being taken away—most were taken to court from interrogation centers and imprisoned straight away,” he said. “There is no transparency. Those arrested were not allowed to speak with their lawyers and were jailed on random charges. Almost all the cases are like that. Anyone who is charged under Section 505 (a) of the Penal Code [for ‘defamation of the military’] has no legal protection.” Ni Ni May Myint was arrested in Yangon on May 12 along with NLD youth leader Chit Chit Chaw and sentenced to three years in prison for defaming the military. The pair have been denied visits with family members, Lin Naing said. Thant Zin Tun, a Pyithu Hluttaw member from Dekkhina Thiri township, has been in detention in Naypyidaw Prison since March 2, when he was arrested in the capital along with Naypyidaw Council Development Committee member Min Thu, NLD MP Kyaw Min Hlaing, and Amyotha Hluttaw member Maung Maung Swe. A member of Thant Zin Tun’s family, who declined to be named, said the junta has been devoting a significant amount of effort to building a case against the MP. “We were allowed to see him 12 days after his arrest, but we haven’t seen him since,” the relative said. “They are meticulously constructing a case so that they can sentence him to prison. They have called in ‘witnesses’ that they want to testify in the case. There is nothing we can do for him.” Attempts by RFA to reach junta spokesman Maj. Gen. Zaw Min Tun for comment went unanswered Monday..."
Source/publisher: "RFA" (USA)
Date of entry/update: 2021-08-17
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Title: Daily Briefing in Relation to the Military Coup (Updated 16 August 2021)
Description: "As of 16 August, (998) people are now confirmed killed by this junta coup. AAPP compiled and documented (27) fallen heroes today. (1) was an MP from Bago Township in Bago Region who died today and (26) from Dawei Township in Tanintharyi Region, Bago Township in Bago Region, Hlaing Thayar Township in Yangon Region and Kani Township in Sagaing Region were killed on previous days and documented today. This is the number verified by AAPP, the actual number of fatalities is likely much higher. We will continue adding as and when. As of August 16, a total of (5711) people are currently under detention. (255) people have been sentenced in person, of them 26 have been sentenced to death (incl. 2 children). 1984 are evading arrest warrants. 118 people have been sentenced in absentia, of them 39 sentenced to death in absentia. In total 65 sentenced to death, in person and absentia. We are also continuing to verify the recently released detainees. Nyunt Shwe, MP of Bago Region Hluttaw in constituency No. (1) of Bago Township and also executive committee chairman of the NLD in Bago Township, contracted COVID-19 in prison and died in the early morning of August 16 from the disease while at Bago Hospital receiving medical treatment. Nyunt Shwe had been charged under Section 505(a) of the Penal Code and detained in Bago Prison. A civilian named Aung Yu from Dawei Township in Tanintharyi Region, who was arrested on the night of August 11, died on August 14, three days after his arrest. His wife was informed Aung Yu died due to COVID-19, but his wife has denied that her husband caught the disease. On the night of August 14, a young man playing a game on a bench in front of a shop panicked and ran into the house in front of him when he saw a junta soldier patrol in Paya Gyi Town, Bago Township, Bago Region. The other young man in that house named Ye Htet Ko was shot dead in his left chest as the junta troops opened fire into the house with the door closed. Han Zaw Tun a.k.a Toke Pye who suffers from mental illness and lives in Pa Dan Village, was beaten by the terrorist junta’s appointed night guards and died on the spot. The incident happened in front of the Ward (20) administrator’s office in Hlaing Thayar Township in Yangon Region at 2:30 am on August 13 while Han Zaw Tun a.k.a Toke Pye was returning from his mother’s home. AAPP will continue to keep you informed of verified daily arrests, charges, sentences and fatalities in relation to the attempted coup, and update our lists to the details of these alleged offences. If you receive any information about detentions of, or charges against CSO leaders, activists, journalists, CDM workers, other civilians and fallen heroes in relation to the military and police crackdown on dissent. Please submit to the following addresses: [email protected] [email protected]..."
Source/publisher: Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP)
Date of entry/update: 2021-08-16
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Type: Individual Documents
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Size: 1.39 MB 5.82 MB 1.83 MB
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Title: Moving beyond the politics of recognition in Myanmar
Description: "Since the 1 February coup, Myanmar’s military government is attempting to gain international recognition and legitimacy while the country’s people continue to oppose it. The international community has emphasised the need for a peaceful resolution. Against the backdrop of this political impasse, the politics of recognition is taking centre stage — but is this helping anybody? The contentious situation is challenging governments if and how they should engage with Myanmar’s military regime. The international community represented by member states at the United Nations appears unable to arrive at an effective consensus towards the turmoil in Myanmar. As states navigate diplomacy and realpolitik, their engagements with Myanmar are coming under increasing scrutiny. The impasse is drawing attention to any diplomatic signs of movement in the international community towards Myanmar, such as Myanmar’s relationship with the United Kingdom, China’s position and the composition of Myanmar’s participation in April’s ASEAN Leaders’ Meeting. It boils down to the politics of recognition and who can speak on behalf of whom. In the realm of diplomacy, nuance matters. There is a diplomatic practice that countries recognise states, not governments. This practice provides countries flexibility in their diplomatic engagements, particularly when dealing with a state whose military has taken control of government and is deemed illegitimate by its own people and the international community. It is over this point that the diplomatic world and the public are diverging. Many people see any recognition of a military appointee as affording the military with recognition to run the country at the expense of its democratically elected government. Back in April, ASEAN faced this challenge over whether the presence of a military representative at the ASEAN Leaders’ Meeting would constitute the regional body officially recognising the military as the government of Myanmar. At the meeting, Senior General Min Aung Hlaing attended in his position as Commander-in-Chief but was not afforded official recognition as Head of Government. While this diplomatic ambiguity allowed ASEAN to initially agree on a regional approach to help address the Myanmar crisis, it is yet to break the impasse towards a peaceful settlement. The only agreement that the five permanent members of the UN Security Council have reached through public statements is that the international response to the situation in Myanmar should be led by ASEAN. Six months after the coup, over 900 people have been killed and over 5300 arrested, charged or sentenced by the military. COVID-19 is rampant, and many are going without the medical attention they need. Some vaccines and medical equipment are supplied by China, the European Union, Singapore and Japan, but not nearly enough for those most in need. Food prices are also rising and the devastating impact of insufficient access to necessities is taking hold. As Myanmar faces the grim consequences of dual political and pandemic crises, more questions will be raised about the ability of the international community to help people who are suffering. Pressure will continue to mount on ASEAN to act and see through the implementation of its Five-Point Consensus. So it will be for other countries like the United Kingdom that have been at the forefront in opposing the military regime. China has supplied two million