ULA/AA charges Minbya Twsp villagers with incitement, other crimes in land dispute

By Admin 30 Jul 2025

DMG Newsroom

29 July 2025, Minbya

The United League of Arakan/Arakan Army (ULA/AA) has reportedly filed a case against 10 women and one man under four sections of the Penal Code, including incitement under Section 505(b), in connection with a land dispute in Minbya Township, Arakan State.

The defendants are from the villages of Nyaung Pin Waing, Panmyaung and Kyuntaw in Myebon Township.

In April, a video clip of a land dispute in Nyaungpin Waing Village went viral online. U Aung Min Zan, No. (1) Regional head under the ULA/AA's Nova (2) Military Region, filed a case against the 11 people under the four Penal Code sections.

"In a video clip circulating online, 11 people were charged with assaulting and threatening ULA officials," said U Aung Thein, the husband of Daw Wah Wah Naing, one of the accused.

The 11 people, including Daw Bu May, were detained by the ULA/AA's Department of Law Enforcement and Public Security (DLEPS) from May 15 to June 23 before being released on bail by a local ULA/AA court.

However, the township court rejected the local court's bail decision on July 28, and the 11 defendants are being detained once again.

"Some of the women who have been arrested have infants. In some cases, the husband is ill and the woman is responsible for the family. Most of them are poor and needy, so we want them to be released," U Than Maung Gyi, the husband of defendant Daw Than Than, told DMG.

DMG continues to attempt to contact the lawyers representing the accused to obtain more information about the status of the case, and is also attempting to contact U Aung Min Zan, who is prosecuting the case.

Section 505(b) of the Penal Code was enacted during the British colonial era, and has since been used by successive military governments to arrest and imprison journalists, activists and average folk whose words or actions have raised the ire of authorities for one reason or another over the years.

Since the 2021 coup, Myanmar's military regime has been arresting and imprisoning politicians, human rights activists, writers, and media professionals who express their opinions freely under Section 505(b).

"Section 505(a) of the Penal Code and Section 505(b) of the Penal Code are both laws that the military regime has used to suppress their opponents and free speech. In other words, the military regime can interpret the law as it sees fit and arrest anyone it wants. Therefore, most legal scholars oppose these sections," said a male legal expert in Arakan State.

He said Section 505(b) should not be applied by the ULA/AA because it undermines freedom of expression and protest, and instills fear in the public.

Section 505(b) of the Penal Code carries a maximum sentence of three years in prison. The other charges brought against the defendants are under Section 186 of the Penal Code, which carries a maximum penalty of three months in prison for obstructing a public servant in his duty, and Section 188, which carries a maximum sentence of six months in prison for disobeying an order issued by a public servant.