Trials of far-right extremists Wirathu and Hla Swe to be conducted online

The decision to try the two nationalist firebrands via videoconference was made due to concerns over the spread of Covid-19

Khin Moh Moh Lwin

Published on Jan 13, 2021

Supporters of Wirathu protest at the Western District Court to demand that he receive an in-person trial. (Sai Zaw / Myanmar Now)

Two far-right extremists who turned themselves in late last year to face charges of sedition will be tried online, according to an official from Yangon’s Western District Court.

The court decided to try ultranationalist monk Wirathu remotely during a hearing on Tuesday, while the same decision was made for Hla Swe, a former lawmaker from the military’s proxy party, the day before, the official said.

Both men have been charged with sedition under section 124(a) of the penal code, which carries a penalty of up to 20 years in prison. They are currently being held at Insein prison.

Wirathu turned himself in at the Western District Court six days before the November 8 election, while Hla Swe came out of hiding on December 28. Both had been fugitives from the law for more than a year.

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The decision to conduct their trials via videoconference was made as a precaution to prevent the spread of Covid-19, the court official said.

At around 9pm on Monday, roughly 40 lay and monastic supporters of Wirathu gathered in front of the Western District Court to demand that the rogue monk be tried in person.

Wirathu was hit with a lawsuit in May 2019 after giving a speech at Yangon’s Mahabandoola park railing against government efforts to amend Myanmar’s military-drafted constitution.

The evidence against him also includes personal attacks on State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi that he made in speeches he delivered in Myeik, Tanintharyi region.

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In transcripts submitted to the court, Wirathu referred to the National League for Democracy (NLD) leader as “one who shakes her butt when meeting with foreigners” and makes other insulting innuendoes against her.

Hla Swe, a former MP and member of the Union Solidarity and Development Party, was charged with sedition for remarks that he made in a speech on August 3, 2019.

Speaking at a protest in Yangon, he said, “When America comes to bomb us, don’t you agree they should bomb the Secretariat, the President’s Office, and the offices of the regional governments and the state counsellor?”

He added: “Please just come bomb these offices. Let them all die. Wouldn’t that be great?”

In December, four other nationalists also turned themselves in to face trial on charges related to their support for the killer of NLD legal advisor Ko Ni.

Hein Wai Yan, Myat Bhone Mo, Aung Lin and Tin Lin Htike all surrendered to police after nearly three years on the run.

Khin Moh Moh Lwin

Khin Moh Moh Lwin is Reporter with Myanmar Now.

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At least eight killed in junta’s bloody crackdown in Aungban, Shan State

A resident said armed forces used drones to monitor the crowd before opening fire on them

Myanmar Now

Published on Mar 19, 2021

Men carry a wounded protester in Aungban, Shan State, on the morning of March 19 (Supplied)

At least eight anti-coup protesters were killed in Aungban, southern Shan State, during an attack by the military junta on demonstrations on Friday morning, according to the Aungban Free Funeral Service Society.

Sixteen military trucks carrying more than 100 policemen and soldiers arrived at the protest site at around 9:00 a.m. and began shooting at protesters. Seven died at the scene, and another protester who had been shot in the neck was taken to Kalaw Hospital and died by 11:00 a.m.

All eight victims were men.

The body of the man who died at the hospital was sent to his family’s home, but those who were killed at the protest site were taken away by the junta’s armed forces, a representative of the Free Funeral Service Society told Myanmar Now.

Aungban resident Nay Lynn Tun told Myanmar Now that police and soldiers had destroyed the doors of nearby homes in order to arrest people, and that at least 10 people had been detained.

“Initially, police arrived at the site. When the crowd surrounded the police, armed soldiers arrived at the site and began firing,” he told Myanmar Now. “In the coming days, if we cannot gather to protest, we will do it in our own residential areas.”

Since March 13, around 300 volunteer night guards have watched over these residential areas to protect locals from the dangers posed by the junta’s nighttime raids. These forces use drone cameras to monitor the activities of the night guards from 3:00 a.m. until 5:00 a.m. every day, Nay Lynn Tun said.

