Military arrests gym trainer in Kyaukphyu

By DMG 12 Oct 2022

DMG Newsroom
12 October 2022, Kyaukphyu 

A local man from Ayarshi Ward in Arakan State’s Kyaukphyu Township was abducted by a group of people in civilian dress on the evening of October 11, according to family members of the man. 

Ko Maung Tin Tun, 32, was on his way back from a gymnasium in Kulabartaung Ward when a group of people in civilian clothes took him to a private car for questioning, said a family member who was with him at the time. 

“A group of people in civilian dress took him [Ko Maung Tin Tun] to a private car for questioning after we returned from a gymnasium. I think the group of men in civilian clothes were junta soldiers from the Kyaukphyu-based military’s Light Infantry Battalion No. 34,” the family member added. 

Ko Tin Maung Tun is a gym trainer at Top Star Gymnasium in Kyaukhphyu. A younger brother of the man said the military had previously raided the house of Ko Maung Tin Tun. 

“He makes a living as a gym trainer. The military previously raided his home to arrest him. We are worried about his safety following the arrest because we don’t know his whereabouts,” he added. 

The military arrested four local men in Kyaukphyu on October 7. Two days later, a Myanmar military contingentdetained four masons from Sanae townin Arakan State’s Ramree Township. 

DMG contacted Maj-Gen Zaw Min Tun, a regime spokesman, for comment on the military’s latest detentions, but he could not be reached. 

At least 20 people in Kyaukphyu Township have been arrested on suspicion by the military regime in recent months, according to a DMG tally. 

Of them, at least 10 people were charged under the Unlawful Associations Act or Section 505(a) of the Penal Code. According to local residents, some have not been heard from since they were detained.