Resistance forces in central Myanmar’s Magway Region detained and disarmed members of a local guerrilla group, accusing them of involvement in a kidnapping among other crimes.
The disarmed group is called MG 6 Guerrilla Force and was first formed in Mandalay Region’s Myingyan District, but has since been based in the confluence area of Magway Region, where the Ayeyarwady and Chindwin rivers flow into each other in Myanmar’s heartland.
It operated under the command of the publicly-mandated National Unity Government (NUG) as Battalion 5 of the Myingyan District chapter of the People’s Defence Forces.
The arrest was carried out by resistance groups, including the Yesagyo Township chapter of People’s Defence Team (PDT) – also under the direct command of NUG’s defence department – following a dispute involving the guerrilla group’s kidnapping of the wife and children of an NUG village administration official.
In early August, the NUG official, a leader of the administration in War Boe village on the bank of the Chindwin River, stopped MG 6 group’s members for questioning while they were travelling in the area. He warned them that they should not move through the area without informing resistance authorities in the relevant territories due to the risk of getting ambushed by mistake, Yesagyo PDT spokesperson Wai Gyi said.
It is routine for armed resistance members to inform resistance authorities of their movements to avoid confusion with junta-allied Pyu Saw Htee militias, who also control parts of the confluence area, according to Wai Gyi.
However, the guerrilla group’s leader was displeased by the official’s attention, and the incident led to the group coming to his home to capture him.
On the night of August 3, the MG 6 Guerrilla Force raided the official’s home. Failing to find him, the group took the man’s wife and two children, 13 and 6, captive.
The next morning, combined forces from around 20 local defence groups active in the confluence area went to the MG 6 Guerrilla Force’s base near Kan-U village to demand the release and return of the three captives.
When the MG 6 guerrillas refused, there was an exchange of fire lasting nearly 30 minutes and guerrilla leader Maung Chan, 27, was killed in the shootout. The group’s 11 remaining members were arrested and disarmed the same day, according to Wai Gyi.
“We persuaded the remaining guerrillas to surrender. We detained them and opened an investigation. Yesterday, we left the guerrillas in the custody of the Myingyan PDT, along with their weapons and other evidence,” he said on Tuesday.
He added that the 11 guerrillas and 12 guns confiscated from them were turned over on Monday afternoon. Among the weapons were seven automatic rifles, a 60mm mortar, and four locally made Vector semi-automatic firearms.
The resistance rescued the official’s wife and children abducted by the guerrillas and returned them to their home following the shootout at the MG 6 base on Friday morning.
Before their transfer to the Myingyan District PDT’s custody, the MG 6 members were held for nearly two days. During questioning, the MG 6 group members confessed that they had committed crimes in the confluence area, including drug trafficking, extortion, robbery, and murder, the defence team’s leader said.
“If the crimes they commit are related to war, they should be tried by a military court. If crimes were committed against civilians, a civilian court will conduct the trial,” he said.
“They had their base in Yesagyo Township, so most of the acts they’re under investigation for occurred in the township. There were also instances where they detained boats and extorted money from them,” Wai Gyi said, referring to the MG 6 group.
During the interrogation, MG 6 members reportedly confessed to being involved in about 100 criminal acts, he said. In addition to extorting payments from ships on the Chindwin River, they confessed to robbing a gold shop, committing murders, and hiding bodies.
Myanmar Now is unable to verify the allegations the Yesagyo PDT leader made against the guerrilla group.
In a public statement released on Saturday, the Myingyan District PDT said it would take action to ensure justice was served for any crimes committed.
Myanmar Now attempted to contact the MG 6 Guerrilla Force for comments or more information on the cases under investigation, but did not receive a response.
Among an array of anti-junta armed resistance groups in Myanmar that mostly act ethically, it is imperative to penalise the few that become involved in kidnapping, robbery or other crimes, Wai Gyi said.
“Attempting to conceal such incidents under the pretext that it would please the enemy is the wrong approach,” he said. “The groups require regulation and appropriate punitive actions. Otherwise, they will destroy the revolution.”
