FROM THE DVB NEWSROOM
The former UK ambassador to Myanmar, Vicky Bowman, was arrested with her husband, Htein Lin, in Yangon. The pair were detained by police Wednesday night and charged with immigration offences, according to Reuters. Bowman was UK ambassador to Myanmar from 2002-06. She lived in Yangon with her husband, Myanmar artist and former political prisoner, Htein Lin.
Bowman, 55, is the executive director at the Myanmar Centre for Responsible Business (MCRB). It was established in 2013 to promote responsible business practices in the country. On the MCRB website, it states: “The Centre is a joint initiative of the Institute for Human Rights and Business (IHRB) and the Danish Institute for Human Rights (DIHR).”
This arrest of two high profile human rights campaigners comes hours before the U.K. government announced that it is imposing new sanctions targeting military-linked businesses, and is joining the case against Myanmar at the International Court of Justice, or ICJ. Bowman and Htein Lin were reportedly sent to Yangon’s Insein Prison. | REUTERS
