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BURMA: Young man allegedly dies due to assault by special drug squad; mother flees country

July 6, 2006

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ASIAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION - URGENT APPEALS PROGRAM

7 July 2006

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UA-222-2006: BURMA: Young man allegedly dies due to assault by special drug squad; mother flees country

BURMA: Assault; custodial death; impunity; un-rule of law
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Dear friends,

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received details of the alleged death in custody of a young man in Burma due to an assault by special anti-drug squad police. According to his mother, who has now fled to Thailand, Maung Ne Zaw and two friends were stopped, illegally detained and brutally assaulted in northern Kachin State on 14 March 2006. They were then put in detention. At the end of March, Ne Zaw was transferred to a hospital because of serious injuries but taken back to detention before he was healed. He allegedly died in detention on May 2. The story of his killing comes at a time of many reports of assaults and killings by police and other security personnel in Burma.
 
According to the complaints that Maung Ne Zaw's mother, Daw Mi Mi Htun, lodged with the local authorities, on 14 March 2006 her 28-year-old son was travelling south on the main Mandalay-Myitkyina road from Hobin to Mohnyin on a motorcycle driven by Maung Thingyan Htun together with a third youth, Maung Thura Kyaw (a.k.a. Maung Tu Tu). At about 2pm they were stopped at Lehhmi village by Police Superintendent Khin Maung Nyi and four subordinates of the Special Anti-drug Squad operating a checkpoint.

The police reportedly searched the men but did not find anything. However, they did not release them. Instead they took them to a field about 50 yards away where they handcuffed them behind their backs and beat all three men savagely. After the owner of the field came, they took the men out from there and separated them, after which they continued to assault them sporadically up to around 5pm. Then one of the police allegedly placed a small bottle of heroin in the bag belonging to Thingyan Htun and took them back to the lockup at Hobin, where they charged the three with possession of narcotics.

The three victims were left in detention but Ne Zaw continued to suffer from his serious injuries caused by the police assault. He kept slipping in and out of consciousness. After almost two weeks, on March 27 he was sent to the Hobin Hospital but due to the severity of his injuries the staff refused to admit him. He was then sent the Mohnyin Hospital, where again the staff refused to admit him. After that he was sent back to Hobin Hospital. On March 30 the staff transferred him to Myitkyina State Hospital, where he was treated until April 23. Then he was taken back to the Hobin police lockup. He was taken to court four times but could not continue to go after that. Finally, he died in the lockup on May 2.

On May 22, Thingyan Htun was sentenced to six years in prison for possession of the heroin; Thura Kyaw was released.


THE VICTIM'S MOTHER SPEAKS:

On May 18, having failed to get any action on the death through local channels, Ne Zaw's mother wrote a complaint detailing the case to the commander of the Northern Military Command, General Ohn Myint, and sent copies to police commanders at various levels. She says that she also took witnesses to meet with him in Myitkina but was unsuccessful.

On June 14 she wrote another letter, which she also copied to police and special investigation bureaus. In the second letter, Daw Mi Mi Htun made strong and desperate pleas for attention to her son's death:

"I am a person who speaks and lives truthfully, who works and does things honestly. My son Maung Ne Zaw, Maung Thura Kyaw and Maung Thingyan Htun also were well-behaved and honest youths. They didn't take drugs or smoke... However, Special Anti-drug Squad Police Superintendent Khin Maung Nyi and his four subordinates illegally charged these youths with a narcotics offence in the court. They also beat them savagely. As a result of the savage beating my son Maung Ne Zaw died. Maung Thingyan Htun was given six years in prison.

"Special Anti-drug Squad Police Superintendent Khin Maung Nyi and his four subordinates just act indecently, unlawfully and bully the people. We the people have just become prey for this Special Anti-drug Squad's hunting for money and bullying. Because of their actions, the people have lost their possessions, homes, fields and have become desperate and impoverished. We don't know how many people now they have arrested to demand and squeeze money from (or) press narcotics charges, or furthermore how many they have illegally assaulted.

"Therefore I am requesting you, depending upon you and believing in you to take appropriate action in accordance with the law in order that (the alleged perpetrators) cannot again illegally detain and charge and squeeze money from the people over narcotics cases."

The second letter too had no effect. Meanwhile, Mi Mi Htun says that she was being constantly harassed by the special anti-drug squad and ordinary police. Mi Mi Htun is a member of the National League for Democracy and had earlier also been jailed due to political activities. Therefore, at the end of June she fled to Thailand.

Mi Mi Htun has asked that all concerned international organisations take up the case with the government in Burma, and press for action against her son's alleged killers.


