Four Kyaukphyu residents arrested for attempting to carry foodstuffs

By Admin 11 Oct 2024

DMG Newsroom
11 October 2024, Kyaukphyu

Myanmar's military regime has arrested four local residents from Ohntaw and Gone Chun villages in Kyaukphyu Township, Arakan State, for allegedly attempting to carry food without authorisation.

The detainees have been identified as U Khin Maung, in his 50s, and another man from Ohntaw Village; and Ko Kyaw Zeyar Nyein, in his 30s, and another man from Gone Chun Village.

The four men were arrested near the Kyauktalone security checkpoint on the morning of October 10 while they were attempting to carry foodstuffs purchased from Kyaukphyu.

"They paid junta soldiers to deliver the food items to the outskirts of Kyaukphyu. They were arrested while going to Kyaukphyu to carry foodstuffs," said a local woman in Gone Chun Village.

The four men have not yet been released and it is not known where they are being held.

Local people in Kyaukphyu Township are facing livelihood, food security and healthcare challenges due to junta blockades affecting both land and water transportation.

As locals try to obtain food and other basic necessities through various means, they face the constant threat of arrest and imprisonment by the regime, as well as potentially violent repercussions for defying the junta's transport restrictions.

"A female healthcare worker was beaten and interrogated by junta soldiers at the Kyauktalone checkpoint in recent days. The junta soldiers beat the locals for various reasons," said a Kyaukphyu resident.

A junta court in Kyaukphyu Township on September 9 sentenced three women and a 17-year-old girl to one month in prison for carrying food without permission.