Political prisoners in Myanmar subjected to inhumane treatment by military, says Japanese scribe

Tokyo [Japan], May 16 (ANI): A Japanese freelance journalist, who spent nearly four weeks in a Myanmar prison before returning to Japan on Friday, said that political prisoners imprisoned by the military are being subjected to inhumane conditions.
In an online interview with Kyodo News, Yuki Kitazumi said that he will work with Japan to help the military-run Myanmar return to democracy, adding that those incarcerated in the prison had pleaded with him to report on what is going on in the country.
The 45-year-old Kitazumi was arrested on April 18 on the suspicion of spreading ‘fake news’ regarding the military and was kept in the infamous Insein Prison in Yangon, where many political prisoners have been held.
He recalled that the prisoners have been punched and kicked while being blindfolded and tortured nearly fatally. He also said that they were denied food for several days.
In over three months since the military coup on February 1 that ousted Myanmar‘s civilian-led government, several protesters have been killed and thousands detained.

Kitazumi said that he was questioned seven to eight times while in detention. “Even though I was not subjected to violence, an interrogator banged the desk hard when I refused to sign a statement containing things I had no recollection of saying. That frightened me,” he said, Kyodo News reported.
While in Myanmar, the Japanese journalist had covered anti-coup protests and posted on social media information deemed critical of the military.
He said he will report on Myanmar from Japan, expressing hope that the Myanmar issue will draw interest from as many people as possible.
Kyodo News reported citing local media that the junta had decided to release Kitazumi on Thursday “in consideration of cordial relations between Myanmar and Japan up to now and in view of future bilateral relations, and upon the request of the Japanese government special envoy on Myanmar‘s national reconciliation”.
The junta’s security forces have killed 790 people as of Saturday since the coup, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, a rights group monitoring the situation in Myanmar.

Noted Myanmar anti-coup activist dies after being set ablaze by unidentified man

Naypyitaw [Myanmar], May 16 (ANI): Amid human rights violations in military-ruled Myanmar, a noted Myanmarese poet, philanthropist and veteran politician died after he was set ablaze by an unidentified man. This is being seen as another act perpetrated by the junta’s security forces in the country.
According to Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP), the security forces are carrying out unprovoked and intentional shootings, acts such as torture are perpetrated on a daily basis.
In Monywa, Sein Win, a noted activist who has been taking part in anti-coup protests, was collecting donations for internally displaced people (IDPs) and was at a friend’s house talking.
An unidentified man later arrived and poured gasoline on him and set him on fire. Such atrocities are being repeatedly perpetrated by the military which has become even more hostile to people against the coup, according to the AAPP.
Meanwhile, a teacher who was shot in the leg during a protest rally on May 2 died at a hospital. His family was not allowed to bury his body and they did not say how he died, said the non-profit.

Civilian security in Myanmar is deteriorating day after day as the military is shooting, killing, arbitrarily charging, and engaging in vandalism.
As of Saturday, at least 790 people have been killed by the military’s violent crackdown on anti-coup protests, while 3,989 people have been detained.
Earlier, the military government announced it will reopen public schools on June 1 but many teachers and students opposed to the coup might refuse to return.
According to Kyodo News, a number of teachers and others engaged in education have joined the so-called civil disobedience movement to boycott work, as a protest against the junta. But the junta called on them to return to work and prepare for the reopening of the schools as it announced the restart on April 30.
The junta also said it will dismiss those who do not follow the call, maintaining its hard-line stance against protesters since the coup.
On February 1, the Myanmar military overthrew the civilian government and declared a year-long state of emergency. The coup triggered mass protests and was met by deadly violence. (ANI)