Kyauktaw man charged with abetting mutiny

By DMG 19 Dec 2022

DMG Newsroom
19 December 2022, Kyauktaw

Myanmar’s military regime has opened an additional case against a rice mill owner from Kyauktaw Township for allegedly abetting mutiny, after initially charging him under Article 17(1) of the Unlawful Associations Act for his alleged ties to the Arakan Army (AA), according to court sources and relatives.

U Hla Maung Than, a 43-year-old rice mill owner from Kardi aka Thazin Village in Kyauktaw, was reportedly summoned by the commander of Light Infantry Battalion No. 539 on October 2. Both U Hla Maung Than and his companion Ko Maung Che, 35, from Apaukwa Village, were subsequently arrested.

The two were charged on December 6 under Article 17(1) of the Unlawful Associations Act at the Sittwe Township Court.

At a hearing on Monday, the regime filed another charge against U Hla Maung Than under Section 131 of the Penal Code for allegedly abetting mutiny.

“I don’t understand the charges, but police told me that today’s charge is heavier than the previous one,” U Hla Maung Than’s wife Daw Hla Yin Hsan told DMG.

U Hla Maung Than was beaten by soldiers from Light Infantry Battalion No. 539, said Daw Hla Yin Hsan. “He said he was asked about the whereabouts of the AA members. He was beaten and he could not answer. He has nothing to do with the AA,” she said.

The next hearing has been scheduled for December 26. A lawyer from Sittwe said: “The punishment is heavy if he is convicted. It is the crime of seducing a soldier from his allegiance or his duty.”

DMG was unable to obtain comment from Arakan State Security and Border Affairs Minister Colonel Kyaw Thura for comment on the lawsuit.

According to a DMG tally, since renewed fighting between Myanmar military and the AA began in earnest in August, 46 departmental staff, students and other civilians were charged under the Penal Code and/or Unlawful Associations Act through November 30.