Myanmar junta says bid to arrest exiled journalists and opponents through Interpol has failed

Myanmar’s military junta has sought help through Interpol to arrest people associated with five independent news outlets and opposition groups abroad, but has so far failed to secure their arrests, a senior regime official said on Tuesday. Maj.-Gen. Min Thu, the junta’s deputy home affairs minister, made the remarks during a session of its rubber-stamp parliament in Naypyitaw, dominated by the military-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP). He said authorities had submitted arrest warrants through the international police organisation targeting exiled journalists, resistance members, and their supporters. Those efforts had not resulted in their arrests, he said, although authorities had secured arrests in drug-related cases. Min Thu was responding to Than Than Aye, a USDP representative for Yangon’s Thingangyun constituency, who asked whether the junta planned to take action against Myanmar nationals abroad who criticised military rule or supported resistance forces. He named Khit Thit Media, Mizzima, the Democratic Voice of Burma (DVB), The Irrawaddy, and Myanmar Now, accusing them of publishing false reports to discredit the junta. He said cases had been opened at police stations and courts against the outlets, as well as members and supporters of the Committee Representing Pyidaungsu Hluttaw (CRPH), the National Unity Government (NUG), and the People’s Defence Force (PDF). The CRPH is a body formed by lawmakers elected before the February 2021 military coup. The NUG is a parallel government opposed to military rule, while the PDF is its armed wing. Min Thu cited provisions of the Penal Code, the Unlawful Associations Act, the Electronic Transactions Law, and the Counter-Terrorism Law as the basis for the cases. His remarks did not specify which individuals were wanted or which charges applied to each. His statement also did not establish whether Interpol had accepted the requests or circulated notices concerning those targeted. Interpol’s constitution prohibits the organisation from undertaking activities of a political, military, religious, or racial character. Its Red Notices ask national authorities to locate and provisionally arrest individuals pending extradition or similar proceedings; they are not international arrest warrants, and each country decides whether to act under its own laws. Min Thu said efforts to obtain the return of people wanted by Myanmar depended on the political position of the countries where they were living. “When coordinating with the relevant country over the important suspects mentioned by the representative, we have to proceed depending on that country’s political stance,” he said. He said Myanmar had no bilateral extradition treaties but had signed the ASEAN Treaty on Extradition in November 2025. According to ASEAN’s official records, the regional treaty was signed on November 14 of last year in Manila. Extradition cases were handled individually under Myanmar’s extradition law and on the basis of friendly relations between the countries concerned, he added. The military has targeted independent media since overthrowing the elected government in February 2021, raiding newsrooms, revoking publishing licences, and imprisoning journalists reporting on its abuses. On March 8, 2021, troops arriving in about five military vehicles raided Myanmar Now’s office in downtown Yangon’s Pabedan Township and seized equipment. That evening, the junta-controlled information ministry revoked the operating licences of Myanmar Now, 7Day, DVB, Mizzima, and Khit Thit Media. Security forces subsequently raided the offices of Kamayut Media, Mizzima, and DVB. Myanmar Now and several other outlets had moved staff before the raids. At Kamayut Media, however, authorities arrested editor-in-chief Nathan Maung, a US citizen, and co-founder Hanthar Nyein, who were inside the office. Myanmar Now photojournalist Sai Zaw Thaike remains imprisoned in Yangon’s Insein Prison. He was arrested in May 2023 while reporting in Rakhine State on the devastation caused by Cyclone Mocha. A military tribunal sentenced him to 20 years in prison with hard labour.

Myanmar junta says bid to arrest exiled journalists and opponents through Interpol has failed

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