He added that hours before Friday’s crackdown, military and police had also used drone cameras to monitor the gathering of protesters in Aungban.

Over the last week, at least 11 protesters have been arrested in Aungban. Only three-- the protesters who were minors-- were released.

South of Shan State, in the Kayah State capital of Loikaw, two pro-democracy protesters were also shot with live ammunition by the regime’s armed forces on Friday. One, 46-year-old Kyan Aung, was shot in the lower abdomen and died from his injuries. The other wounded protester was a nurse, according to eyewitnesses.

According to a March 18 tally by the advocacy group Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, at least 224 people have been killed across the country by junta’s armed forces since the February 1 coup. Thousands more have been arrested.

Myanmar Now

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

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Junta arrests two more journalists in Naypyitaw

Those arrested include a BBC reporter and a former Mizzima correspondent.

Myanmar Now

Published on Mar 19, 2021

Photojournalists take cover near the entrance of a monastery where military supporters gathered to attack protesters and media in Yangon on February 18 (EPA-EFE/LYNN BO BO)

A BBC journalist and a former Mizzima News reporter were arrested by men believed to be plainclothes officers in Naypyitaw on Friday afternoon, a family member confirmed.

BBC Burmese journalist Aung Thura was in front of the Dekkhina District court to report on a hearing for National League for Democracy patron Win Htein when he was arrested. Former Mizzima correspondent Than Htike Aung was with him at the time of the arrest.

No further details of the arrest or the reporters’ detention were known at the time of reporting, according to Aung Thura’s relative.

“I saw some plainclothes officers dragging away a person in trousers into a car,” lawyer Min Min Soe, who was near the court at the time, told Myanmar Now. The man she saw is believed to be Than Htike Aung.

“Two other officers in plainclothes were hassling another individual in a paso [traditional sarong for men] and glasses,” she said, referring to Aung Thura. “It was quite a scene so I don’t know what happened next.”

BBC News issued a statement on Friday afternoon saying that they are "doing everything [they] can" to find Aung Thura, who they described as being taken away by unidentified men.

“We call on the authorities to help locate him and confirm that he is safe,” the statement said.

As of March 16, a total of 38 journalists had been arrested or targeted for arrest since the February 1 coup. The latest arrests of the BBC and former Mizzima journalists push this number up to 40.

Only 22 of these reporters have been released. Ten journalists have been charged with violating Section 505(a) of the penal code, which has been used against people who are seen as causing fear, spreading fake news, or agitating government employees. Under recent amendments to the law, the charges come with a three-year prison sentence if convicted.

Online news website The Irrawaddy has also been charged by the junta as violating the same statute for showing “disregard” for the armed forces in their reporting of the ongoing anti-regime protests.

Five publications, including Myanmar Now and Mizzima had their offices raided and their publishing licenses revoked earlier this month by the regime.

Editor's note: This story was updated to include the BBC's statement, which was not available at the original time of publishing.

Myanmar Now

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

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KIA attacks police bases in Hpakant

The offensives come in the wake of deadly crackdowns against anti-coup protesters in Myitkyina

Myanmar Now

Published on Mar 18, 2021

A KIA soldier watches from an outpost in Kachin state in this undated file photo (Kachinwave)

The Kachin Independence Army (KIA) launched attacks against police bases in the jade mining region of Hpakant on Thursday morning, a local resident told Myanmar Now.

The attacks targeted police battalions where soldiers were stationed near Nam Maw village in the Seik Muu village tract.

“There are Myanmar police battalions around Nam Maw,” a resident said. At least three bases were attacked, he added.

A 41-year-old civilian in Seik Muu village injured his left hand during the clash, the Kachin-based Myitkyina News Journal reported.

The KIA has launched several offensives against the coup regime’s forces recently. Fighting has also been reported in Mogaung and Injangyang this month.

Some 200 people fled the Injangyang villages of Gway Htaung and Tan Baung Yan on Monday after the KIA launched an offensive against the military there.

The offenses began in the wake of deadly crackdowns against anti-coup protesters in Myitkyina. The KIA has warned the junta not to harm anti-coup protesters.