By Sayar Ngaat / MPA (Article)

After the Myanmar military coup, the lives and security of domestic prisoners has been experiencing severe hardships. Their situation, in which they don’t know when the prison officials will throw them out and kill them without any reason or they don’t know when they have to do dangerous jobs, is like waiting for the day of the death sentence with full of worries.

At around 5:00 PM, 12 July, the prison officials asked a prisoner to put a cover above the brick wall between male and female dormitories with corrugated iron plates in Kyaikmaraw prison, Mon state. That prisoner was asked to work without managing any safety equipment. That prisoner fell off from the over 20-feet-wall due to electric shock.

The prison officials didn’t let the prisoner get treatment. For this action, female political prisoners from the female dormitory of Kyaikmaraw prison requested for over 2 hours to let that prisoner get the access to emergency treatments.

In the meantime, prison officials of Kyaikmaraw prison arrived and negotiated not to keep on requesting anymore and they will let shocked prisoner get the access to necessary treatments.

Currently, that prisoner is in critical condition suffering from head injury due to the damage from falling over 20 feet height and getting medical treatment in Mawlamyine public hospital.

“They didn’t transfer him immediately after the incident to the hospital. They sent him only after female prisoners requested for over 2 hours. So, it took more than 3 hours to get to the hospital. Currently, his head is severely injured due to falling from high place. He is in Mawlamyine public hospital,” a person closely related to Kyaikmaraw prison said.

In the announcement of State Administration Council (SAC)’s Ministry of Information, it is stated that there was no such a thing as covering above the wall between female dormitory and the prison clinic with corrugated iron plates in Kyaikmaraw prison, but while lifting up the iron hook to remove the scaffolding after finishing the job of covering fence, it got contacted with electric wire and the prisoner fell from the high wall so that the injured prisoner was given necessary medical treatments and transferred immediately to the hospital.

Over 60 female political prisoners who requested for emergency treatment for injured prisoner were transferred to Daik-U prison by prison officials on 15 July, 2024.

On the arrival day of transferred female political prisoners to Daik-U prison, prison officials inspected them with the reason for bringing drugs and illegal stuff as well as kept foods, clothes and utility items from prison parcels of female political prisoners were taken away.

An in-charge of the Woman Organization for Political Prisoner (WOPP) said that prison officials have to inspect multiple times before the transfer of political prisoners to the prison where they will be transferred to. The reason of bringing drugs and illegal stuff is only with the intention to oppress female political prisoners.

“Before transferring to another prison, prison officials inspected female political prisoners until they were satisfied. They checked the bags and also the whole body of female political prisoners. Only after such inspection, they transferred them to another prison,” she said.

A former political prisoner who was released from Myingyan prison said that prison officials usually beat and put political prisoners in solitary confinement without any fault only for the reason not to dare to talk back to prison officials.

“On the arrival day at the new prison after the transfer process, we are beaten and put in solitary confinement without any fault, but just to obey easily whatever they say. In the time of confinement, we are not allowed to see our families. Some prisoners even face putting rigid leg irons,” he said.

After the prison officials of Daik-U prison had inspected female political prisoners, they kept away utility items of prisoners and even planned to charge under drug laws with the accusation that they found drugs on prisoners.

For that reason, female prisoners did not dismiss when they fell in on the evening of 15 June 2024 and requested to return what the prison officials kept from them.

For that request, prison officials didn’t handle it appropriately and responded by the violence of male prison staffs such as scolding female prisoners with violent words, firing the guns in order to threaten, beating them with rubber rods, wooden rods, cords, and shooting them with slingshots.

“Male prison staffs vituperated female prisoners by using violent words to come out if any bitch dared and they would fuck. Then, shot with slingshots, beat with every rod made with rubber or wood. There were some prisoners who got severe head injuries. It was brutal,” a person closely related to Daik-U prison said.

In total, over 60 female political prisoners: over 40 transferred female political prisoners and over 20 female political prisoners from Daik-U prison, were injured due to the violences of prison officials of SAC-controlled Daik-U Prison Department.
Among injured female prisoners, 5 female prisoners including Ma Nu Nu Aung and Ma Khat Khat Aung, who are members of 88th Generation Peace and Open Society, got severe lacerations on their heads.