BACKGROUND INFORMATION:

The news of Ne Zaw's alleged killing comes at a time of a growing number of reports of police officers and/or local government officials in Burma seriously assaulting and sometimes killing local people over trivial incidents and allegations. The key feature in each of these cases also has been the inability of the victims or their families to complain, and the subsequent legal or extralegal action against the victim or victims to cover up the incident by the perpetrators.

See for instance the following cases. The AHRC has incomplete information on many other similar alleged cases. The AHRC is also aware that the actual number of incidents in Burma is many times more than those that come to the attention of human rights defenders and advocates.

Ko Thet Naing Oo (beaten to death by municipal officers and fire fighters): UA-097-2006, UP-060-2006, UP-064-2006
Ma Aye Aye Aung & husband (assaulted by local council members): UA-080-2006
Ko Aung Myint Oo (assaulted by police): UP-029-2006, UA-058-2006
Ko Than Htike (beaten to death by local council members): UA-044-2006,
Ko Zaw Win & brother (assaulted by police): UP-71-2005, UA-81-2005 

See further AS-070-2006, AS-015-2006.

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SUGGESTED ACTION:

Please write to the Minister of Home Affairs and other concerned persons below calling for an immediate investigation into the alleged death in custody and other violations of criminal procedure alleged by the mother of the deceased. As the case involves special anti-drug officers please also send your letter to agencies concerned with drug suppression in Burma. Please note that for the purpose of the letter, the country should be referred to by its official title of Myanmar, rather than Burma. 

To support this appeal, please click:

Sample letter:

Dear ___________,

MYANMAR: Alleged death in custody of Maung Ne Zaw on 2 May 2006 due to assault by Kachin State Special Anti-drug Squad police and inadequate medical attention

Name of victims:
1. Maung Ne Zaw, 28 years old, National ID No. 1/MaNyaNa (Naing) 116228, of Myoma Ward, Mohnyin Town, Kachin State (deceased)
2. Maung Thura Kyaw (a.k.a. Maung Tu Tu)
3. Maung Thingyan Htun, son of U Htun Way
Complainant: Daw Mi Mi Htun, 48 years old, mother of Maung Ne Zaw, National ID No. 1/MaNyaNa (Naing) 077802, of Myoma Ward, Mohnyin town, Kachin State
Alleged perpetrators: Police Superintendent Khin Maung Nyi and four subordinates of the Special Anti-drug Squad based in Hobin town, Kachin State
Date of incident: 14 March 2006; 2 May 2006
Place of incident: Main road to Mandalay at Lehhmi village, Myitkyina, Kachin State; Hobin police lockup, Kachin State

I am writing to express my dismay at the news that a young man allegedly died in Hobin police lockup of northern Myanmar on 2 May 2006 having been savagely beaten by five officers of the Special Anti-drug Squad, and to seek your urgent intervention.  

According to the information that I have received, on 14 March 2006 three young men, Maung Ne Zaw, Maung Thingyan Htun and Maung Thura Kyaw (a.k.a. Maung Tu Tu) were travelling south on the main Mandalay-Myitkyina road from Hobin to Mohnyin by motorcycle when at about 2pm they were stopped at Lehhmi village by Police Superintendent Khin Maung Nyi and four subordinates of the Special Anti-drug Squad operating a checkpoint.

The police reportedly searched the men but did not find anything. However, they did not release them. Instead they took them to a field about 50 yards away where they handcuffed them behind their backs and allegedly beat them savagely. They moved them away when the owner of the land came, and continued to assault them sporadically up to around 5pm. Then one of the police allegedly placed a small bottle of heroin in the bag belonging to Thingyan Htun and took them back to the lockup at Hobin, where they charged the three with possession of narcotics.

The three victims were left in detention but Ne Zaw continued to suffer seriously from his injuries caused by the police assault. He kept slipping in and out of consciousness. After almost two weeks, on March 27 he was sent to the Hobin Hospital but due to the severity of his injuries the staff refused to admit him. He was then sent the Mohnyin Hospital, where again the staff refused to admit him. After that he was sent back to Hobin Hospital. On March 30 the staff transferred him to Myitkyina State Hospital, where he was treated until April 23. Then he was taken back to the Hobin police lockup, where he died on May 2. Thingyan Htun was subsequently sentenced on May 22 to six years in prison for possession of the heroin.

On May 18, Ne Zaw's mother Daw Mi Mi Htun wrote a complaint detailing the case to the commander of the Northern Military Command, General Ohn Myint, and sent copies to state, district and township police commanders. She also reportedly took witnesses to the authorities in Myitkina but was unable to have a case lodged against the alleged killers. On June 14 she wrote another letter, which was also ignored. Meanwhile, Mi Mi Htun was reportedly intimidated by the special anti-drug squad and ordinary police. Finally, at the end of June she went to Thailand to escape further harassment for pressing her son's case.

