Case of Kani schoolteacher and family’s murder still unsolved

More than a year has passed since the bodies of a young couple and three-month-old child were found in their home in Kani Township, Sagaing Region. However, there have been few signs of progress in finding or bringing their killer to justice. Win Htay, a member of the Kani Township education board, lived with his wife Cheint Cheint Thae Wai and infant daughter Shwe Wut Yi Hlwar in a house near the centre of Ta Pone village, Kani Township some five miles east of the Chindwin River. Fellow villagers found their bodies inside their home, bearing stab wounds, on the afternoon of November 5. The reaction was forceful and widespread, with supporters of the resistance from all backgrounds participating in street demonstrations demanding justice. Myanmar’s anti-junta resistance, as well as the community of educators within it, issued public statements condemning the killing. “We are committed to ensuring justice for the victims while carefully documenting all details,” said a statement from the NUG Ministry of Education of the publicly mandated National Unity Government (NUG). The statement also pledged that the NUG ministry would cooperate with and render all possible aid to the resistance’s investigative agencies, working diligently to bring the murderers to justice. However, more than a year later, a solution to the case continues to elude investigators. A funeral for Win Htay and his family (Photo: Supplied) “A year after the incident, the case appears to be stalled,” said a woman participating in the resistance from Yinmarbin District, the territory east of the Chindwin that Kani shares with two other townships. “It is unclear whether the investigators have run into obstacles or circumstances outside their control are to blame,” added the woman. “So far, no department seems to be actively handling it. Although the education ministry issued a statement, it’s the home affairs ministry that’s actually responsible. But its response has been lacklustre. In a palpably tense atmosphere, most people living in the district were reluctant to give information to the media about the family’s murder, and the few sources who spoke only did so on condition of anonymity. While little could be confirmed about the details of the murder, sources on the ground suggested reasons for the investigation’s slow progress other than the investigators’ incapacity. The accounts Myanmar Now heard suggest some conflict within the resistance that its members would prefer to conceal from the public. “This incident was a clash between resistance groups,” one Kani Township-based resistance fighter said. “One side likely targeted the other out of personal self-interests or in anger over some criticism.” Win Htay’s life Most of Kani Township, which has a large area straddling the river, north of the regional capital of Monywa, is relatively remote. As concerns the resistance forces operating there, most of the township is safely beyond the reach of junta ground forces, with an interim administration installed by the resistance governing outside of urban areas. The murdered family: Win Htay (R) and his wife Cheint Cheint Thae Wai and their infant daughter Shwe Wut Yi Hlwar (L) (Photo: Supplied) Win Htay, a high school teacher, joined the non-violent Civil Disobedience Movement (CDM) in 2021 to oppose the military coup in Myanmar that year, later assuming a seat on the township’s education board and working tirelessly to support the struggle against military rule, according to one of his colleagues and close friends. Shortly after the military coup, Win Htay’s friend said he led protests in Kani Township and kept the membership list for the CDM. “He was a calm, dedicated person who supported the revolution in every way he could, including helping transport wounded resistance fighters to medical centres,” Win Htay’s friend said. “Though he was a government township education board officer, his contributions went far beyond his official duties.” Win Htay highly valued education and truth, another Kani Township resident said. Unlike many who took little interest in children’s learning and development, he was fully dedicated to it in his working life, his colleagues remembered. “Win Htay was a man who valued truth, and I view this as retaliation for his actions,” a Yinmarbin District-based resistance member said. “The cruel, horrific killing of an entire family of an educated man and honourable revolutionary was also senseless. Conflicts can be resolved through peaceful negotiation among resistance members.” Win Htay was 35 years old at the time of his death. His wife, Cheint Cheint Thae Wai, was around 25, and their infant daughter Shwe Wut Yi Hlwar was just over three months old. Residents of Kani Township, joined by the Kani Township People’s Strike Committee, held a