Myanmar prisons are holding 221 people who were arrested for their political activities, including one 14-year-old boy, according to the most recent monthly report from the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP).
The teenager, named Mai Cho Min Htwe, is among 45 people currently serving sentences for political activity. He was tortured and convicted without a trial on Oct. 30 for allegedly being involved with the Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA), which is in active conflict with the Myanmar army.
An additional 45 political activists are in detention as they await trial, and 127 are on bail while facing trial, the organization’s October 2017 report says. The report was released on Nov. 16.
Five people were added to the list of political prisoners last month alone, including two people charged under Section 8 of the Export and Import Law; one under sections 17(1) and 17(2) of the Unlawful Associations Act; one under Section 505(b) of the Penal Code; and one under Section 19 of the Peaceful Assembly and Procession Law.
Among those sentenced last month were two Kachin pastors who were originally arrested by Myanmar troops on Dec. 2016. They were accused of helping journalists visit the site of a church that was reportedly destroyed by rockets fired from a Myanmar air force jet.
Dumdaw Nawng Latt, 65, was sentenced to four years and three months under Section 17(1) of the Unlawful Association Act, Section 8 of the Export and Import Law, and Section 500 of the Penal Code, which outlaws defamation. Langjaw Gam Seng, 35, was sentenced to two years and three months under the first two charges.
The AAPP report called for the repealing of these “outdated and repressive law,” saying they violate citizens’ fundamental rights and international norms.
The Myanmar government has not responded to these demands, the report said, highlighting the fact that the freedoms of expression and association remain under assault by the government of State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi and the National League for Democracy.