I find it tragic that a mother whose only concern was to have action taken against the alleged killers of her son has had to flee from her homeland because of making complaints. Sadly, this case speaks to a consistent problem in Myanmar: the inability of ordinary citizens to make complaints against government officials on virtually any matter whatsoever. This is despite the fact that under Part III of the Citizen's Rights Protection Law 1975 (Parliamentary Act No. 2/1975), citizens are entitled to lodge complaints with the concerned authorities where they believe that their rights have been infringed. The absence of the possibility of an effective remedy or redress for wrongs committed by state agents in Myanmar undermines the possibility that any human rights can be enjoyed, as the possibility of effective redress is the most integral part of any regime for justice and human rights.

I call for an immediate investigation into this alleged assault with a view to laying charges of homicide under section 304A of the Penal Code against the alleged perpetrators. At the same time, there should be preliminary and departmental inquiries to determine wrongdoing of all concerned persons with a view to laying further criminal charges as necessary, including for the alleged assault and other offences committed by the officers directly involved in the incident, and others related to the case. 

I am aware that in recent times there have been a growing number of serious and substantiated allegations of deaths in custody in Myanmar. If this trend continues it is bound to cause growing concern and panic among the populace and lead to greater instability in the country, to the detriment of everybody. The trend will not and cannot be addressed by attempting to cover up the alleged incidents. It can only be addressed by giving the public confidence that the authorities are acting to investigate properly and bring to an end such incidents through prosecutions and punishment of the alleged perpetrators, protection of witnesses and compensation for victims and their families.

Yours sincerely

---

PLEASE SEND YOUR LETTERS TO:

Maj-Gen. Maung Oo
Minister for Home Affairs
Ministry of Home Affairs
Corner of Saya San Street and No 1 Industrial Street
Yankin Township
Yangon
MYANMAR
Tel: +951 250 315 / 374 789
Fax: +951 549 663 / 549 208


PLEASE SEND COPIES TO:

1. Lt-Gen. Soe Win
Prime Minister
c/o Ministry of Defence
Signal Pagoda Road
Yangon
MYANMAR
Tel: + 95 1 372 681
Fax: + 95 1 652 624

2. U Aye Maung
Attorney General
Office of the Attorney General
101 Pansodan Street
Kyauktada Township
Yangon
MYANMAR
Fax: + 95 1 371 028/ 282 449 / 282 990

3. Brig-Gen. Khin Yi
Director General
Myanmar Police Force
Saya San Road
Yankin Township
Yangon
MYANMAR
Tel: + 95 1 549 196/ 228/ 209

4. Pol. Col. Hkam Awng
Joint Secretary
Central Committee for Drug Abuse Control
PO Box 650
Yangon
MYANMAR
Tel: +951 549 285/ 642
Fax: +951 549 284
E-mail: ccdac@mptmail.net.mm, h-awng@myanmar.com.mm

5. General Ohn Myint
Commander
Northern Military Command
Myitkina
Kachin State
MYANMAR

6. Mr. Shariq Bin Raza
Representative
UN Office on Drugs and Crime
11A Malikha Road
Ward 7, Mayangone Township
Yangon
MYANMAR
Tel: +951 666 903/ 660 556/ 660 538/ 660 398/ 664 539
Fax: +951 651 334
E-mail: fo.myanmar@unodc.org, shariq.raza@unodc.org, camila.vega@unodc.org 

7. Mr. Patrick Vial
Head of Delegation
ICRC
No. 2 (C) - 5 Dr. Ba Han Lane
Kaba Aye Pagoda Road, 8th Mile
Mayangone Township
Yangon
MYANMAR
Tel.: +951 662 613 / 664 524
Fax: +951 650 117
E-mail: yangon.yan@icrc.org

8. Professor Paulo Sergio Pinheiro
Special Rapporteur on Myanmar
Attn: Mr. Laurent Meillan
c/o OHCHR-UNOG
1211 Geneva 10
SWITZERLAND
Tel: + 41 22 9179 281
Fax: + 41 22 9179 018 (ATTN: SPECIAL RAPPORTEUR MYANMAR)
E-mail: lmeillan@ohchr.org

9. Professor Philip Alston
Special Rapporteur on Extra-judicial, Summary, or Arbitrary Executions
Atten: Lydie Ventre
Room 3-016, c/o OHCHR-UNOG
1211 Geneva 10
SWITZERLAND
Tel: +41 22 917 9155
Fax: +41 22 917 9006 (ATTN: SPECIAL RAPPORTEUR EXTRAJUDICIAL EXECUTIONS)
Email: lventre@ohchr.org

10. Prof. Manfred Nowak
Special Rapporteur on the Question of Torture
Attn: Mr.Safir Syed
c/o OHCHR-UNOG
1211 Geneva 10
SWITZERLAND
Tel: +41 22 917 9230
Fax: +41 22 9179016 (ATTN: SPECIAL RAPPORTEUR TORTURE)
E-mail: ssyed@ohchr.org


Thank you.