vaccines to Myanmar and 10,000 to the Kachin Independence Army-controlled areas as well as the Wa autonomous region on its border. China has interests and levers to influence the military in Myanmar and concurrently engages with ethnic army-controlled areas as local authorities. How these countries will calibrate their diplomatic engagement with the military regime in Myanmar while attempting to alleviate the worsening humanitarian situation remains to be seen. Given the efforts initiated by ASEAN to break the impasse in Myanmar, the international community should work with the regional body to fulfil the Five-Point Consensus to support those most in need. The focus needs to be people-centred to engage entities that can deliver assistance directly. This means engaging established networks with access to affected people like China has done in its vaccine distribution. The international community can use trusted partners like the Red Cross Movement, relevant UN agencies and local partners. ASEAN has the potential to provide a platform for engagement to facilitate access to support these efforts. ASEAN is supported by the international community to facilitate engagement with all parties including the military, the National Unity Government, the Civil Disobedience Movement and ethnic armed groups de facto recognised in the Five-Point Consensus. The Five-Point Consensus provides the framework for action — it is time now for ASEAN to provide a supportive ecosystem to move from words to actions. While the people of Myanmar remain resilient in the face of adversity, their neighbours and the rest of the international community must focus on helping them deal with the crisis beyond the politics of recognition. While the world of diplomacy is defined largely by the nuanced positions states take for national interest, actors must balance this ambiguity with the need to invest in a more substantive and consistent agenda to find a political resolution and support the people in Myanmar. Alistair DB Cook is Coordinator of the Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief Programme and Senior Fellow at the Centre for Non-Traditional Security Studies, S Rajaratnam School of International Studies, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. Mely Caballero-Anthony is Professor, President’s Chair in International Relations and Security Studies and Head of the Centre for Non-Traditional Security Studies at the S Rajaratnam School of International Studies, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore..."
Source/publisher: "East Asia Forum" (Australia)
Date of entry/update: 2021-08-15
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Title: Daily Briefing in Relation to the Military Coup (Update 14 August 2021)
Description: "As of 14 August, (971) people are now confirmed killed by this junta coup. AAPP compiled and documented (3) fallen heroes today. These (3) fallen heroes from Falam Township in Chin State, Waingmaw Township in Kachin State and Myaung Township in Sagaing Region were killed on previous days and documented today. This is the number verified by AAPP, the actual number of fatalities is likely much higher. We will continue adding as and when. As of August 14, a total of (5604) people are currently under detention. (255) people have been sentenced in person, of them 26 have been sentenced to death (incl. 2 children). 1984 are evading arrest warrants. 118 people have been sentenced in absentia, of them 39 sentenced to death in absentia. In total 65 sentenced to death, in person and absentia. We are also continuing to verify the recently released detainees. A woman called Lang Pyung was shot by the 58th Infantry Battalion after returning from purchasing groceries from Waingmaw on the evening of August 13 when their motorbike passed through a road in front of the 58th Infantry Battalion, her husband managed to escape. The couple, from Wu Yan village in Waingmaw Township, Kachin State. Lang Pyung died at Waingmaw Hospital from a gunshot wound from left to right rib. On August 12, Joshua from Parmun Chaung village in Falam Township, Chin State, was arrested by the terrorist junta’s troop, and shot dead in the back of the head. On the night of August 10, the terrorist junta’s troop raided Kyi Kone village in Sagaing Region’s Myaung Township and beat unprovoked a local villager called Nyi Nyi Latt. The junta soldiers shot him to death when he then ran away. The body of Nyi Nyi Latt was found in a port in the village with many injuries on his body, and gunshot injuries to the neck and head, according to locals. AAPP will continue to keep you informed of verified daily arrests, charges, sentences and fatalities in relation to the attempted coup, and update our lists to the details of these alleged offences. If you receive any information about detentions of, or charges against CSO leaders, activists, journalists, CDM workers, other civilians and fallen heroes in relation to the military and police crackdown on dissent. Please submit to the following addresses: [email protected] [email protected] ..."
Source/publisher: Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP)
Date of entry/update: 2021-08-14
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Type: Individual Documents
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Title: Daily Briefing in Relation to the Military Coup (Updated 13 August 2021)
Description: "As of 13 August, (968) people are now confirmed killed by this junta coup. AAPP compiled and documented (2) fallen heroes today. These (2) fallen heroes from Myingyan Township in Mandalay Region and Minkin Township in Sagaing Region were killed on previous days and documented today. This is the number verified by AAPP, the actual number of fatalities is likely much higher. We will continue adding as and when. As of August 13, a total of (5571) people are currently under detention. (255) people have been sentenced in person, of them 26 have been sentenced to death (incl. 2 children). 1984 are evading arrest warrants. 118 people have been sentenced in absentia, of them 39 sentenced to death in absentia. In total 65 sentenced to death, in person and absentia. We are also continuing to verify the recently released detainees. A young girl around one-years-old was shot in the head and stomach and died on the spot in the morning of August 12 at Myingyan Township in Mandalay Region when the terrorist junta’s soldiers opened fire on three young men on motorbikes near the child’s house. In addition to this, Nyein Chan, father of the child, was shot twice in the arm, and the mother was also shot in the leg. On August 5, junta soldiers and the Pyu Saw Htee detained five Than Pauk villagers near Obo village in Sagaing Region’s Minkin Township allegedly for being involved in the anti-coup revolution. A 26-year-old was beaten to death, called Hlaing Wai Oo, right in front of the detained persons at a school in Pan Sat village. Two sons had taken their mother to Yar Village which is close to Pan Sat village because she was suffering from illness. A total of five people including two sons and their mother and two other men were arrested while returning together. Hlaing Wai Oo was killed in front of his mother. A few days later, three of the villagers were released, but nothing has yet been heard about the one remaining villager. Win Zaw was arrested when terrorist junta troops wearing plain clothes did not find his son when they searched his home in Dawei, Tanitharyi Region on the morning of August 12. Myint San, MP of Magwe Region Hluttaw in the constituency No. (2) of Pauk Township and also NLD party member, who was charged under Section 505(a) of the Penal Code and had a warrant issued against her, was arrested in Nattalin Town in Bago Region on the night of August 11 by local junta police. AAPP will continue to keep you informed of verified daily arrests, charges, sentences and fatalities in relation to the attempted coup, and update our lists to the details of these alleged offences. If you receive any information about detentions of, or charges against CSO leaders, activists, journalists, CDM workers, other civilians and fallen heroes in relation to the military and police crackdown on dissent. Please submit to the following addresses: [email protected] [email protected]..."
