The Myanmar junta deported Nathan Maung, a US national and the editor-in-chief of Kamayut Media, on Tuesday morning—one day after the regime authorities dropped incitement charges against him.
He spent more than three months in Yangon’s notorious Insein prison.
He boarded a 7:40am flight to Washington at the Yangon International Airport and was escorted by the regime authorities, said his lawyer Tin Zar Oo. She added that his family members were not allowed to see him leave.
“We requested that his family members be allowed to send him off. But we were told to meet him at the police station [yesterday] only and that the authorities would accompany him to the airport,” Tin Zar Oo said.
Khin Aye Myint Tha, Nathan Maung’s sister, told Myanmar Now that officials from the US Embassy helped make his travel arrangements. At the time of reporting, Myanmar Now was unable to confirm if embassy staff were able to meet with him at the airport.
Nathan Maung spent Monday night at an interrogation center in Yangon, according to his sister.
He was detained on March 9 by the regime’s armed forces along with Kamayut Media cofounder Hanthar Nyein after their Yangon office was raided.
The pair were accused of violating Section 505a of the Penal Code, punishable by up to three years in prison for publishing or circulating comments that cause fear, spread false news or incite government employees to commit crimes.
At the time of reporting, Hanthar Nyein remained in prison.
Nathan Maung is one of two American journalists who have been arrested by the coup regime.
Danny Fenster, 37, who is managing editor of local news outlet Frontier Myanmar, was detained on May 24 while he was waiting to board a plane at the Yangon International Airport.
The US State Department called his detention and the arrest of other journalists in Myanmar an “unacceptable attack on freedom of expression.”
US Embassy officials in Myanmar were granted a virtual visit with Nathan Maung while he was in detention but were not allowed access to Danny Fenster.
