5 Rakhine women arrested in Yangon, 1 released, others remain traceless

 The junta forces have arrested five young Rakhine women from a dormitory at Htann Chauk Pin of  Shwe Pyi Thar township under the Yangon region during the night hours on Friday. One of them was released but the whereabouts of others still remain traceless for the families, said a close relative.

"At 12 am on 16 February, the dormitory was raided by the soldiers who arrived by five cars. They entered there to check the overnight guest-list and later arrested five girls from Rakhine State. One of them (who is 4 feet 7 inches tall) was rejected for not meeting the height requirement. She was released after paying Kyats 200,000. The remaining four girls, who were 5 feet 2 to 3 inches tall, were taken away. The whereabouts of these four girls are currently unknown," said the relative.

The young woman, who was released, contacted her family members by telephone and thus paid the amount demanded by the junta forces. Later she was released at 7 pm on Saturday.

Still traceless, the four young women include one from Kyauktaw,  two from Ka Thein in Minbya  and one from Laung Chaung village under Rathedaung.

"I don’t know where the other girls were taken away. Their phones were confiscated and no one can contact them," added the relative.

On 16 February, a number of  individuals were arrested from Shwe Pyi Thar township with the majority of being Rakhine women, who worked in factories.

"The released girl informed that a number of individuals were arrested and loaded in prisoner-vehicles. Many others were arrested from different dormitories. At least five prisoner- vehicles were full. Among the detainees, Rakhine women were in more numbers,” he stated.

The arrests occurred following the pronouncement of People's Military Service Law on 10 February.

The family members apprehend that they might be engaged in military services.

Currently the junta has been targeting the Rakhine people from monasteries and hence conducting night raids.

The Rakhine youth, currently staying in Yangon, are worried by the new military service law. But  returning from Yangon remains difficult as both the land and water routes are closed by the soldiers. Furthermore, returning by air services continues to be difficult as a large number of people are returning to the Rakhine region every day.