Nine activists among more than 23,000 freed as part of Thingyan amnesty

Observers noted that all of the released activists had nearly completed their sentences

Published on Apr 17, 2021

Student activist and Peacock Generation member Paing Ye Thu, center, walks out of Insein Prison in Yangon on April 17. (EPA-EFE)

Myanmar’s military junta released nine imprisoned activists on Saturday as part of a general amnesty to mark start of the country’s traditional Buddhist New Year.

The nine activists, who were among 23,184 prisoners freed under the amnesty, were all due to be released in the coming months, according to observers.

Three of those freed on Saturday are members of Peacock Generation, a poetry troupe that was accused of undermining the military with a satirical performance during Thingyan, or the Myanmar New Year, two years ago.

Zeya Lwin, Paing Ye Thu and Paing Phyo Min were all found guilty in 2019 of violating section 505a of the Penal Code and section 66d of the Telecommunications Act.

mmnowelectionads.jpg

They were each given sentences ranging from five and a half to six and a half years in prison.

However, under a commutation granted before the February 1 coup, their sentences were shortened and were due to end in the near future, according to a member of the troupe.

“The releases don’t mean that the junta cares about them. They were included in the list because they were going to be released soon, anyway,” said the Peacock Generation member, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Three other members of the troupe who were charged at the same time had been released before the military takeover two and a half months ago.

Meanwhile, the troupe reported that four more of its members were detained on Saturday morning.

Kyaw Min Tun, Shwe Yupa Lin, Soe Htet Oo and Min Htet Lin were on their way to an anti-coup rally when they were taken into custody, a troupe member told Myanmar Now.

No further details about their arrest were available at the time of reporting.

The other six activists released on Saturday are members of the All Burma Federation of Student Unions (ABFSU) who were imprisoned late last year for taking part in protests against the war in Rakhine state.

Nyi Nyi Min Htet Wai, Thet Maung Maung, Myo Chit Zaw, Thuta Myi Nyi, Aung Khaing Min and Hla Tun Aung were released from Mandalay’s Obo prison, where they were serving sentences for allegedly defaming the military.

They had each been given more than a year in prison under sections 505a and 505b of the Penal Code for accusing the military of committing human rights abuses in the conflict.

All six were within months of completing their sentences. At least four other ABFSU members charged in connection with the anti-war campaign remain behind bars.

The prisoner releases come a day after lawmakers from Myanmar’s ousted civilian government announced the formation of a “national unity government” as part of an effort to consolidate resistance to the junta.

The regime has killed at least 700 civilians and detained more than 3,000 others since seizing power, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners.

Myanmar Now

Myanmar Now is an independent news service providing free, accurate and unbiased news to the people of Myanmar in Burmese and English.

Donate

Independent media is under attack in Myanmar... help us hold the powerful to account.

Donate Now

Monitoring group hits back at junta claim that post-coup death toll is ‘bloated’

The Assistance Association for Political Prisoners said it publishes daily lists of victims and the regime’s claim is ‘unsubstantiated’

Myanmar Now

Published on Apr 22, 2021

The military regime is trying to avoid accountability for its crimes by claiming that a widely cited tally of deaths since the February 1 coup has been inflated, the monitoring group behind the figures has said.

The Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP) said on Wednesday that the coup regime wanted to “destroy the evidence of the atrocities” it had committed since seizing power.

The military regime said via state television and newspapers earlier this week that the AAPP’s count of over 700 deaths was “bloated.” The announcement said 258 people had been killed and that the victims were mostly “rioters.”

Most died during “roadblock clearing” operations or during attacks against the regime’s forces, the announcement added. Another 11 died under different circumstances such as during fights or shootings between protesters, it said.

The AAPP said the military’s claim was “unsubstantiated”. The group publishes a daily list of deaths that includes the names of most of the victims.

It also often includes their ages, their fathers’ names, and details about how and where they were killed.

The names of some of the fatalities - about 50 - are listed as “unknown”. The AAPP did not specify in its statement on Wednesday how it verified these deaths but said it had “identified bodies” when calculating the total number.

“AAPP’s 20 April fatality figure of 738 is not inflated,” the group said. “They are identified dead bodies – shot to the head, tortured, burnt alive, beaten to death, tied up and dragged along on motorbikes – perpetrated by junta troops in police, soldier, or civilian clothes,” the group said.

“Our lists are published freely online, every single day, for anyone and everyone to access,” it added.

“The allegations made against AAPP are an attempt to destroy the evidence of the atrocities committed by this junta. We can say this illegal military is committing crimes against humanity,” it added.