Source/publisher: Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP)
Date of entry/update: 2021-08-13
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Title: Daily Briefing in Relation to the Military Coup (Updated 12 August 2021)
Description: "As of 12 August, (966) people are now confirmed killed by this junta coup. AAPP compiled and documented (1) fallen heroes today. This (1) fallen hero from Botahtaung Township in Yangon Region was killed on August 10 and documented today. This is the number verified by AAPP, the actual number of fatalities is likely much higher. We will continue adding as and when. In relation to the apartment raid by the terrorist junta on 44th street in Botahtaung Township, today, AAPP added Wai Wai Myint a.k.a Apple to our fatality list as we confirmed she had died then. AAPP will continue to verify and report information regarding this incident. As of August 12, a total of (5562) people are currently under detention. (255) people have been sentenced in person, of them 26 have been sentenced to death (incl. 2 children). 1984 are evading arrest warrants. 118 people have been sentenced in absentia, of them 39 sentenced to death in absentia. In total 65 sentenced to death, in person and absentia. We are also continuing to verify the recently released detainees. At least five philanthropists including Naing Lin and Jue Mar were arrested on the morning of August 11 whilst they were planning to provide rice to the poor in Wakema Town, Ayeyarwady Region. A local said it is unknown why they were arrested. On the evening of July 31, Poe Ei Khaing, the wife of Aung Kyaw Htet and his one-year-old daughter were arrested as hostage when the terrorist junta did not find Aung Kyaw Htet from Mandalay who is accused of having relations with the PDF. Poe Ei Khaing was suffering from an illness when she was arrested. The one-year-old daughter was released on August 2 two days after her arrest. The day his one-year-old daughter was released, the police station announced they would allow part-time breastfeeding, but they did not end up allowing this the next day, at which point they said Poe Ei Khaing contracted COVID-19. After this, he did not hear anything about his wife, according to Aung Kyaw Htet. The nephew of Nay Myo named Myat Noe Lwin was detained as a hostage when the junta did not find Nay Myo, NLD Ward and Village Secretary of Kyauk Gyi Su Ward in Bago at home on the night of August 5. Nay Myo is charged under Section 505 of the Penal Code. In addition to this, the parents and son of Han Tun were detained as hostages when the junta did not find Han Tun, NLD campaigner of Pyan Kya Village in Sagaing Region’s Tabayin Township on the afternoon of August 8. AAPP will continue to keep you informed of verified daily arrests, charges, sentences and fatalities in relation to the attempted coup, and update our lists to the details of these alleged offences. If you receive any information about detentions of, or charges against CSO leaders, activists, journalists, CDM workers, other civilians and fallen heroes in relation to the military and police crackdown on dissent. Please submit to the following addresses: [email protected] [email protected] “Our uprising must succeed”..."
Source/publisher: Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP)
Date of entry/update: 2021-08-12
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Title: Two Myanmar Activists Die, Three Injured in Jump From Building While Fleeing Police
Sub-title: The father of one of those who died said witnesses told him his son survived the fall and was beaten to death by police.
Description: "Two pro-democracy activists died and three others were seriously injured in Myanmar when they jumped from a building in Yangon to avoid capture by junta authorities, witnesses said Wednesday, while the father of one of those killed said he was told his son survived the impact and was beaten to death by police. Ye Min Oo and a woman, Wai Wai Myint, also called Pan Thee, lost their lives Tuesday night when they and three friends jumped from the roof of a building as junta forces stormed their apartment in Botahtaung township in Myanmar’s largest city. The three who survived the jump—Wai Phyo Aung, Thiha Kaung Set, and Poe Kyaw Kyaw—were arrested by police and taken with the bodies of those killed to a military hospital in Mingaladon township in northern Yangon. Tin Zaw—the father of Ye Min Oo, who died Tuesday—said he was told by witnesses that his son was still alive after the fall. "Immediately after the fall, my son was dying, not dead. Then police officers beat them up, and my son died after the beating,” he told RFA in an exclusive interview. “I got that information from witnesses and residents.” A neighborhood resident told RFA on Wednesday that two of those who jumped called out three or four times for water and then died, while the other three remained motionless after they hit the ground. “Because they fell from a height, they must have broken their limbs,” he said. The neighbor, who spoke on condition of anonymity for safety reasons, told RFA the fleeling activists apparently got trapped on the rooftops of the old buildings. “You could climb up to the roof, and the kids must have thought they could run across the rooftops. But there were only four buildings you could run across like that,” he said. “There was a five-storey building blocking their path on one side and an eight-storey building on the other, and they must have run this way and that, and finally when they couldn’t escape they must have jumped,” he said. Dead and injured taken to hospital Military forces ordered community service workers to take both the two who died and the three survivors to a 1,000-bed military hospital in Mingaladon, a member of the Lin Let Social Welfare Association told RFA. “The two who died were dead when we got there,” the charity worker said. “We were sure they were dead because we made all the necessary checks required to see if they were still alive,” she said. “One of the injured had a broken leg, and another had a head injury and had to be taken to the hospital’s neurology center.” Soe Myat Thu, the husband of 29-year-old Wai Wai Myint, said he hopes the military will give him back his wife’s body so that he can bury her according to her own request. “I’m trying to get my wife’s body back, but we are under the rule of a military coup, so what can I do?” he asked. “If they refuse to release her body, there is nothing we can do about it.” “She always said, ‘Don’t cremate my body when I die. Please bury me in a grave,’ and I want to fulfill that last wish. I don’t care about anything else,” he said. A police report now circulating on social media says the raid on the activists’ apartment was carried out by a team led by Tactical Commander Col. Soe Tun of the ruling Military Council, while a military press release on Wednesday confirmed that two had been killed and three injured in the operation, with hand grenades and bomb-making materials recovered during the raid. An independent scout Ye Min Oo, who was born in 1994, was not connected with Myanmar’s shadow National Unity Government (NUG), People’s Defense Force (PDF), or any other formally organized group, his father said. Instead, he had worked independently with friends in a scouting unit gathering intelligence on pro-junta informers and other military targets, Tin Zaw said. “He never expressed any political opinions, but after the February coup, he became actively involved in anti-coup protests, and although I did not forbid this as a parent, I warned him to be mindful and careful,” he said. “My son stood and fought for his beliefs, and now he has fallen in the fight,” he said. Tin Zaw said Ye Min Oo’s fate was the outcome of the military overthrow of the country’s democratically elected government on unfounded claims of voter fraud in the country’s November 2020 election. The junta has yet to provide evidence of its claims and has violently suppressed nationwide demonstrations calling for a return to civilian rule. According to the Bangkok-based Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, at least 948 civilians were killed by police and soldiers between Feb. 1 and Aug. 10. “These kids were pushed into the struggle by the Feb. 1 coup. They were pure and innocent youths. I am very proud of my son,” Tin Zaw said..."
