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Days of living dangerously
October 11, 1998
COMMENT / BURMA
Days of living
dangerously
AUNG NAING OO
The night of September 6, 1998 was a nightmare for U Kyaw San. It
began in the early evening when officers from the Burmese Military
Intelligence Service (MIS) arrived at his home, blasting their car horns.
They climbed over the fence and tried to force the owners to open the
door.
Frightened, the people in the house asked the unrestrained intruders to
come back the following day. But the intruders were persistent. They
tried to force the door open with a crowbar and pounded the main
door and windows all through the night. With no means to stop the
onslaught, as the telephone line had been severed by the officers, it
was an excruciatingly long night for U Kyaw San and his family.
The next day U Kyaw San, an ex-Burmese army officer, was arrested
at his home. He had not committed any crime. But under Burma's
repressive military government his role within the National League for
Democracy (NLD) suffices for him to be treated as a criminal. U
Kyaw San is the chairman of the Sagaing Division Organising
Committee for the party. As a former colonel, now with the NLD, it is
likely that the army would have considered him a traitor.
The ordeal did not stop with his arrest. The MIS officers ransacked
the house, forcing U Kyaw San's wife to open boxes, cupboards and
drawers. They confiscated all papers they found, and ordered his wife
to sign an acknowledgement that the papers and materials were
handed over to the authorities with consent. Courageously, she
refused.
On September 19, MIS officers told U Kyaw San's family to bring a
few personal items for him. To their dismay, on their arrival at the
MIS-6 headquarters, the family was told that U Kyaw San had been
sent to Insein Special Prison in Rangoon, Burma's most dreaded
detention centre.
U Kyaw San is one of the many NLD Members of Parliament and
officials who have recently been taken into custody by the Burmese
military regime in the current sweeping crackdown. As the NLD stated
recently, the number of its members arrested since May this year has
now reached well over 1,000. This figure does not include students
and political activists from various other organisations. According to
student sources in Rangoon, the total number of arrests is nearing
2,000.
Although according to the military government's own law, security
officers should carry a warrant whenever they conduct an arrest or
search premises, this procedure is often ignored for the arrest of
political suspects. The officers usually harass the victims, are rude and
violent, and often cause damage to property.
For instance, on September 24, MIS officers showed up at the house
of NLD youth wing member May Hnin Aung in Thingangyun
township. Although May Hnin Aung did not expect the officers to
carry a warrant, she asked to see one. The answer she received
typifies the arrogance of the military regime. "There is no need for us to
have a warrant because we are not here to look for drugs. You can
report this anywhere and to anyone you wish."
Over the years, the NLD has written numerous letters to Burma's
military leaders. In these letters, the party has described all the forms
of abuses committed against its members, to no avail; the military has
never replied. After some time, the NLD realising the futility of its
efforts, began to issue public statements.
In these statements, among other things, the party has started to
describe in detail the way its members are detained and mistreated. In
what is seen as an open and bold step, the NLD has begun naming
officers who have arrested and mistreated its members. Yet the regime
has not made any efforts to investigate the perpetrators of these
abuses.
Arrests have taken place not only at the homes of opposition
members, but also in public places such as on streets and buses. One
such example is the arrest of Ma Mi Mi Khaing who is a member of
the NLD Youth Central Supporting Group. She was arrested on her
way home from her friend's house by several armed officers who
completely blocked all escape routes as if they were taking a
dangerous criminal into custody. Although the NLD issued a statement
asking the military leaders not to arrest its members in public the
abuses in public spots have continued.
The 10-member Representative Committee formed by the NLD,
which has been given a mandate to act as a parliament by the MPs
elected in 1990, has recently issued a decree repealing some of
Burma's most repressive laws. One of these is the 1950 Emergency
Provision Act, under which hundreds of political opponents of the
regime have been charged and given harsh prison sentences. As the
political standoff between the junta and the opposition continues, it is
likely that many of those currently in detention will be sentenced and
imprisoned under this legislation.
In a comical attempt to placate international criticism the Burmese
military has claimed that NLD members in detention have merely been
invited to attend discussions. They even tried to back up their claims
by posting photos on the Internet of NLD members reading
newspapers and watching television at military installations. Contrary
to this public relations stunt, sources in Rangoon report that many of
the political prisoners picked up in the latest crackdown have been
tortured in custody.
To date the military has released only 13 people, including
85-year-old Thakin Khin Nyunt. Where are the rest of the detainees?
Have they been charged? Although the junta has made no public
statement, it is believed that many of them have been secretly
sentenced. In the case of U Kyaw San, there is no doubt that he has
been sent to Insein.
Despite the concerted public relations efforts of Burma's military
rulers, the truth continues to leak out. The detention of so many of a
country's citizens for seeking democracy is hard to hide, and can only
serve to inspire its pro-democracy fighters and supporters further. On
the part of the NLD the arrests have made them more defiant and
determined. As for the military, they will have to do a lot of explaining
about the continued detention of opposition members, if the detainees
are "invited guests" as the regime so claims.
* Aung Naing Oo is foreign affairs secretary of All Burma
Students' Democratic Front.
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© Copyright The Post Publishing Public Co., Ltd. 1998
Last Modified: Sun, Oct 11, 1998
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