Former MP U Hla Swe, who has courted infamy and a nickname through previous acts of homophobia and violence, is now on the defensive after being told to “do good deeds” by a Facebook user.
On September 20, the former MP and military officer joked on Facebook that villagers in Magwe Region’s Gangaw Township practice witchcraft.
In response, Ma Zin Mar Kyi, a volunteer in that township, commented: “Do the good deeds in your remaining time instead of talking through your hat.”
U Hla Swe found the advice intolerable, so he filed a lawsuit against the commenter under Section 66(d) of the Telecommunications Law.
“I warned her to drop the post, but she wouldn’t. So I opened the case,” U Hla Swe said, according to The Irrawaddy.
Police in Htone Bo Township, where U Hla Swe filed the suit, interrogated Ma Zin Mar Kyi, and she was granted bail.
Section 66(d) was enacted in 2013 with the stated purpose of protecting foreign investors in Myanmar from defamation, extortion and threats through telecommunications networks. However, it has largely been used to punish members of the public for criticizing the government.
The law has been used at least 33 times since the NLD took power in April, including cases brought by NLD politicians themselves. It carries a maximum penalty of three years in prison plus a fine.
U Hla Swe himself fell victim to a law limiting freedom of expression after he called reporters from Eleven “dicks”. Reporter Ko Kyi Naing filed a lawsuit against the then-lawmaker under Section 294 of the penal code, which outlaws obscene acts in public places.