Source/publisher: "RFA" (USA)
Date of entry/update: 2021-08-12
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Title: At Least 252 Reported Attacks and Threats to Health Care in Myanmar During Six Months of Military’s Crackdown
Description: "At least 252 attacks and threats against health workers, facilities, and transports have been perpetrated in Myanmar from February 1 to July 31, 2021, according to an analysis based on open-source reports conducted by Insecurity Insight, Physicians for Human Rights (PHR), and Johns Hopkins University Center for Public Health and Human Rights (CPHHR). The country’s armed forces and police reportedly committed the vast majority of attacks amid ongoing protests against the military coup. In addition to the military’s attacks on civilians and demonstrators, health workers have been targeted for providing medical care to injured civilians and other health workers have been attacked for their participation in the Civil Disobedience Movement (CDM), which is protesting the military takeover. Violence against health care is increasingly derailing Myanmar’s COVID-19 response and vaccine roll-out, the research brief finds. Within the 252 total incidents that took place across Myanmar during the first six months of the military’s coup and crackdown (February 1 to July 31, 2021), Insecurity Insight, PHR, and CPHHR highlight reports of: 190 health workers arrested 37 health workers injured 25 health workers killed Hospitals raided at least 86 times Hospitals occupied at least 55 times 17 incidents impacting COVID-19 response measures The incidents referred to are based on the dataset 01 February – 31 July 2021 Violence Against Health Care in Myanmar Data, which is available on the Humanitarian Data Exchange (HDX). For the purposes of this research brief, one incident can comprise multiple types of violence or threats such as those above. For example, in one reported incident in Kyauk Kone township in Yangon city on February 27, 20 health workers were arrested and four were injured. The brief does not include incidents of violence against patients. While the vast majority of attacks and threats against health care have been perpetrated by Myanmar’s armed forces, non-state actors also reportedly committed violence against health care in May and June. Of the 252 total incidents, 234 are attributed to Myanmar’s armed forces (State Administrative Council/SAC or the Tatmadaw) and 15 to non-state actors. The increase in attacks by non-state actors was driven in part by escalating conflict between the military and local ethnic militias in recent months, particularly in the Chin and Kachin states. The research brief highlights reports that staff from the World Health Organization , non-governmental organizations (NGO), and international non-governmental organizations have been threatened and forced to return to work by the military council. Most of them were either working from home or had stopped working due to the current security situation. There are reports that the SAC is trying to replace NGO workers believed to be close to the CDM with government appointees. “Myanmar’s COVID-19 response is on life support – yet another consequence of the military’s unconscionable violence against health workers and facilities,” said Jennifer Leigh, an epidemiologist serving as PHR’s Myanmar researcher. “Six months into the coup, the military’s war on medics rages on. By brutalizing medical professionals during a pandemic, Myanmar’s junta is escalating its COVID-19 catastrophe and violating long-standing international principles of protection of health care, including the obligations of health professionals to care for the sick and wounded without interference.” The research brief highlights a range of violence that has marred the country’s COVID-19 response. For example, personal protective equipment and oxygen supplies were confiscated for exclusive use by the military in Chin, Kayin, and Yangon. Throughout July, the military reportedly assaulted four civilians for transporting an oxygen tank in Mandalay, arrested three civilians retrieving oxygen and nine volunteers assisting with fills, and killed one civilian in search of oxygen. In one incident on July 13, 2021, security forces opened fire on crowds of civilians queuing in line for oxygen cylinders in Yangon. COVID-19 centers have been raided and, at least two, closed down. A COVID-19 facility in Mandalay was raided and its medical equipment seized for alleged COVID-19 violations. Two COVID-19 treatment centers in Sagaing were destroyed by military shelling. “Tragically, Myanmar has endured more reported attacks and threats against health care in 2021 than any country on Earth,” said Christina Wille, director of Insecurity Insight. “Myanmar’s surging COVID-19 crisis increasingly threatens other countries in the region and the global community. We call on all United Nations (UN) Member States to act to ensure the full implementation of Security Council Resolution 2286 and adopt measures to enhance the protection of and access to health care in situations of armed conflict. All people in Myanmar should benefit from unhindered delivery and distribution of COVID-19 vaccinations, medication, and supplies.” Insecurity Insight, PHR, and CPHHR used an open-source methodology to compile incidents noted in local, national, and international news outlets, online databases, and social media reports. The incidents reported are neither a complete nor a representative list of all incidents. Most incidents have not undergone verification by Insecurity Insight, PHR, and CPHHR. Data collection is ongoing and data may change as more information is made available. However, the data offers a snapshot of how Myanmar’s military is persecuting health workers and targeting facilities amid its broader crackdown on dissent. The research brief makes several recommendations to UN Member States, urging the international community to ensure the full implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 2286, adopted May 2016, which strongly condemns attacks on medical personnel in conflict situations..."
