One of the men accused of last night’s brutal attack on an opposition campaign event in Yangon’s Thaketa Township had put up a banner threatening to stab NLD members, according to local authorities and witnesses.
Naing Ngan Lin, a sitting MP seeking a seat in Thaketa in the November 8 election, was slashed and beaten by three men with blades and rods at around 9pm while campaigning.
All are now in custody, police told Coconuts Yangon.
The lawmaker, who was taken to Yangon General Hospial, has had an operation and is expected to make a full recovery but has lost the use of his left pinkie, according to his wife. Two other NLD members sustained slight injuries.
MP Ngain Ngan Lin seen in hospital on Thursday night. Photo: Ye Htoo
Police told the Irrawaddy there was “no political reason”, blaming the attack on a row over betel nut.
But Thandar Maw, an NLD member who witnessed it, told Coconuts Yangon she saw a banner outside one of the alleged assailant’s homes threatening to stab opposition campaigners.
She said it read: “The family members in this house are against the NLD. No campaigning or pamphlets will be accepted. If you don’t understand like human beings, you will be attacked with swords.”
Photos appearing to show the banner have been widely circulated on social media.
U Nan Swe, the local administrator, said no action had been taken: “We told him not to do this. Attacking with swords is outlawed. We couldn’t take any action, as his banner was inside his house.”
Several cases of violence and intimidation against opposition members have been reported in the lead-up to the polls. One NLD member who took part in an Irrawaddy delta rally was later found unconscious in a graveyard. In September, an NLD communications officer was attacked outside a shop in Yangon’s Mingaladon Township.
