More Arrests Reported over Alleged Armed Group Ties in Arakan State Skip to main content

More Arrests Reported over Alleged Armed Group Ties in Arakan State

By | Thursday, February 4, 2016 |
Arakan Army troops on parade in Laiza, Kachin State, in July 2014. (Photo: Thaw Hein Htet / The Irrawaddy)
RANGOON — Authorities in Arakan State are continuing to arbitrarily arrest civilians on suspicion of links to the Arakan Army, according to several local sources, with the latest detainee a landowner from Taungup Township who was released on Wednesday evening.
Speaking to The Irrawaddy on Thursday, Aung Tin Moe said he was arrested on Monday in Taungup Township’s Ma-Ei town by military personnel who quizzed him over suspected ties to the Arakan Army which has recently been engaged in clashes with government troops.
“They asked me what I have been doing since university age to this year,” said Aung Tin Moe, who owns a teak plantation in Ma-Ei town. He said he was detained by army personnel and held in neighboring Ann Township until his release on Wednesday evening.
A friend of Aung Tin Moe, citizen journalist Tun Tun Naing, has also claimed he is wanted by authorities in Kyaukphyu Township.
“I don’t know exactly why they are trying to apprehend me. I have heard that they [the Burma Army] suspect me because I was a childhood friend of Col. Nyo Tun Aung,” he said, referring to the vice chief-of-staff of the Arakan Army.
Last month, the chair of a local civil society organization and two other men were detained in Leik Kha Maw village, Kyaukphyu Township, on the grounds of their alleged links to the ethnic armed group, according to eyewitnesses.
Relatives of the detained men, one of whom is Maung Aye, the chair of the Kyaukphyu Rural Development Association, said they were originally being held at Kyaukphyu Prison.
Tun Lwin, coordinator of the Kyaukphyu Social Network, a separate organization, said he went to a military office in Zaytiya village in Kyaukphyu Township, along with six monks, to enquire about the detainees.
“They told us all they did was arrest the suspects according to orders,” Tun Lwin said. The trio have since been moved to an undisclosed location, according to Tun Lwin, who criticized authorities for arresting civilians on spurious grounds.
Other arrests were also reported last month. Taungup Township administrator Lu Maw said local police arrested two alleged Arakan Army soldiers found in possession of 50 walkie-talkies near the town’s outskirts on Jan. 9.
On Jan. 21, two Arakanese men were also detained in the capital Sittwe by army personnel, according to local media. Another Sittwe resident was reportedly detained a few days later.
The Irrawaddy phoned Arakan State security and border affairs minister Htein Linn on Wednesday but was unable to make contact.
In March 2015, fighting broke out between the Arakan Army and the Burma Army near Kyauktaw Township in what was believed to be the first time in a decade that ethnic Arakanese armed rebels in the region had clashed with government troops.
The following month, at least 20 people were detained under Burma’s Unlawful Association Law for their alleged links to the armed faction.
The latest skirmishes broke out in Kyauktaw Township on Dec. 27, with at least 200 civilians forced to flee their homes.
The Arakan Army is not recognized by the government and has been excluded from the ongoing peace process between Naypyidaw and other ethnic armed organizations.

http://www.irrawaddy.com/burma/more-arrests-reported-over-alleged-armed-group-ties-in-arakan-state.html

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Thai penis whitening trend raises eyebrows

Image copyright LELUXHOSPITAL Image caption Authorities warn the procedure could be quite painful A supposed trend of penis whitening has captivated Thailand in recent days and left it asking if the country's beauty industry is taking things too far. Skin whitening is nothing new in many Asian countries, where darker skin is often associated with outdoor labour, therefore, being poorer. But even so, when a clip of a clinic's latest intriguing procedure was posted online, it quickly went viral. Thailand's health ministry has since issued a warning over the procedure. The BBC Thai service spoke to one patient who had undergone the treatment, who told them: "I wanted to feel more confident in my swimming briefs". The 30-year-old said his first session of several was two months ago, and he had since seen a definite change in the shade. 'What for?' The original Facebook post from the clinic offering the treatment, which uses lasers to break do...
1 comment
Read more

Ancient Rakhine City of Mrauk-U Proposed for UNESCO World Heritage Site

The Irrawaddy YANGON—Myanmar’s Ministry of Religious Affairs and Culture submitted the final draft of its nomination for Mrauk-U to become a World Heritage Site to UNESCO on Monday, four months after the ministry submitted the first draft of its nomination in September 2019. If the application succeeds, Mrauk-U will be the third place in Myanmar to be inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, after the ancient cities of Bagan and Pyu. Mrauk-U is located in northern Rakhine State, around 60 km from the state capital of Sittwe. The ancient city was the seat of Arakanese kings from the 1400s until the late 1700s. At the height of their power, they controlled an area covering large parts of eastern Bengal, modern-day Rakhine State and the western part of central Myanmar. Much of the city’s remains are well-preserved and some 380 historic temples are scattered between the lush hills of northern Rakhine. Mrauk-U Heritage Trust chairwoman Daw Khin Than told The Irrawaddy on Tue...
1 comment
Read more

Sri Bhaddanta Chandramani Mahathera

The Life Story of A Distinguished And Outstanding Bhikkhu The Most Venerable Saradawpharagree Sri Bhaddanta Chandramani Mahathera The Buddhist missionary Saradaw Ashin U Chandramani was endowed with great gifts and led a famous and long life. He was a very well known, distinguished and outstanding Bhikkhu Mahathera. While living in the Kushinagar Monastery, a place close to where the Lord Buddha had passed away to Nirvana, the Government of India had offered, and he had accepted, the highest, most honourable and respected title "Guru Guru MahaGuru". He became the first ever President of all Buddhists in India.A World Buddhist Conference took place in Kathmandu during the reign of King Mahindra of Nepal. The Conference was very well attended by over one hundred thousand Buddhists from various parts of the world and it was opened by King Mahindra himself. As requested by the King, Saradawpharagree blessed all the participants with the power of Triple Gems...
Post a Comment
Read more