Source/publisher: Physicians for Human Rights (New York)
Date of entry/update: 2021-08-11
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Title: Daily Briefing in Relation to the Military Coup (Updated 11 August 2021)
Description: "As of 11 August, (965) people are now confirmed killed by this junta coup. Today there were no confirmed fallen heroes. This is the number verified by AAPP, the actual number of fatalities is likely much higher. We will continue adding as and when. In relation to the terrorist junta’s raid of the apartment on 44th street in Botahtaung Township, Yangon, some media outlets have said five people died, others that six died. It is without doubt there were deaths, but we are continuing to inquire and confirm the exact figure and identities. As of August 11, a total of (5550) people are currently under detention. (255) people have been sentenced in person, of them 26 have been sentenced to death (incl. 2 children). 1984 are evading arrest warrants. 118 people have been sentenced in absentia, of them 39 sentenced to death in absentia. In total 65 sentenced to death, in person and absentia. We are also continuing to verify the recently released detainees. Terrorist junta’s troops entered Htauk Kyant village in Sagaing Region’s Kalay Township on the afternoon of August 10 and arrested the father-in-law and mother-in-law of Maung Phyu when they did not find Maung Phyu living in that village. AAPP will continue to keep you informed of verified daily arrests, charges, sentences and fatalities in relation to the attempted coup, and update our lists to the details of these alleged offences. If you receive any information about detentions of, or charges against CSO leaders, activists, journalists, CDM workers, other civilians and fallen heroes in relation to the military and police crackdown on dissent. Please submit to the following addresses: [email protected] [email protected] “Our uprising must succeed”..."
Source/publisher: Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP)
Date of entry/update: 2021-08-11
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Title: Myanmar army attacks medics, hampering COVID response, rights groups say
Description: "Aug 10 (Reuters) - Myanmar's army carried out at least 252 attacks and threats against health workers since a Feb. 1 coup, killing at least 25 medics and hampering the response to a resurgent outbreak of COVID-19, a report by rights groups said on Tuesday. More than 190 health workers have been arrested and 86 raids on hospitals carried out since the coup, said the report by Insecurity Insight, Physicians for Human Rights (PHR), and Johns Hopkins University Center for Public Health and Human Rights (CPHHR). They identified 15 incidents in which the response to the COVID-19 outbreak had been obstructed - including confiscation of personal protection equipment and oxygen supplies for the exclusive use of the army. Some COVID-19 care centres were forced to close, it said. "Health workers have been forced into hiding for fear of being arrested or after having arrest warrants issued against them," said the report. "In some cases, their family members were arrested instead." Reuters was unable to reach spokespeople for the junta or health ministry for comment on the report. Myanmar's healthcare system has largely collapsed since the army overthrew elected leader Aung San Suu Kyi, with many medical workers joining a Civil Disobedience Movement in strikes to protest against junta rule. The military authorities have appealed to doctors to return to work and have called for public cooperation to try to curb the latest outbreak of coronavirus, by far the most serious to hit the country of around 54 million people. An average of nearly 300 people have died a day from COVID-19 over the past week, according to official figures that medics believe to be underestimates because of a lack of testing. The outbreak was being brought under control to some extent because of the efforts of officials and the public, junta leader Min Aung Hlaing was quoted as saying by the state-run Global New Light of Myanmar. The report by the rights groups said that while the army had been behind most of the attacks on medical workers, some had been carried out by armed groups opposing the junta - including bomb blasts near hospitals and an attack on a military convoy that was reported to be carrying medicines..."
Source/publisher: "Reuters" (UK)
Date of entry/update: 2021-08-11
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Title: Myanmar military leaders attempting to legitimize power: UN Special Envoy
Sub-title: Six months after seizing power in a coup, Myanmar’s military leaders now appear to be moving to consolidate their rule, the UN Special Envoy for the country said on Tuesday, in her latest briefing to journalists in New York.
Description: "Christine Schraner Burgener said the situation in Myanmar “is still very worrisome”, amid a “severe” third wave of COVID-19 infections. Last week, senior army general Min Aung Hlaing announced he was appointing himself Prime Minister, and pledged to hold elections by 2023. Solidifying their grip “In my view, the Commander-in-Chief appears determined to solidify his grip on power with the latest caretaker government announcement; also, with the formal annulment of the election result from last year and declaration of the Commander-in-Chief to be Prime Minister of the country,” the UN envoy said, speaking from Switzerland. Ms. Schraner Burgener also expressed fear that the National League of Democracy (NLD), which won the November 2020 election, could also soon be forcibly disbanded. State Counsellor and party leader Aung San Suu Kyi, alongside President Win Myint, were detained in the 1 February coup. “This is an attempt to promote legitimacy against lack of international action taken”, she said. “And I have to make (it) clear that the UN does not recognize Governments, so it’s up to the Member States.” She underlined that “as long as Member States do not make any decision”, Myanmar’s Permanent Representative in New York, Kyaw Moe Tun, remains the country’s legitimate UN Ambassador, while Ms. Suu Kyi and President Myint are its leaders. Recently, international media reported that a plot was uncovered to kill or injure Ambassador Tun, who denounced the coup in the General Assembly Hall in New York. “I was really shocked to hear this, and clearly it’s now up to the investigation team to find out who is behind this attack,” said Ms.Schraner Burgener. Violence and pandemic The situation on the ground in Myanmar remains “very difficult”, she reported. “There is no freedom of speech, and I have still grave concerns about attacks against the free press. And I urge always in my discussions with the army to release political prisoners, including many media workers.” The military cracked down on pro-democracy demonstrations in the wake of the coup, and more than 960 people have been killed so far. Thousands more were arrested and detained, including foreigners and over 100 children. Meanwhile, clashes between the army and local defense forces continue. Violence has risen, and the defense groups are increasingly using “professional weapons”. At the same time, Myanmar is also facing a devastating battle against the coronavirus. More than 331,000 cases have been reported. UN agencies and partners are working to resume provision of health assistance, with priority given to vaccine rollout through the global solidarity initiative, COVAX, and to revitalizing immunizations generally. Ongoing UN engagement Ms. Schraner Burgener continues her engagement to find a peaceful solution to the political crisis in Myanmar, although she has yet to be allowed to travel there. The UN Special Envoy has been holding talks with the military, ethnic armed organizations, and other stakeholders, who include the National Unity Government (NUG), formed by exiled lawmakers ousted in the coup. Representatives come from the NLD, other parties and ethnic armed groups. Over the past two months, she has been promoting the idea of an inclusive dialogue organized around four “clusters” covering pandemic response, humanitarian assistance, and issues related to the Rohingya community. The final and biggest cluster would address root causes of the crisis, such as discussions around the federal system, the constitution, law reforms and the electoral system. She has also proposed establishing an international observer group on Myanmar. Membership would comprise China, India, Japan, Thailand, the United States, the United Kingdom, Norway, and Switzerland, in addition to the UN, the European Union and the Southeast Asian regional bloc, ASEAN. Promoting inclusive dialogue “The ethnic armed groups were in the majority very positive of this idea, and really want to find a peaceful solution,” she said, referring to the dialogue proposal. “The NUG…was interested in the idea but clearly would have pre-conditions to start such a dialogue.” Ms. Schraner Burgener held “a long conversation” with Soe Win, the army’s Deputy Commander-in-Chief, on 16 July. Although receptive to some of her ideas, including integrating health workers in COVID-19 prevention measures, “on the dialogue, I didn’t receive an answer: not a positive, not a negative.” She hoped that with the recent appointment of an ASEAN Special Envoy on Myanmar, an all-inclusive dialogue will take place, otherwise “it goes more and more in the direction of a civil war,” she warned..."
