Court postpones hearing for Kyaukphyu pair charged with incitement

By DMG 07 Jul 2022

DMG Newsroom
7 July 2022, Kyaukphyu

A court on July 7 postponed a hearing in the case of a man and woman in Arakan State’s Kyaukphyu who have been charged with incitement under Section 505(a) of the Penal Code. 

“Employees at the court told us the judge was busy with the visit of a superior and rescheduled the hearing for July 21,” said Ma Cho Cho Thein, the wife of defendant U Than Hlaing. 

U Than Hlaing, 41, and Daw Khin Ohn Ngwe, 56, from Ceditaung ward in the town of Kyaukphyu, were taken into custody by security personnel from the military’s Light Infantry Battalion No. 34 on May 26. 

Lieutenant Ye Thet Zaw from the Kyaukphyu-based battalion filed a lawsuit against the pair at the township court. The defendants are currently being held at the Kyaukphyu Myoma police station. 

The pair have been charged under Section 505(a) of the Penal Code. That particular section was amended by Myanmar’s military regime following its coup on February 1, 2021, and according to Human Rights Watch:  

“Section 505(a) previously made it a crime to publish or circulate any ‘statement, rumor or report’ ‘with intent to cause, or which is likely to cause, any officer, soldier, sailor or airman, in the Army, Navy or Air Force to mutiny or otherwise disregard or fail in his duty.’ It has been replaced with much broader language clearly designed to penalize those encouraging members of the civil service of the security services to join the Civil Disobedience Movement.  

Under the revised provision, any attempt to ‘hinder, disturb, damage the motivation, discipline, health and conduct’ of military personnel and government employees and cause their hatred, disobedience or disloyalty toward the military and the government is punishable by up to three years in prison.” 

The Arakan Army has warned civilians in Arakan State to stay alert, saying clashes could erupt at any time due to tensions between the Myanmar military and the ethnic armed group.