“We still can’t contact her. Prison parcels are also closed. So, we still don’t know if she is ok or in what situation. We feel more worries for not knowing anything,” a person who is close to the family of Ma Nu Nu Aung said.

Besides beating over 60 female political prisoners, Daik-U prison officials forcely put prisoners injured by their violence in a period from 15 June, which is the day that female prisoners transferred from Kyaikmaraw prison to Daik-U prison, to 28 June in solitary confinement without getting access to necessary treatments.

Therefore, 8 groups of former political prisoners released a demand including 5 following conditions on 25 June 2024.

To accept the prison parcels sent from the family members of female political prisoners who were in solitary confinement after forced prison transfer and to arrange the permission to see visitors as soon as possible.

To release those female political prisoners from solitary confinement due to the violent cases in Daik-U prison without any exception.
To provide adequate medical treatments and healthcare as soon as possible to injured prisoners due to illegal beating by prison officials.
To close immediately all the extra charges with numerous articles of law without solid evidence including the accusation of drugs related charges while in prison transfer.

To hand back all the kept stuff of female political prisoners without solid reason.

“We, former political prisoners, had experienced inhuman actions of SAC’s military ourselves. And, political prisoners inside the prisons are still facing these. We founded with the intention to help the political prisoners so that we will stand with political prisoners and we will try till we can identify and take action on the SAC’s military,” Ma Zu Zu May Yoon, who is the founder of WOPP, said.

Moreover, according to the announcements of The Political Prisoners Network-Myanmar (PPNM), there are 24 political prisoners who died due to the lack of adequate medical treatment in prisons across the country from 1 January 2023 to 1 May 2024.

Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP) urged international governments, International Committee of Red Cross, neighbor Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) members including United Nations (UN) to provide the most immediate and effective protections and actions against human right violations and blockages of information inside the prisons of Myanmar.

Daik-U prison in Nyaunglebin township, Bago region, became the worst prison among the prisons oppressing political prisoners after the coup and there were 14 political prisoners who died in Daik-U prison during nearly a year from May 2023 to March 2024, .

“Thayarwaddy prison is famous in history. Similarly, Insein, Oebo and later Myingyan prisons followed. But, the worst prison in 2023-2024 years is Daik-U prison,” Ko Thike Htun Oo, member of the executive committee of PPNM said.

AAPP announced on 19 July 2023 that there are 37 political prisoners who were taken out from Daik-U prison and lost without knowing where they were taken in July 2023 and out of them, there are 8 confirmed deaths.

It is mentioned in the announcement that the prisoners whom AAPP can confirm death are Ko Khant Lin Naing, Ko Pyi Phyo hein, Ko Zin Myint Htun, Ko Wai Yan Lwin, Ko Zaw Win Htut, Ko Aung Myo Thu, Ko Bo Bo Nay Win and Ko Nay Aye.

According to people closely related to Daik-U prison, SAC’s military informed dead prisoners’ families that those prisoners tried to escape by taking advantage of the breakdown of the prison car on the way of prison transfer so that they were shot dead.

It is said that Daik- U prison located near Bago Range is far from civilian houses and wards so that the conditions, in which difficulty to know the situation inside the prison, restricting prison parcels process and malaria, are common in that prison.

“Prison is next to Bago Range so there are a lot of mosquitoes inside the prison cells. And, other insects including cockroaches are also abundant. I only have to take Paracetamol for malaria in that prison. Whatever the disease is, prison officials only provide that medicine,” a woman released from Daik-U prison said.

Political prisoners are facing obvious human right violations such as illegal beating up, murders and lack of medical supply by the SAC’s army inside the Daik-U prison.

The case of beating up on female political prisoners in Daik-u prison is highlighting the worst and the most violent violation of human right by the prison officials, and prisoners are lacking the very basic right of the human rights to live and losing the right to free form tortures.

Although the voices behind the bars and walls like “We don’t have the right to talk like a human being even though we are humans. Atrocity of SAC’s army is in ultimate condition since we might get killed if we request to talk like a human being to another human,” has been coming out frequently, I just want to say “ May the voices be heard”.