Source/publisher: UN News
Date of entry/update: 2021-08-11
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Title: Daily Briefing in Relation to the Military Coup (Updated 10 August 2021)
Description: "As of 10 August, (965) people are now confirmed killed by this junta coup. AAPP compiled and documented (3) fallen heroes today. (1) from Falam Township in Chin State was killed today and (2) from Myaing Township in Magway Region and Myanaung Township in Ayeyarwady Region were killed on previous days and documented today. This is the number verified by AAPP, the actual number of fatalities is likely much higher. We will continue adding as and when. As of August 10, a total of (5534) people are currently under detention. (255) people have been sentenced in person, of them 26 have been sentenced to death (incl. 2 children). 1984 are evading arrest warrants. 118 people have been sentenced in absentia, of them 39 sentenced to death in absentia. In total 65 sentenced to death, in person and absentia. We are also continuing to verify the recently released detainees. 60 year-old Pi Ngeih Tling was shot dead in the chest at home in an unprovoked shooting by the terrorist junta’s soldiers on the morning of August 10 at Falam Township in Chin State. On the afternoon of August 9, three junta police wearing plainclothes entered Pike Thin village and opened fire because a protest leader San Ko from Pike Thin Village escaped from arrest when three junta police tried to arrest him at a COVID-19 checkpoint. Aung Zay Ya, a villager from Pike Thin village in Magway Region’s Myaing Township, was dragged into their car because he was holding a slingshot when he went out of the house to look. When junta police arrived near a pond at the top of the village, they told Aung Zay Ya to get out of the car and told him to run towards the pond. While Aung Zay Ya was running, they shot him from his back. Aung Zay Ya died on the spot from this gunshot injury, according to a local. A family was informed that San Win from Tha Pyay Kone village in Ayeyarwady Region’s Myanaung Township, who was arrested by Tha Pyay Kone Village Police Station in the morning of August 7 for questioning, died at the hospital at 2 pm that day due to severe injuries. It is reported there were beatings all over his body consistent with torture. Win Tun and Aung Myint Oo from Tha Pyay Kone village were arrested with him and were released the same day. On the morning of August 9, local police Kyaw Kyaw Maung and a person wearing plain clothes came to his family to settle the case for 3 million kyats. It is reported that his family members will not accept this negotiation. AAPP will continue to keep you informed of verified daily arrests, charges, sentences and fatalities in relation to the attempted coup, and update our lists to the details of these alleged offences. If you receive any information about detentions of, or charges against CSO leaders, activists, journalists, CDM workers, other civilians and fallen heroes in relation to the military and police crackdown on dissent. Please submit to the following addresses: [email protected] [email protected] “Our uprising must succeed”..."
Source/publisher: Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP)
Date of entry/update: 2021-08-10
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Title: Myanmar Law Student Serving Three-Year Prison Sentence After Protesting Junta-Loyal Court
Description: "Twenty-year-old law student Theint Sandi Soe had been visiting her mother and four-year-old sister at their family home in Mogok when military police burst in and detained all three of them. Against the backdrop of Myanmar’s ongoing military coup, the arrests themselves did not send shockwaves. It was what happened next—an act of courageous defiance met with draconian law enforcement measures—that propelled Theint Sandi Soe’s name into news headlines, and that continues to fuel a frantic search for answers amid reports that the law student’s health is rapidly deteriorating in prison. Bargaining Chips Backfire Few were surprised when Myanmar’s military police burst into the family home; after all, Theint Sandi Soe’s father, U Soe Htay, was a prominent local protest leader, making him an obvious target for the oppressive regime. Since Myanmar’s military leadership, known as the Tatmadaw, overthrew the country’s elected government in February, millions have taken to the streets in protest. As of August 9, more than 7,000 people had been arrested, 962 had died (including, according to Human Rights Watch, some 75 children), and nearly 2,000 people remained in hiding from arrest warrants, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (Burma), a human rights advocacy group that tallies these figures daily. Few were surprised, even, when the authorities instead arrested his wife and two daughters after discovering their target was not at home the morning of June 13, despite only having arrived with a search warrant for the home and an arrest warrant for U Soe Htay. Reports of this grim tactic, detaining an activist’s family to lure him or her out of hiding, have abounded since the early days of the coup. Upon hearing Theint Sandi Soe had been detained, her friends worried for her, especially given her ongoing struggle with rheumatoid arthritis, which required frequent treatment and vigilant medical observation. Still, none of the individuals whom we spoke with for this interview had suspected at that point that she would be formally convicted of a crime, let alone sentenced to prison time. Common wisdom held that the authorities would use the women as bargaining chips to compel U Soe Htay to come forward, before ultimately releasing them. The release of the youngest daughter, four-year-old Su Htet Win, on June 30—two days after her fifth birthday, according to local media—seemed at first to affirm this theory. Had they played by the rules, Theint Sandi Soe and her mother Kyi Kyi Khaing, 44, would likely have walked free. But Theint Sandi Soe and Kyi Kyi Khaing refused to acknowledge the legitimacy of a court purporting to uphold the laws imposed by the Tatmadaw, whose very rule was illegal as far as they were concerned. The two women protested a routine hearing, and shortly thereafter were sentenced to three years incarceration on the grounds that they had violated article 505(a) of Myanmar’s penal code—a law on incitement that has attracted much controversy. In the aftermath of the sentencing, as Theint Sandi Soe’s family remains in hiding, we spoke with close friends about the promising young law student and the days and months leading up to her sentencing. JURIST conducted these interviews via video chat from Myanmar, with the assistance of a local translator on JURIST’s staff. Our interviewees will remain anonymous for the time being due to concerns for their security. Her Father’s Daughter By the