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Political prisoners rearrested after release from Shwebo Prison; Seven killed by airstrikes in Kachin State

Political prisoners rearrested after release from Shwebo Prison

The Political Prisoners Network Myanmar (PPNM) stated on Tuesday that regime authorities in Shwebo Township of Sagaing Region are rearresting political prisoners shortly after their scheduled release from Shwebo Prison. Shwebo is located 55 miles (88 km) nort of the regional capital Sagaing.

More than 10 male political prisoners have been rearrested by the police since October and are being held at the Shwebo Township Police Station and the nearby Mantha monastery, instead of being sent home to their families, added PPNM in a statement on Jan. 14. The Shwebo police chief and his officers have been accused by prisoners of financially exploiting them by holding those unable to pay bribes. 

The Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP) documents that 28,096 civilians have been arrested nationwide since the 2021 military coup with 21,507 political prisoners still being detained by the regime. Only 344 political prisoners were freed in the regime amnesty on Jan. 4 with 33 political prisoners released from Shwebo Prison.

Seven killed by airstrikes in Kachin State jade mining hub

The Kachin Independence Army told DVB that at least seven people have been killed and 20 others have been injured by airstrikes carried out by the Burma Air Force on Sankha village in the jade mining hub of Hpakant Township, Kachin State, on Monday. Hpakant is located 94 miles (151 km) west of the Kachin State capital Myitkyina. 

“Jet fighters launched an attack on Sankha village in the Lonekhin village tract of Hpakant. The injured are currently receiving medical treatment,” said Naw Bu, the KIA spokesperson. Residents reported that the death toll from the airstrikes may be as high as 10. They added that the military struck a local school, a company compound, and a ceremonial grounds. 

The KIA and allied resistance forces, including the People’s Defense Force (PDF), seized a military outpost in Hsengtaung village in Hpakant on Oct. 8. At least 15 civilians were killed by airstrikes on a gold mining site in Tsan Lun village of Danai Township, located 105 miles (168 km) north of Hpakant in an area controlled by KIA Brigade 2, on Saturday. At least eight were killed following the collapse of a man-made pond in Sapot village on Monday

Read more about the Hpakant pond collapse in the News by Region section.

Toru Kubota expresses his support for the pro-democracy movement in Burma by holding up the three-finger salute, made popular by anti-coup protesters and adopted from The Hunger Games films. (Credit: Toru Kubota)

Japanese filmmaker calls for Aung San Suu Kyi’s release 

Japanese filmmaker Toru Kubota, who spent three months at Yangon’s Insein Prison following his arrest in July 2022, called for the release of State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi on Sunday. The jailed National League for Democracy (NLD) leader is serving a 27-year sentence handed by a regime court in Naypyidaw, where she’s been held incommunicado since the coup on Feb. 1, 2021.

“As someone who began connecting with Myanmar through the eyes of the Rohingya, there’s an unsettling feeling when I see how people continue to idolize her even after the coup,” Kubota told The Independent newspaper. “But of course, I hold immense respect for her achievements and determination. I sincerely hope for her earliest release, along with the release of more than 20,000 detainees.”

Kubota expressed support for a request made by three former U.K. foreign secretaries; William Hague, Malcolm Rifkind and Jack Straw, calling for Aung San Suu Kyi’s release in an documentary film released by The Independent on Dec. 20. Kubota was released in a regime amnesty in 2022 alongside Aung San Suu Kyi’s economic advisor Sean Turnell, who is from Australia.

News by Region 

ARAKAN—Kyauktaw Township residents told DVB that a customs officer from the United League of Arakan (ULA), the political wing of the Arakan Army (AA), was among 10 people killed by an airstrike on Kyauktaw on Saturday. Thirty were reportedly injured. Kyauktaw is located 50 miles (80 km) north of the Arakan State capital Sittwe.

“It seems like there is no safe place for us. Military jets are constantly flying over our area,” a Kyauktaw resident told DVB. An airstrike on Kyauk Ni Maw village of Ramree Township killed at least 42 civilians on Jan. 8. Ramree town came under AA control last March. The AA has taken control of 14 townships in Arakan and Paletwa in southern Chinland since it launched its offensive on Nov. 13, 2023.

KACHIN—Hpakant Township residents told DVB on Monday that more than 100 people remain missing after the collapse of a man-made pond used by the Yadanadipadi mining company to dispose of soil and water in Sapot village, located in the Seikmu village tract with a population of over 100,000 people. Eight bodies were recovered from the mud as of Tuesday. 

“After the pond collapsed, the mud covered many parts of the village and it was very difficult to recover victims’ bodies,” a jade miner told DVB on the condition of anonymity. Jade mining companies have been operating in Hpakant with the permission of the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO) since the 2021 coup. Fifty homes were destroyed by mud on Jan. 13.

NAYPYIDAW—The Central Bank of Myanmar (CBM) announced on Tuesday that it will sell $25 million USD to fuel company owners, hoping to reduce fuel prices in the market. It did not elaborate on which foreign exchange rate it would use. 

The CBM rate is $1 USD to 3,590 MMK while the market rate is up to 4,630 MMK per USD on Jan. 14. In the first week of January, the CBM sold $56 million USD. One tical of gold costs 6.5 million MMK ($1,403 USD) while the regime Yangon Gold Entrepreneurs Association price is 5.4 million MMK ($1,166 USD). 

TANINTHARYI—The People’s Defence Force (PDF) in Myeik District reported on Saturday that regime troops set fire to homes – before retreating to Pada Setawya pagoda – during an operation in three villages of Palaw Township, located 97 miles (157 km) south of the Tanintharyi Region capital Dawei. 

“During the retreat, junta soldiers burned down five houses and over 50 acres of rubber plantations in their wake. We can’t confirm the exact number of houses burned in Setawya village due to the presence of junta forces,” said a PDF spokesperson, who claimed that they injured eight regime troops during a drone attack while they were stationed in Tapo village tract. 

(Exchange rate: $1 USD = 4,630 MMK)

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