Junta detains 46 civilians in Sittwe

By Admin 23 Nov 2023

DMG Newsroom
23 November 2023, Sittwe

Myanmar’s military regime has detained 46 civilians in the Arakan State capital of Sittwe as of Wednesday since the renewed fighting broke out on November 13.

Some of the 30 detainees are Buddhist monks, students and displaced people, DMG has learnt.

Around 50 armed junta soldiers raided Tayzarama Monastery around 10 p.m. on Tuesday, detaining 18 people including a Buddhist monk, laypeople and displaced persons. Their whereabouts are still unknown.

“We don’t know where they were taken. We heard they were being held at No. 1 Police Station. We went to the police station, but they were not there. My husband has health problems, and I have concerns for his health,” said the wife of a detained man.

Among the detainees are a Buddhist monk, three laypersons, and 14 displaced people, all of them men, taking shelter at the monastery.

The monastery provides shelter for about 150 displaced people from Rathedaung, Kyauktaw and Paletwa townships who have been taking shelter there since 2019. They do odd jobs to make a living, family members said.

“They [junta soldiers] only said they took them for questioning. We don’t know what they would question,” said a family member of another displaced man who was detained from Tayzarrama Monastery.

The regime has also arrested civilians in night raids as they knock doors to check if there are overnight guests.

Maung Myat Htoo Naing, who shared a video file of junta soldiers arresting civilians in Kandawgyi and Mingan wards in Sittwe on November 15, has been detained since more than a week ago along with his father. Family members are concerned for their safety as they have been unable to contact the duo.

DMG was unable to obtain comment from Arakan State security and border affairs minister Colonel Kyaw Thura about arrests in Sittwe.

“It is awful that innocent people are arrested. As anyone can be arrested for any reason, people now live in constant fear that they might be arrested too,” said a manager of a displacement camp in Sittwe.

The regime has detained at least 70 civilians in Sittwe, Buthidaung, Kyaukphyu and Taungup townships as fighting with the Arakan Army intensifies.