time his wife and daughters were arrested, U Soe Htay had come full circle. He first made a name for himself as an impassioned proponent of Myanmar’s 1988 student uprising—a movement that championed democratic values, before being violently suppressed by the country’s military dictatorship. In more recent years, Myanmar appeared to have been charting a gradual course toward democracy; in 2008, the Tatmadaw established a new constitution that secured the military’s grip on power while also opening the door to civilian leadership. Between 2011 and 2021, power shifted from the military junta to a pro-military civilian administration before ultimately reaching the democratically elected National League for Democracy (NLD), led by Aung San Suu Kyi, who had been broadly recognized as the face of the 1988 uprising, and who had spent some 15 years under house arrest by the time of her release in 2010. Once the Tatmadaw overthrew the NLD in February 2021, U Soe Htay swiftly reclaimed his role in the pro-democratic protest movement. Given their lack of a relevant warrant, the Tatmadaw forces were likely unaware at the time of her arrest that Theint Sandi Soe had also been an active member of the opposition. “She thought that the coup was a violation of human rights, and she protested both on the streets and via social media,” said a close friend who had spent three years living in student dorms with Theint Sandi Soe. “She quickly joined the Civil Disobedience Movement (CDM) and advocated vocally for the opposition.” The impassioned advocacy was in keeping with her character: “She lives for the truth,“ said another friend and fellow law student. “And she’s so brave. If she believes something is right, she will never give up in fighting for it.” Despite their innate understanding of Theint Sandi Soe’s courage and commitment to the movement, her friends were frantic upon learning of her arrest. “When I found out she had been detained, I panicked. Before she was arrested, she had been very active in donating money to the CDM. I was worried that if I spoke out too much, she’d be tortured,” said one friend, who explained that her initial impulse was to attempt to control the potential damage from Theint Sandi Soe’s protest activities. “The first thing I did was get access to her and her mom’s social media accounts and deactivate them. I then set about looking for lawyers to put her family in touch with. All the while I felt like I was in a mist—I didn’t know what was happening or what I could do, and just felt so helpless and angry,” they said. Dire Conditions Much of what is known about Theint Sandi Soe’s prison conditions came from her five-year-old sister, who remained with her mother and older sister for nearly three weeks after their arrest. “Her baby sister told me how horrible it was in there—how they were forced to sit in stress positions for hours at a time, how they were forced to bathe in toilet water,” a friend and former dormmate recounted. Other detainees who were subsequently released also spoke of her declining health. “We were told that she’s extremely ill, and that she has not received any medical treatment for her rheumatoid arthritis,” the friend said. Audibly distressed as she spoke of the situation, the friend added: “I was so upset when I heard about her worsening health, but the more I thought about it, the more I realized that there’s really no difference between her and the other detainees who have been arrested by the military junta. They are so used to torturing people by this point—they have no humanity left in them,” she said. “This has become everyday life for the people of Myanmar.” Her friends were thrown for another loop when, less than a month after they were arrested, following their refusal to comply with what they saw as a show trial, Theint Sandi Soe and Kyi Kyi Khaing were sentenced to three years in prison for incitement. “I couldn’t believe it when I heard she was sentenced so quickly. I figured she and her mom were essentially being held as bargaining chips, as a means of forcing her dad to present himself to the authorities. But I wasn’t as shocked when I learned that she had protested the legitimacy of the court and the judges, who were not members of the CDM. I don’t think her bravery just came because she was arrested; I think her bravery is in her character,” a friend said. Another friend seconded this point: “I think her courage is in her character. If I were arrested, I wouldn’t have the courage to protest the court. She is unbelievably brave.” Reverberations Across the Globe The degradation of Myanmar’s justice system has been lambasted by human rights advocacy groups. As stated by Human Rights Watch Asia researcher Shayna Bauchner in a recent article: “These bogus military tribunals are handing down unfair and unappealable death sentences under direction from a commander sanctioned by the European Union, United States, and others for committing the worst crimes under international law… “The United Nations, EU, US, and other governments should be demanding the release of all those wrongfully imprisoned and ramping up pressure so the junta knows that what they do—even behind prison doors—is being watched.” In an open letter, Amnesty International has expressed similar sentiments: “Activists, human rights defenders, journalists, and other individuals opposed to the military’s brutal crackdown have been arrested and charged on spurious grounds. There are allegations of those arrested and detained being denied the rights to prompt access to legal counsel of their own choice and other fair trial rights. Those detained are also allegedly being denied access to healthcare and the medications on which they are reliant. Amnesty International has also received credible reports of ill-treatment and torture, including at least two deaths in custody.” As they continue to work through the fallout of her arrest, Theint Sandi Soe’s friends are left with a palpable sense of anger. “The way her trial started, the way it ended, and the way she was arrested was simply evil. She wasn’t given the chance to defend her case, and the military fabricated a case against her. They charged her without any reasonable grounds,” one said. But they remain undeterred in their fight against injustice: “Unjust and unlawful as her and so many other stories are, we hope that law students outside of Myanmar will help protest, raise awareness and fight for the release of all our political prisoners.” In the days that have passed since our interview with her friends, Theint Sandi Soe has been diagnosed with COVID, which at present is spreading uncontrolled through Myanmar. With this diagnosis compounding her chronic condition, those who know the fearless law student, as well as members of the Burmese diaspora around the world, are watching the story unfold with increasing concern for her health.
