Among more than 1,200 NLD members detained since coup, just five from Arakan State

31 Jan 2023

DMG Newsroom
31 January 2023, Sittwe

In the two years since the military coup in Myanmar, 1,232 members of the National League for Democracy (NLD), including 80 members of parliament, have been arrested. Of them, five NLD members were from Arakan State, according to the NLD Central Working Committee.

The five NLD members from Arakan State are ousted Arakan State chief minister U Nyi Pu; former Lower House MP U Soe Win aka U Soe Lay; Arakan State NLD executive U Min Aung; Arakan State Youth working committee member Ko Hein Min Htet; and Ma Moe San Suu Kyi, the daughter of the ex-chief minister U Nyi Pu, the NLD Central Working Committee told DMG.

The five NLD members were charged with various counts including Section 505(b) of the Penal Code and Section 17(1) of the Unlawful Associations Act, with their cumulative sentences amounting to dozens of years in prison.

U Nyi Pu, who was sentenced to 13 years in prison by Myanmar’s military regime, is reportedly suffering from a cataract in his left eye, and family members have called on the regime to allow him to undergo a surgery as soon as possible.

“I want all NLD party members and other detainees to be released,” said Ma Kyi Kyi Oo, another daughter of the ousted Arakan State chief minister. “Now my father needs eye surgery, but he hasn’t received permission yet.”

The NLD Central Working Committee announced on January 29 that 1,232 NLD members were arrested since the military coup, and 84 members including two members of parliament were killed.

The homes and properties of 605 NLD members were sealed off and confiscated by the military regime, including the properties of 206 members of parliament and 371 other party members. The statement also said there were up to 120 raids and destruction of various offices, including the NLD headquarters, and party belongings were taken.

“I want the release of all those detained. The current situation is that there is no NLD leader,” said a NLD member from Arakan State who declined to be named for security reasons.

The NLD said in a statement that the military regime is trying to gain political legitimacy by holding a sham election to maintain its hold on power. The election, slated for later this year, is opposed by the NLD, the party said.

U Ye Tun, a Myanmar political analyst, said elections can be held peacefully only if the military regime releases the NLD leaders and conducts negotiations with the opposition party.

“When the whole country is peaceful, most of the people will be able to vote freely in the election. For such a situation to happen, the military regime needs to be comfortable with the NLD. Party members, including Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, need to be released first. Then, only if they agree to re-run the election, will the regime be able to hold the election peacefully,” he said.

The military regime’s two-year state of emergency will end on February 1. The military overthrew the NLD government led by Daw Aung San Suu Kyi on the pretext of widespread voter fraud in the 2020 general election, an assertion widely disputed by international and domestic election monitors and observers.

Under the 2008 Constitution, the National Defense and Security Council (NDSC) must hold elections within six months of the expiration of its state of emergency declaration.