A resistance group based in Tanintharyi Region’s Launglon Township has denied harming any of the seven people it abducted from an agricultural school last week, days before its alleged killing of a local junta official.
In a statement released on Thursday, the Launglon People’s Defence Team (PDT) said that the school’s rector, her husband and son, and four members of her staff were all safe and being held in a “liberated area” a week after they were taken into custody on July 20.
The incident, which took place at the Agricultural Institute of Dawei in Sa Khan Gyi, a village about six miles from Tanintharyi’s regional capital of Dawei, has attracted widespread public criticism.
In its statement, the group said that the rector and the others agreed to leave in their custody following “negotiations” aimed at halting classes at the school.
According to a member of Launglon’s anti-regime administration team who spoke to Myanmar Now on Thursday, the PDT urged the rector to close the school because its proximity to an Infantry Battalion 104 base put staff and students at risk in the event of an outbreak of fighting.
“It’s true that they are being detained. They have not been released yet for security reasons, in order to prevent leaks of military secrets,” the administration team member said.
Thursday’s statement follows one released by the PDT on July 22 regarding its alleged killing of Thein Oo, a deputy supervisor from the regime’s Department of Agriculture.
According to junta-controlled news outlets, Thein Oo, who was teaching at the Agricultural Institute of Dawei, was taken from his home on July 22 and shot dead at a nearby coconut oil mill later the same day.
In its statement, the Launglon PDT said that Thein Oo was collaborating with the military junta while soliciting bribes from the public, and had received warnings to stop. However, it did not confirm that it was responsible for his death.
According to Moe Thway, a local human rights activist, local people have encountered difficulties in simultaneously trying to abide by rules set by the regime and resistance-affiliated authorities. He said he hoped the detained teachers and staff from the agricultural institute would be treated according to the law.
“It’s hard to say that I disagree with the decision to capture the teachers out of necessity during a time of revolution. However, they must take extreme care not to overstep the bounds of lawful action,” he said.
