Myanmar junta charges detained Yangon food courier with terrorist financing, sedition

Following his arrest in the first week of January, a civilian resident of Yangon’s Hlaing Township has been charged with breaking laws on terrorism and sedition, a source close to the man’s family said this week. Kyi Myo Zaw (or U Kyi), 54, worked as a food courier, riding monthly meal-box deliveries to his clients’ homes. After accusations began spreading on social media that he was transferring funds to armed anti-junta groups, several Ward 13 administrators and other personnel in plainclothes detained him at his home on January 5. Authorities reportedly questioned Kyi Myo Zaw about unusually high-value transactions he had allegedly made via the popular digital wallet and payment app KBZPay, also commonly called KPay. Three days after his arrest, they moved him from the interrogation centre to the Hlaing Township police station. They have since charged him with offences under Section 50j of the Counterterrorism Law—on financing of terrorism—and Section 505a of the Myanmar Penal Code concerning sedition, a family friend told Myanmar Now. “I heard that the police called the family to say he was back on the evening of the 8th,” she said, referring to his return to the station after questioning. “He was charged with two offences, and accused of funding the resistance through KPay. As far as I know, he is still at the police station.” Kyi Myo Zaw’s arrest came after posts appeared on a pro-junta propaganda Telegram channel accusing him of disparaging junta chief Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, sharing a photo of ousted civilian leader Aung San SuKyi Myo Zaw, and making social media comments critical of the military regime. The posts called for authorities to arrest him. According to Kyi Myo Zaw’s family friend, the authorities subjected him to inhumane treatment including torture during the three-day interrogation but avoided leaving conspicuous wounds on his face by inflicting injuries to his lower body.“They didn’t hit his face, but struck his buttocks with a stick, injuring his spine,” she said. “I also heard he has burn blisters on his thighs and cannot sit properly.” Kyi Myo Zaw working as a driver for the Yangon Bus Service in 2019 (Photo: Kyi Myo Zaw’s Facebook page) She added that his family was facing financial hardship and had so far been unable to hire a lawyer for his defence. “They said they couldn’t afford a lawyer and were due to be evicted from their home at the end of the month, but begged to stay longer,” she said. Kyi Myo Zaw is also suffering from heart and kidney disease and requires medication, according to the family friend. A former driver for the Yangon Bus Service (YBS), Kyi Myo Zaw was previously arrested after the military coup of 2021 and charged with sedition. He was released in 2023. He was popular among patrons of the YBS while he worked there and was known for providing purified drinking water to his passengers. Military authorities have been monitoring electronic financial transactions for evidence of sending funds to the anti-junta armed resistance, freezing the accounts of those suspected of using payment apps for this purpose and arresting them. Since seizing control of government ministries in February 2021, the Myanmar military has amended the Counterterrorism Law and used it to target its political opposition, along with Section 505a of the Penal Code. The changes to the Counterterrorism Law allowed for prison sentences of up to seven years for promoting, campaigning, disseminating propaganda, or recruiting for terrorist organisations, a label the Myanmar junta applies to resistance groups. According to data collected by the investigative group Assistance Association for Political Prisoners as of January 13, the junta has arrested 30,267 people for political reasons, of whom 22,712 are still detained and 11,460 have been sentenced.

Myanmar junta charges detained Yangon food courier with terrorist financing, sedition

The 54-year-old driver and deliveryman, whom authorities and pro-regime propagandists have accused of sedition and funding terrorists, was reportedly tortured during interrogation and has had difficulty securing legal representation

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