A member of the ousted National League for Democracy (NLD) party was kidnapped from his home in Mandalay on Monday morning by a group of armed men with no known affiliation, according to a neighbourhood resident.
Fifty-year-old Khin Zaw Thet, who lives in Maha Aungmyay Township’s Sein Pan ward, was forced into a car by six men in plainclothes, the local told Myanmar Now.
“He was taken in a [Toyota] Mark II. We don’t know which group took him,” the individual, who also lives in Sein Pan, said.
Khin Zaw Thet’s family—worried for his life—reportedly called the area’s No. 7 police station in an effort to obtain further information on his whereabouts, but officials said that he was not in their custody.
After participating in an anti-junta protest last year, Khin Zaw Thet was charged with incitement under Section 505a of the Penal Code and detained for three months before being released in a general amnesty in October.
Myanmar Now tried to contact the local police station and relevant junta officials but all calls went unanswered.
The military council has been carrying out daily arrests in Mandalay, and there has also been a rise in reported abductions in the city by armed men dressed as civilians.
On May 6, five men were reportedly taken by such individuals, also in Sein Pan ward. Their families have since been unable to contact them.
Commenting on the recent kidnappings, a Mandalay resident told Myanmar Now that public security had deteriorated since the February 2021 coup and that he no longer felt safe even in his own home.
“Nobody can live in peace anywhere anymore. They’re taking people as they please,” he said. “This is the only ‘change,’ if you can call it that, that [the military] managed to bring to the country.”
A group called Thwe Thout (meaning “blood-sworn comrades”) surfaced in April, issuing death threats against relatives of prominent junta opponents and announcing the launch of a campaign targeting members of the NLD, anti-regime resistance groups, and journalists investigating the military’s actions.
Thwe Thout has been most active in urban areas, particularly Mandalay. An NLD statement claimed that as of May 5, a total of 14 members and supporters of the party had been killed by the group. Eight of the murders took place in Mandalay.
Yee Mon, the defence minister for the National Unity Government (NUG) told Myanmar Now that he believed that junta officials from the Mandalay-based Central Regional Command had founded Thwe Thout as a way to target the families of members of the NLD and of the armed resistance forces.
He said that the NUG was in possession of evidence proving this phenomenon, but that it would be disclosed at a later date.
The military council has not responded to the claims.
Recent murder spree revives fears of return of old junta tactics
Recent murder spree revives fears of return of old junta tactics
Like previous regimes, the one now in power appears to be using thugs to instil terror in its critics and sow chaos in Myanmar’s cities
Analysis: Min Aung Hlaing will maintain the status quo that serves him
With his term as junta chief set to expire, Min Aung Hlaing will cling to power with or without army-controlled elections or the military’s 2008 Constitution
The junta chief said that the country was still not ready to hold a general election with an “accurate” voter list and “free” polls, since nearly half of the more than 300 townships in Myanmar lack security and stability.
“We need to hold a general election in all states and regions simultaneously and we can’t do it in one place after another,” Min Aung Hlaing said. “It is not enough to [hold it] only in urban areas,” he added.
He also emphasised that Myanmar’s electoral system needed to be changed to one of Proportional Representation, which would make it easier for less popular junta-aligned parties to win seats. Myanmar’s elections currently operate under a First Past the Post system, meaning that the candidate who wins the most votes in each constituency becomes an MP, while all the votes that went to the losing candidates are effectively thrown out.
He added that the country’s political parties will also need to be changed in line with the electoral system switch, hinting that the parties might need to merge in order to better represent the people.
Days before the NDSC meeting, the regime amended the Political Parties Registration Law, aiming to outlaw the NLD. In Wednesday’s state-run newspapers, the junta’s electoral commission also released by-laws of the Political Parties Registration Law and called on interested parties to start proceeding with their registration.
Also addressed by the military chief at the meeting was the need for the collection of the country’s updated population data. He noted that Myanmar’s last census was carried out in 2014 and that it should be conducted every 10 years. Min Aung Hlaing stressed that an updated census would be critical to obtaining an accurate voter list ahead of an election.
“Our government will try our best to be able to hold an election in a number of constituencies not less than in the previous 2020 election, and also under peaceful conditions—not [those that are] worse [than in 2020],” Min Aung Hlaing said, referring to his junta.
The 11-member NDSC body that met on Tuesday is prescribed by the military-drafted Constitution to include the president, two vice-presidents, two house speakers, commander-in-chief and his deputy, and the ministers of foreign affairs, defence, home affairs, and border affairs.
Those present at the junta chief’s NDSC meeting on Tuesday were the regime’s acting president Myint Swe, Lower House speaker T Khun Myat, deputy commander-in-chief Soe Win, defence minister Gen Mya Tun Oo, home affairs minister Lt-Gen Soe Htut, foreign affairs minister Wunna Maung Lwin, border affairs minister Lt-Gen Tun Tun Naung.
Also in attendance were regime officials who were selectively invited, such as military council secretary Lt-Gen Aung Lin Dwe along with his joint secretary Lt-Gen Ye Win Oo, and chief justice Thidar Oo.
T Khun Myat suggested that the council body seek recommendations from the constitutional tribunal regarding whether the new extension was in line with the 2008 charter. According to the broadcast, the tribunal had considered the move and told the regime’s vice-president that the extension was in line with the constitution. Myint Swe, who leads the NDSC, then announced the six-month extension.
Although the NDSC council holds some executive powers of the state, its structure gave military-controlled members majority representation even when Myanmar was under a civilian government.
In response to the regime’s extension of the military rule, Aung Kyi Nyunt who is a central executive member of the ousted NLD party, said that the move was “lawless.”
“The state of emergency will only be over when they are no longer [in power],” he told Myanmar Now on Wednesday over the phone, referring to the military. “They perpetrated this emergency state of affairs. Even if they extend [the junta’s rule], it is lawless.”
According to the 2008 Constitution, only the President can hand over the state power to the commander-in-chief under “a state of emergency.”
Though the military arrested and charged the NLD’s President Win Myint when it staged the coup two years ago, it did not depose vice presidents Henry Van Thio and Myint Swe; the latter is currently serving as the regime’s acting president. However, Van Thio has not been in the public eye since the army’s seizure of power.
While both remain NDSC members, Van Thio did not attend the Tuesday meeting for health reasons, according to the regime. Myanmar Now’s sources in Naypyitaw said he was hospitalised on Tuesday with head and neck injuries.
Tuesday marked his third absence from such meetings since the coup. He did not attend previous NDSC gatherings on January 31 and July 31 last year, when the council extended the junta’s rule. On both occasions, Van Thio’s health was cited as the reason for his nonattendance.
On the second anniversary of the country’s military coup, residents in cities and towns in Myanmar protested junta rule with a “silent strike” by avoiding public activities. Myanmar nationals in neighbouring countries such as Thailand held rallies and called for an end of the military’s power grab, which they condemned as “illegal.”
One night earlier, the US, Australia, and allied Western governments announced an expansion of sanctions against the junta, the regime’s energy officials and its network of suppliers and cronies.