Despite international protests, the junta in Myanmar has carried out death sentences for the first time in decades. Four dissidents convicted in January were executed, including former MP and hip-hop artist Phyo Zeya Thaw, 41, and prominent democracy activist Kyaw Min Yu, 53, also known as Jimmy. This was reported by the state-run newspaper “Global New Light of Myanmar” on Monday.
They were found guilty of helping to carry out “inhuman acts of terrorism,” it said. These are the first death sentences to be carried out in the Southeast Asian crisis country since 1990.
Relatives informed from the media
“The shocking speed with which the death sentences were carried out and the callousness with which they were carried out is compounded by the fact that the families – like all of us – learned of the deaths of their loved ones following the fact and only through the media,” said Manny Maung from the human rights organization Human Rights Watch of the German Press Agency (dpa). He called on the international community to take urgent action once morest the military government.
As early as June, following those convicted lost their appeals, UN experts warned: “These death sentences, handed down by an illegitimate court of an illegitimate junta, are a heinous attempt to scare the people of Myanmar.” A source close to the families told the German Press Agency (dpa) that the men were hanged on Sunday morning.
The generals staged a coup in February 2021 and deposed the de facto Prime Minister Aung San Suu Kyi (77). Since then, the country has descended into chaos and violence.
Phyo Zeya Thaw and Kyaw Min Yu were allowed to see their families once more via zoom a few days ago, according to local media and sources close to the families. “We hoped the sentences would not be carried out, it’s just terrible,” said a woman close to Kyaw Min Yu’s family. “The families thought they were safe for a while.”
The activist had been fighting for more democratic rights since 1988 and had been in prison for more than 20 years in the past. First known as a hip-hop singer, Phyo Zeya Thaw later went into politics and became a close ally of Suu Kyi. There are numerous proceedings once morest the Nobel Peace Prize winner for alleged crimes. A month ago she was transferred from house arrest to prison. (apa/dpa)