Urgent Appeals Programme
Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) (ahrchk@ahrchk.org)


Document Type :
Urgent Appeal Case
Document ID :
UA-222-2006
Countries :
Issues :
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Extended Introduction: Urgent Appeals, theory and practice

A need for dialogue

Many people across Asia are frustrated by the widespread lack of respect for human rights in their countries.  Some may be unhappy about the limitations on the freedom of expression or restrictions on privacy, while some are affected by police brutality and military killings.  Many others are frustrated with the absence of rights on labour issues, the environment, gender and the like. 

Yet the expression of this frustration tends to stay firmly in the private sphere.  People complain among friends and family and within their social circles, but often on a low profile basis. This kind of public discourse is not usually an effective measure of the situation in a country because it is so hard to monitor. 

Though the media may cover the issues in a broad manner they rarely broadcast the private fears and anxieties of the average person.  And along with censorship – a common blight in Asia – there is also often a conscious attempt in the media to reflect a positive or at least sober mood at home, where expressions of domestic malcontent are discouraged as unfashionably unpatriotic. Talking about issues like torture is rarely encouraged in the public realm.

There may also be unwritten, possibly unconscious social taboos that stop the public reflection of private grievances.  Where authoritarian control is tight, sophisticated strategies are put into play by equally sophisticated media practices to keep complaints out of the public space, sometimes very subtly.  In other places an inner consensus is influenced by the privileged section of a society, which can control social expression of those less fortunate.  Moral and ethical qualms can also be an obstacle.

In this way, causes for complaint go unaddressed, un-discussed and unresolved and oppression in its many forms, self perpetuates.  For any action to arise out of private frustration, people need ways to get these issues into the public sphere.

Changing society

In the past bridging this gap was a formidable task; it relied on channels of public expression that required money and were therefore controlled by investors.  Printing presses were expensive, which blocked the gate to expression to anyone without money.  Except in times of revolution the media in Asia has tended to serve the well-off and sideline or misrepresent the poor.

Still, thanks to the IT revolution it is now possible to communicate with large audiences at little cost.  In this situation there is a real avenue for taking issues from private to public, regardless of the class or caste of the individual.

Practical action

The AHRC Urgent Appeals system was created to give a voice to those affected by human rights violations, and by doing so, to create a network of support and open avenues for action.  If X’s freedom of expression is denied, if Y is tortured by someone in power or if Z finds his or her labour rights abused, the incident can be swiftly and effectively broadcast and dealt with. The resulting solidarity can lead to action, resolution and change. And as more people understand their rights and follow suit, as the human rights consciousness grows, change happens faster. The Internet has become one of the human rights community’s most powerful tools.   

At the core of the Urgent Appeals Program is the recording of human rights violations at a grass roots level with objectivity, sympathy and competence. Our information is firstly gathered on the ground, close to the victim of the violation, and is then broadcast by a team of advocates, who can apply decades of experience in the field and a working knowledge of the international human rights arena. The flow of information – due to domestic restrictions – often goes from the source and out to the international community via our program, which then builds a pressure for action that steadily makes its way back to the source through his or her own government.   However these cases in bulk create a narrative – and this is most important aspect of our program. As noted by Sri Lankan human rights lawyer and director of the Asian Human Rights Commission, Basil Fernando:

"The urgent appeal introduces narrative as the driving force for social change. This idea was well expressed in the film Amistad, regarding the issue of slavery. The old man in the film, former president and lawyer, states that to resolve this historical problem it is very essential to know the narrative of the people. It was on this basis that a court case is conducted later. The AHRC establishes the narrative of human rights violations through the urgent appeals. If the narrative is right, the organisation will be doing all right."

Patterns start to emerge as violations are documented across the continent, allowing us to take a more authoritative, systemic response, and to pinpoint the systems within each country that are breaking down. This way we are able to discover and explain why and how violations take place, and how they can most effectively be addressed. On this path, larger audiences have opened up to us and become involved: international NGOs and think tanks, national human rights commissions and United Nations bodies.  The program and its coordinators have become a well-used tool for the international media and for human rights education programs. All this helps pave the way for radical reforms to improve, protect and to promote human rights in the region.