Middle school students among arbitrary arrests in Ponna Kyun

Narinjara News, 22 June 2022

The families of two middle school students, who are included in the list of civilians arrested from Ponna Kyun locality, 16 miles north of Rakhine State capital (Sittwe), express serious worries for them.

The detainees are identified as Min Aung Khaing (17) and Nai Myo Tun (18). They are students of Pauktaw Pyin village school.

Min Aung Khaing’s father Maung Saw Mya informed  Narinjara News that both the students were arrested on 16 June while they were returning back from Ponna Kyun  to their homes.

 "My son went to the Ponna Kyun hospital for medical treatments on his earlier motorcycle accident injury. He was picked up by the junta along with my grandson Nai Myo Tun on their return journey. So far no contact has been made since their arrest. We do not know whether they are (in Ponna Kyun or Sittwe). They should be released urgently,” added Maung Saw Mya.

Mentionable is that the Arakan Army members arrested a junta soldier on 16 June, following which the government forces started arresting  civilians arbitrarily.

According to locals, over  a dozen Ponna Kyun residents have been arrested so far.

Five of the arrestees are facing interrogation at the military camp in Sittwe. They are understood to be  U Ba Hlaing (39), U Win Maung Than (40),  U Tun Lai (55), Kyaw Min (58) and Kyaw Lin (20), as a source close to the military council informed Narinjara News.

 In Ponna Kyun, two members of LIB 550 were detained  by the AA members on 16 June, while one escaped. Since then, the military authorities started arresting and interrogating a number of common people from the locality.