The regime said that 20-year-old Mya Thwe Thwe Khine, the first protester to be murdered after the coup, was killed by a “rioter”. It made the same claim about 19-year-old Kyal Sin, who was shot in the head during a crackdown on an anti-coup protest in early March.

The junta blamed Covid-19 for the death of Yar Zar Aung, who was shot in the knee and severely beaten before being taken to a military hospital in Mandalay in February.

In late March a military hospital claimed that 17-year-old Kyaw Min Latt died from falling off a motorbike, even though his murder was captured on CCTV and the footage widely shared on social media.

Authorities in Yangon also tried to claim that 39-year-old Kyaw Lin Htwe, whose body showed signs of torture, died in a motorbike accident.

The military has a history of misleading the outside world about the number of civilians it has killed, the AAPP said, adding that the real number of deaths from the crackdown on the 1988 uprising is still not known.

Myanmar Now

Myanmar Now is an independent news service providing free, accurate and unbiased news to the people of Myanmar in Burmese and English.

Donate

Independent media is under attack in Myanmar... help us hold the powerful to account.

Donate Now

Five civilians killed in clash with junta’s forces in Sagaing’s Yinmabin Township

Troops used drones to track locals’ location and fired at them with long-range artillery

Myanmar Now

Published on Apr 21, 2021

Locals in Yinmabin Township, Sagaing Region, protesting the military dictatorship on March 30 (Supplied)

Five civilians were killed and five more injured after a shootout between the coup regime’s troops and locals armed with hunting rifles in Yinmabin Township, Sagaing Region, on Tuesday.

Following the clash, rumours circulated that 10 locals had died. Myanmar Now was able to confirm one death on Tuesday evening, and four more on Wednesday morning.

“It’s not true that there were 10 deaths. We’re in touch with the leaders,” a relief worker from Yinmabin told Myanmar Now.

The five casualties were Bo San, Aung San Oo, Aung Naing, Zaw Myo Aung, and Kyaw Myo Tun. They were from the villages of Win Kone, Kapaing-Theekone and Kyobin.

The fighting with locals broke out after some 200 soldiers stationed themselves on the road to the Alaungdaw Kathapa pagoda near Kapaing village.

While the locals defended themselves using traditional hunting rifles, troops took up positions beyond their range, using drones to track the villagers’ locations and fire at them with long-range artillery.

Relief workers were only able to retrieve the body of Bo San, who had suffered multiple injuries in the shelling.

At the time of reporting, Myanmar Now was still gathering further information about the five men who were killed in Yinmabin, but due to the lack of internet access to the region, such independent verification has been difficult. The ruling junta cut off mobile internet nationwide in March.

Around 10,000 residents from at least 17 villages had fled their homes due to the clashes and were hiding in the jungle, the relief worker said.

Residents in Sagaing Region’s Kalay, Kani, Tamu, Taze and Yinmabin townships have been resisting the regime’s attacks since the military began indiscriminate crackdowns on protests across the country following the February 1 coup.

Myanmar Now

Myanmar Now is an independent news service providing free, accurate and unbiased news to the people of Myanmar in Burmese and English.

Donate

Independent media is under attack in Myanmar... help us hold the powerful to account.

Donate Now

Crackdown on village in Sagaing Region leaves at least one person dead

Local residents said soldiers used drones to locate villagers armed with hunting rifles before mounting an attack with heavy weapons

Myanmar Now

Published on Apr 20, 2021

At least one civilian was shot dead in Sagaing Region’s Yinmabin Township on Tuesday after regime forces stationed there opened fire on villagers, a local resident told Myanmar Now.

Residents of the village of Win Kone defended themselves with traditional hunting rifles, but the troops took up position beyond their range, the Yinmabin local told Myanmar Now.

On Tuesday afternoon, the junta’s troops used drones to locate the village’s security team and then attacked with heavy weapons, residents said. It was unclear what weapons were used in the assault.

Local sources were still gathering information about the number of casualties in the attack at the time of reporting.

A resident of Thalauk, a village near Win Kone, said soldiers started to arrive in the area at around 3pm on Tuesday and soon after opened fire on locals armed with hunting rifles.

According to sources, residents of at least seven villages in Yinmabin Township fled their homes due to the clashes.

The affected villages include Thalauk, Win Kone and Kapaing, all located in Yinmabin Township.The coup regime’s armed forces have killed over 730 civilians since the February 1 coup, according to the monitoring group the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners.