A village administrator under the military council in Yangon’s Kayan Township was killed by a gunshot to the head on Thursday.
Win Khine, 51, was shot between Kamakalu—where he was an administrator—and Ye Mon villages at around 1:30pm.
“He was shot twice in the temple while he was out on the streets. He has died now,” a man who witnessed the assassination told Myanmar Now.
He did not provide any details about the perpetrator or perpetrators.
Junta soldiers and police officers entered the village and began interrogating locals just 10 minutes after the shooting.
Win Khine had run for election in 2020 as a regional parliamentarian for Kayan’s Constituency 1 representing the military-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP), but lost.
Junta-allied administrators, military supporters and USDP members have been accused of being military informants and have been targeted by anti-regime guerrilla fighters since May, including for assassination.
USDP chairperson for Bilin, Mon State, Myint Swe was shot in the head and killed on May 27. Nay Myo Aung, a former USDP parliamentarian, was also shot and killed in Yangon’s Botahtaung Township on June 10. Aye Min, a USDP member and former administrator in Mohnyin Township, Kachin State, was shot and killed earlier that month.
Around 15 administrators resigned in Pale Township, Sagaing Region, after the Pale People’s Defence Force issued a warning on July 29 that they would be taking action against the administrators who have not resigned and continue to collaborate with the junta.
