ANP will appeal for Win and Zaw

By Khaing Roe La 05 Sep 2019

Khaing Roe La | DMG
September 5, Sittwe

The Arakan National Party (ANP) will submit an appeal for Myanmar citizens Win Zaw Tun and Zaw Linn who have been sentenced to death in Thailand, said Daw Aye Nu Sein, the spokesperson of the ANP.

“We cannot say when we will submit the appeal. We are still working on it. We are still discussing whether we should submit it to the King or through the Prime Minister,” she said.

The young British couple Hannah Witheridge (23) and David Miller (24) were found murdered in 2014 on Koh Tao Island in Thailand, and Arakan migrant workers Win and Zaw were sentenced to death by the Koh Samui Court in 2015 for the crime.

The accused said that they didn’t commit the crime and were forced to confess, and the DNA did not match, but all their appeals have been rejected.

Daw Aye Nu Sein said that ANP had a responsibility to help Win and Zaw as they were Arakan nationals.

“As an Arakan party, we have a responsibility to help as much as possible when the Arakanese people are sentenced to death. We should do all we possibly can to help these men,” she said.

The appeal submitted to the Thai King will be the last chance for Win and Zaw.

Tatmadaw Defence Office announced on September 3 that military commander-in-chief Senior General Min Aung Hlaing has asked Thai Prime Minister to help seek a reduction in the death sentence imposed on the two Myanmar citizens.

U Thein Swe, Union Minister of the Ministry of Labour, Immigration and Population, also told media on September 2 that the chairman and members of the Hluttaw have appealed to senior Thai leaders in regards to the case of Win and Zaw.

Some people including monks also gathered in front of Maha Bandoola Park in Yangon on September 2 and requested for clemency for Win and Zaw from the death sentence.