Relatives worried about wellbeing of seven Ponnagyun detainees

By DMG 22 Jun 2022

DMG Newsroom
22 June 2022, Ponnagyun

The relatives of seven detained residents in Arakan State’s Ponnagyun Township are concerned about their safety as their whereabouts are still unknown five days after the arrests.

The Myanmar regime detained seven locals in Ponnagyun on June 16 and 17 after the Arakan Army (AA) seized a junta soldier on June 16, according to residents.

Among the detainees are Ko Ba Hlaing, 30, Ko Myo Thwin, 27, and U Parahita, 50 from Sanpya ward; U Kyaw Min, 61, and Ko Tin Maung Than, 39, from Myothit ward; and Maung Naing Myo Tun, 18, and Maung Aung Khaing, 17, from Pauktaw Pyin village.

Maung Wyne Che, a son of U Kyaw Min, said he was worried about the health of his father, who suffers from diabetes and high blood pressure.

“He was seized on June 16, and we have not yet been able to contact him, and we don’t know where he is being held. He has nothing to do with [the AA]. He is on medication and has to see the doctor once a month. I want to know if he is OK. The whereabouts of other detainees are also unknown,” he said.

Maung Naing Myo Tun and Maung Aung Khaing from Pauktaw Pyin village were detained near Ponnagyun market while they were returning to their village after seeing a doctor, said U Soe Naing Win, the father of Maung Naing Myo Tun.

“I haven’t got a clue about where the two are now. They were seized around 4 p.m. on June 16. My wife is in despair,” he said.

DMG was unable to obtain comment from the Arakan State security and border affairs minister, Colonel Kyaw Thura, about the regime’s recent detentions of civilians.