Trial of detained Byaing Phyu villagers continues in Sittwe

By Admin 22 Aug 2024

DMG Newsroom
22 August 2024, Sittwe

The fifth court hearing of the Byaing Phyu villagers who are being prosecuted under Section 17(1) of the Unlawful Associations Act and Section 188 of the Code of Criminal Procedure for their alleged ties to the Arakkha Army (AA) took place at the Sittwe Township Court on Wednesday.

Some prosecution witnesses testified at the trial on Wednesday. The next hearing has been scheduled for August 27.

One family member of a defendant said: “I heard only prosecution witnesses were heard. We don’t know the details as we were not allowed to attend the trial.”

More than 60 villagers are being prosecuted by the regime. The court has been hearing them separately in groups of five to 10, according to a relative of another defendant. Ten villagers were brought to trial on Wednesday, she said. 

“The court has started hearing prosecution witnesses of some groups. Some groups have not yet been heard,” she told DMG.

The villagers prosecuted by the regime are mostly low-income manual labourers including boatmen, hawkers, three-wheeled motorcycle drivers, and porters. As many are the breadwinners in their families, family members are suffering from livelihood hardships.

Another family member of one of the accused said: “It costs around 50,000 kyats to visit the defendants at the court. The amount is exclusive of food and medicine for defendants. It is a waste of time and money for the defendants and their families. In my case, I have had to pawn my gold jewellery to attend the trial.”

Junta soldiers and allied troops raided Sittwe Township’s Byaing Phyu Village in late May, killing nearly 80 people and abducting more than 300 villagers.

After two weeks of torture, over 60 were freed, but around 150 others remain in custody, and the regime has brought legal proceedings against more than 60 of them.