Source/publisher: JURIST
Date of entry/update: 2021-08-10
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Title: Myanmar Political Prisoners Stage Protest in Mandalay’s Obo Prison
Sub-title: Beatings of prisoners are reported though the government says no injuries were inflicted during the rare protest.
Description: "Political prisoners in Myanmar’s second-largest city Mandalay staged a rare protest marking the anniversary of an Aug. 8, 1988 uprising against military rule, singing and shouting slogans in a demonstration that ended with reports of beatings and gunshots heard behind the walls, sources said. The prisoners are among the more than 5,500 people arrested in the suppression of the opposition to the Feb. 1 military overthrow of the country’s elected government, a violent crackdown that has killed 962 civilians, according to the Bangkok-based Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP). The protest at Mandalay’s Obo Prison began at around 9:00 p.m. on Sunday, one city resident living near the prison told RFA’s Myanmar Service on Monday. “At about 9:15 p.m. I heard chanting and shouts coming from behind the prison walls,” RFA’s source said, speaking on condition of anonymity for security reasons. “When I came out of my house, I heard gunshots, and I heard nothing more after that,” he said. “Then, at about 10:30, I saw three military vehicles and four passenger cars coming out of the prison. They left Aung Chanthar Ward and headed towards the GTC School,” the source said, referring to Mandalay’s Government Technical College. “Some people said some prisoners had been beaten up,” he said. Reached for comment, Prisons Department Deputy Director Chan Aye Kyaw said that authorities were now trying to identify the leaders of the protest. “Last night, inmates at the Mandalay Central Prison started shouting slogans when the lights-out alarm sounded at 9:00 p.m.,” he said. “Around 30 to 40 people began chanting slogans and singing songs. We couldn’t stop them, so we informed the officer-in-charge, and he and his team arrived and the shouting stopped.” None of the protesters was injured, and no one was put in solitary confinement, the official said. “We are trying to find out who was involved in the shouting and singing, that’s all,” Chan Ay Kyaw said, adding that protest leaders when identified would be punished according to prison regulations. 'A lot of people got beaten up' A member of the Mandalay University Students’ Union told RFA that despite official statements that no beatings had been inflicted, “according to reports we got, there were a lot of people who were beaten up, and some were put into solitary confinement.” “We don’t have any details yet,” he said, adding, “It all started in Block 3 where young people and students are kept. It could have been about the 8888 anniversary, and it could have been about COVID.” Myanmar’s 8888 uprising was launched on Aug. 8, 1988 by students in Yangon, then the country’s capital, as a protest against one-party rule by Gen. Ne Win, who had ruled the country since 1962. Protests across the country were finally suppressed by the army on Sept. 18, with about 3,000 people reported killed. The Students’ Union issued a statement Monday calling for an end to the violent crackdown on prisoners in connection with the incident, for the release of political prisoners “unjustly detained” amid a third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, and for political prisoners’ full access to medical care, including COVID prevention. “After hearing about the protest in the prison, our family was worried,” said a resident of Maha Aungmyay township, two of whose family members were arrested after authorities found a sword and a National League for Democracy (NLD) banner in their home. “We heard that a few inmates were shot dead in the prison, and we were really worried when we heard this. We asked out lawyer about this, but he didn’t know anything,” he said. As news of the Obo Prison protest spread on social media at around 10:00 p.m., a group of young people in Monywa city in Myanmar’s Sagaing region staged a protest near the Monywa Prison to demand the release of political prisoners and an end to the country’s military dictatorship. At least 20 student leaders of the All Burma Students’ Union (ABSU) detained in Yangon’s Insein Prison are now being held in solitary confinement in connection with a prison protest there on July 23. On Feb. 1, Myanmar’s military overthrew the country’s democratically elected government, claiming voter fraud had led to a landslide victory for Aung San Suu Kyi’s NLD party in the country’s November 2020 election. The junta has yet to provide evidence of its claims and has violently suppressed nationwide demonstrations calling for a return to civilian rule, killing at least 962 people over the past six months..."
Source/publisher: "RFA" (USA)
Date of entry/update: 2021-08-10
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Title: Daily Briefing in Relation to the Military Coup (Updated 9 August 2021)
Description: "As of 9 August, (962) people are now confirmed killed by this junta coup. AAPP compiled and documented (2) fallen heroes today. (1) from Myingyan Township in Mandalay region died today and (1) from Mandalay died yesterday. This is the number verified by AAPP, the actual number of fatalities is likely much higher. We will continue adding as and when. As of August 9, a total of (5526) people are currently under detention. (255) people have been sentenced in person, of them 26 have been sentenced to death (incl. 2 children). 1984 are evading arrest warrants. 118 people have been sentenced in absentia, of them 39 sentenced to death in absentia. In total 65 sentenced to death, in person and absentia. We are also continuing to verify the recently released detainees. Doctor Maung Maung Nyein Tun, lecturer of surgery of University of Medicine of Mandalay, who is involved in the Civil Disobedience Movement (CDM), was arrested on June 13 and sued three counts of charges, died on August 8 at Mandalay General Hospital due to COVID-19. It is reported that he was contracted COVID-19 while detained in the Interrogation Center of Mandalay Nandwin. At first, it is heard that the terrorist junta did not transfer him to the hospital and detained him at the No.9 police station for two weeks. He was transferred to the Mandalay General Hospital when his condition was worse as he did not receive sufficient medical treatment in the cell. Maung Htay from Kywe Chan Village in Myingyan Township in Mandalay Region, who was arrested on July 10 allegedly because he kept youth protesters and charged under Section 505(a) of the Penal Code, died in Myingyan Prison on August 9. According to a friend of his family member, although the Prisons Department said Maung Htay died due to atherosclerosis and hypertension, his body was covered and only allowed to look at the face. AAPP will continue to keep you informed of verified daily arrests, charges, sentences and fatalities in relation to the attempted coup, and update our lists to the details of these alleged offences. If you receive any information about detentions of, or charges against CSO leaders, activists, journalists, CDM workers, other civilians and fallen heroes in relation to the military and police crackdown on dissent. Please submit to the following addresses: [email protected] [email protected] “Our uprising must succeed”..."
Source/publisher: Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP)
Date of entry/update: 2021-08-09
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