ceremony on November 4 marking the anniversary of the young family’s deaths, with participants calling for justice and for the truth about the case to come out. Murders of NUG staff in Sagaing Region The murder of Win Htay’s family was not an entirely isolated incident. Other members of the NUG administrative staff in Sagaing Region have also died violently. One high-profile case was the murder of Arinda Ma, a secretary for a township-level Committee of Natural Resources Administration who was killed on January 2, 2023. Pale Maung, a spokesperson for the Pale Township people’s security organisation, was also found dead on May 24 of last year in the security team’s underground holding cell, one evening after he was reported missing. The leader of the people’s security organisation in a village in Kanbalu Township, was also reportedly shot dead by two gunmen on January 6 of this year. On May 23, Myo Aung, another security officer in Wetlet Township was also shot along with his sister. While some reports attributed the killing of Myo Aung and his sister to junta forces or their allies, the culprits were never conclusively identified. A people’s administration finance officer, Lat Kyar, was also killed in his home on July 22 in Salingyi Township, and a security officer named Min Thant was killed by a gunshot at close range in September in Wetlet Township, according to a local resistance fighter. Only one of the seven cases—the murder of Lat Kyar in Salingyi Township—was ultimately solved, a dismal record for criminal investigators working for the resistance in the region. The failure to find the killers of these NUG security officers and civil servants in Sagaing Region attests to the resistance’s broader problems establishing the rule of law and a functional criminal justice system. Students and civilians hold a demonstration in Kani Township in December 2024 (Photo: Supplied) Some incidents have also involved targeted murders of resistance fighters, including Than Htike or Nyi Nyi, 28, a central committee member of Sagaing Region’s Yadanarbon Revolutionary Force (YRF), in a peanut field in Ayadaw Township on August 27. The YRF issued a public appeal to prioritise resolving the murder case, arguing that the killing of a resistance member in a resistance-held territory undermines the mechanisms for administration, defence, and security maintained by the administration. However, as with most of the murder cases that have arisen in the region, signs of progress in finding the perpetrators have been scarce despite NUG officers’ claims that an investigation is underway. Civilians unaffiliated with the NUG, and even minors, have also become victims. Myint Myat Oo, 16, a 10th-grade student union member in Wetlet Township, died after being slashed in the throat with a knife while walking home from an internet service facility in July 2024, his family said. Nay Phone Latt, a spokesperson for the NUG prime minister’s office, later announced that the suspected killer had been apprehended and charged. Despite this success, Nay Phone Latt has yet to respond to Myanmar Now’s queries about Sagaing Region murders, including the killing of Win Htay and his family. A local CDM schoolteacher alleged that there has been a deliberate effort to slow the investigation or cover up details of Win Htay’s family’s case. “Although there is a saying that a case never grows old, Win Htay’s case has been swept under the rug because of power and self-interest,” the schoolteacher said. “The lack of transparency is dishonest and deprives people of the vital truth. While they’re claiming to make progress towards a new democracy, this feels like they’re stepping on the oxygen tube for a country that’s already deeply wounded.” The slogans used by civilians at the anniversary ceremony and on social media give voice to a sense of disillusionment and betrayal:“Where is justice for Win Htay’s family?” “Where is the freedom for a 115-day-old child?” “Don’t bow to injustice.” “Bring the truth to light.” The investigation’s failure has aggravated the civilian community’s sense of fear and insecurity, exposing serious flaws in the interim system of administration established in resistance-held territory, damaging the public’s trust, and underscoring the urgent need for change. As the people continue to endure through these disappointments, however, they maintain some hope that authorities will treat this case with the urgency it warrants, as well as act in a way that demonstrates a continued commitment to human rights and justice.

Case of Kani schoolteacher and family’s murder still unsolved

Resistance authorities have yet to identify or apprehend a perpetrator in the brutal murder of a teacher, his wife, and their infant child that occurred more than a year ago in Kani Township

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