Concern grows for Rakhine youths languishing in Kyaukphyu detention centre

More than 10 days after authorities in the Rakhine State town of Kyaukphyu detained nearly 150 young people arriving on flights from Yangon, many remain in custody for reasons that have yet to be explained. The arrests began on February 18, when nearly 70 ethnic Rakhine residents of Yangon were taken away for interrogation upon arrival at Kyaukphyu’s airport—one of a handful of gateways to the state still open since the resumption of fighting between Myanmar’s military and the Arakan Army (AA) in mid-November of last year. That number more than doubled in the following days, but even after some were released on February 21, the majority are still languishing in a local detention centre, with no idea when they will be allowed to leave. Sources say that poor conditions in the detention centre and uncertainty about their future has left many of the detainees sick and depressed. To make matters worse, their phones were taken from them on November 25, deepening their sense of isolation. “I’m not very well,” said Ma Phyu, a 19-year-old woman who was among the first to be arrested, speaking to Myanmar Now last Friday. She said that sleep deprivation during interrogation and the lack of hygiene due to insufficient water supplies have taken a toll on her health. “Sometimes when there is not enough water, I have to stay up until the middle of the night to take a shower,” she said, describing long queues at the detention centre’s communal bathing facilities. She added that prolonged indoor confinement has also contributed to her health problems: “Staying inside all the time is hurting my eyes.” At one point, she was allowed to visit an outpatient clinic at a local hospital after developing flu symptoms, but it was unclear at the time of reporting if she had recovered. Even among the handful of detainees who were released last week, concerns remain. Moe Moe, 24, was one of around a dozen people who were allowed to leave the detention centre because they had relatives in Kyaukphyu who could vouch for them. Like the others, however, she also had her national identity cards taken away to prevent her from leaving town. “I was on my way back to my home village, but now I can’t go anywhere because they have my ID card. So I’m stuck here,” she said, explaining that she was currently staying at the home of relatives in Kyaukphyu. “I don’t feel like I’m free yet, because they could come and arrest me again whenever they like,” she added. “And if I run away, they’ll put me on a wanted list and arrest my relatives.” Like the detainees who are still being held, those who have been released have also had their phones taken from them after one tearfully informed her brother that she had heard the authorities were going to send her back to Yangon rather than allowing her to return to her family. The brother recorded the conversation and shared it on social media on February 24, prompting regime officials to start confiscating phones. “I don’t want to go back to Yangon,” the woman can be heard saying through her tears. “If they beat me, I don’t care if I die. But I would rather die here.” After the conversation ends, the brother continues speaking, saying that many young Rakhine people living in Yangon were returning because they didn’t feel safe there, and now the junta is making them even more desperate. “They’re just torturing them, cruelly and inhumanly. Some of these kids are even thinking about committing suicide,” he said, appealing for help. “Please stop torturing them and giving them trouble. Let them go home,” he added. As one of the released detainees, Moe Moe said that it was especially unacceptable that so many remained in detention simply because they didn’t have relatives in Kyaukphyu, as most were from rural villages. “It’s not as if they’re fighting for the AA. They just returned to be with their families,” she said, addressing speculation that the arrests had something to do with the recent fighting in Rakhine State—something that has yet to be confirmed. Now that she can no longer speak to her friends who are still behind bars, she says that her fears for their well-being will only continue to grow. “One of my friends told me she was losing hope,” she said. “I think they are all losing hope.”

Concern grows for Rakhine youths languishing in Kyaukphyu detention centre

The mass arrest of young people returning to Rakhine State remains unexplained, more than 10 days after it began

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