AP – Concern was rising that two nonviolent activists opposed to military rule in Myanmar are at high risk of torture after being arrested in raids this week in Yangon, the country’s biggest city.
Paing Phyo Min, 27, a leading member of AJAY – the Anti-Junta Alliance Yangon – and Shein Wai Aung, a participant in peaceful protests, were arrested separately on Wednesday night, one of AJAY’s leaders, Nan Lin, told The Associated Press.
He said that four other young activists were arrested just hours after participating in a brief September 19 protest in Yangon against high commodity prices and military conscription.
The arrests are a reminder that even as the military engages in armed combat against pro-democracy guerrillas and ethnic rebels in the countryside and remote areas, they also seek to bottle up political opposition in major urban areas.
AJAY’s Nan Lin said he was worried that the arrested protesters are at high risk of torture by interrogators. He said Paing Phyo Min and Shein Wai Aung were sent to an interrogation centre, and there has been no contact with any of the detainees.
Rights groups and media, including The Associated Press, have reported extensively on the use of torture on detainees.
On its Facebook page, AJAY on Thursday called on the international community and Myanmar’s strike committees to exert pressure on the military government to safeguard the detained protesters, expressing particular concern for Paing Phyo Min.
Nonviolent demonstrations were the main form of protest immediately after the army seized power from the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi in February 2021. After the security forces suppressed them with lethal force, many opponents of the military launched armed resistance, and much of the country is now embroiled in fighting.
According to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, which tabulates arrests and deaths, at least 5,800 people have been killed and 27,529 people have been arrested by the security forces since the army takeover.
After the crackdowns on street demonstrations in 2021, protests have become fewer in number and usually take the form of flash mobs.
Protesters quickly gather, carrying flags, banners or torches, and chant before disperse after a few minutes, minimising the possibility of confrontation with police or soldiers.
