Death of Detained Myanmar Official Raises Fear

Relatives Attend Funerals For People Killed In Protests

(Photo : Photo by Stringer/Getty Images)
YANGON, MYANMAR - MARCH 05: (EDITORS NOTE: Image contains graphic content) Buddhist nuns pay tribute to Zwal Htet Soe, 26, as his body lies in a coffin during a funeral for protesters who were shot dead in clashes with military and police on March 05, 2021 at the Yay Way cemetery in Yangon, Myanmar. Protests continue to erupt across the country, to be met with deadly force by the military junta. The military government has intensified a crackdown on protesters using tear gas and live ammunition, charging at and arresting protesters and journalists. At least 50 people have been killed so far, according to monitoring organizations.

Another Myanmar official from the party of the ousted democratic leader of the country, Aung San Suu Kyi has died while being detained by the junta forces and allegedly tortured based on the report of a watchdog group.

Death of Detained Myanmar Official Raises Fear

According to CNN, the death marks the second victim of the junta among officials this week. Also, the deaths of the Myanmar officials have raised concerns regarding the condition and treatment detainees are receiving while being detained by the junta.

Moreover, since the military seized power on February 1 in a coup, security forces quickly moved to stifle dissent and arrested Myanmar government officials, journalists, protesters, NGO workers, and civil servants, and repressed independent media. Many individuals have been taken arbitrarily in nighttime raids and their families do not know the whereabouts of their loved ones and what are their conditions based on the statement of the United Nations.

Based on the Human Rights Watch, individuals who forcibly disappeared are more likely to be the subject of torture or ill-treatment than others arrested. Zaw Myat Lynn of the National League for Democracy died in custody on Tuesday after he was arrested in the biggest city Yangon, Reuters reported.

Zaw Myat Lynn, who was the head of an educational institute was mentioned in the statement released by the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP), which is a watchdog group, that he was dead and the cause was his injuries acquired from being tortured following an arbitrary nighttime raid. The exact cause of death is undetermined; however, AAPP mentioned that the head of an educational institute was subjected to beatings.

In addition, shortly before his arrest, he posted a live stream on Facebook wherein he stated that he wants to encourage all citizens across Myanmar that they will be protesting day and night for 24 hours against the dictatorship. Zaw Myat Lynn also urged the people in continuing the fight against the army and emphasized that they will risk their lives in defeating them.

He also added that they are showing to the international community including the United Nations and other agencies that the citizens of Myanmar want democracy and they value democracy as the most precious thing in their lives. The statement was followed by the death of Myanmar official, Khin Maung Latt, who is the chairman of Yangon NLD, who died while in custody on Saturday, Aljazeera reported.

AAPP also stated in a news release that on the night of the arrest, Khin Maung Latt was tortured up to his death in his cell. NLD lawmaker Ba Myo Thein shared that there were reports of bruising in the head and body of Khin Maung Latt which raised suspicions that he had been abused by the junta. However, the cause of death by the two Myanmar officials Zaw Myat Lynn and Khin Maung Latt were not still verified.

The military junta which was led by coup leader Gen. Min Aung Hlaing received a call from the rights group to investigate the deaths. The Asia director at Human Rights Watch, Brad Adams emphasized in a statement that if they want to, the junta runs the security forces and can quickly find out who killed Khin Maung Latt, Voice of America reported.