Min Ko Naing
Student leader and prisoner of conscience
January 2001
SUMMARY AI INDEX: ASA 16/001/2001 DISTR: SC/CO/GR
Paw U Tun alias Min Ko Naing, Chairman of the All Burma Federation of Student Unions (ABFSU), was arrested on 24 March 1989. He was sentenced to 20 years' imprisonment (later commuted to 10 years under a general amnesty) for his anti-government activities.
The ABFSU was originally formed on 28 August 1988, at the height of the mass civil disobedience campaign against 26 years of one-party military rule in Myanmar. At the founding rally of the ABFSU, Min Ko Naing called on students throughout the country to struggle peacefully against military rule and for democracy and freedom of association. The ABFSU and Buddhist monks went on to lead non-violent anti-government protests.
In 1988 civil unrest erupted in Myanmar (then called Burma), after the demonetization of much of the Burmese currency in 1987 by the military government of General Ne Win. The same year Myanmar was accorded Least Developed Nation status by the UN -- a resource-rich country had became one of the world's poorest.
In protest at government mismanagement of the economy, students in Yangon, the capital, began demonstrations in March 1988. Min Ko Naing soon emerged as a leader, encouraging people to use peaceful means to express their frustration. Min Ko Naing's interest in politics began at Yangon University in the mid-1980's where he studied Zoology. Student Unions at that time, as now, were illegal; however he and other students formed secret study groups in anticipation of protests against the worsening economic conditions in Myanmar.
According to people who knew him, Min Ko Naing was a member of a performance troupe which took part in the traditional Than Gyat competition during the annual Water Festival (Thingyan); his troupe was called "Goat-Mouth and Spirit-Eye" and apparently performed satirical plays and sketches about Myanmar's government and the lack of democracy and freedom.
Min Ko Naing was severely tortured and ill-treated during the early stages of his detention and his health suffered as a consequence.
During his interrogation he was reportedly forced to stand in water for two weeks until he collapsed, and as a result, his left foot became totally numb. Such treatment is not uncommon. Political prisoners in Myanmar routinely face torture during the initial phases of detention when they are often interrogated for hours or even days at a time by rotating teams of Military Intelligence (MI) personnel. For most of his imprisonment Min Ko Naing has been held in complete solitary confinement.
In 1993 he was visited in Insein Prison, Myanmar's main detention facility, by a United States Congressman. He was said to be in poor health and appeared disoriented.
In November 1994 the Special Rapporteur on Myanmar was also allowed to visit him briefly in prison, and described him as being nervous and thin. Subsequent reports on his health stated that, although it improved, he suffers from a nervous tremor and may have suffered emotionally as a result of his ill-treatment and prolonged solitary confinement. He is believed to suffer from a gastric ulcer.
Although he should have been released in March 1999 on completion of his sentence, Min Ko Naing is still held at Sittway Prison, Rakhine State. He was transferred there from Insein Prison, near Yangon, the capital, on an unknown date. As his family lives in Yangon, it is extremely difficult for them to visit him. Prisoners rely on their families to provide them with essential food and medication during their fortnightly visits.
Amnesty International is calling for his immediate and unconditional release. Torture and ill-treatment have become institutionalized in Myanmar. Patterns of torture have remained the same, although the time and place vary. Torture occurs throughout the country and has been reported for over four decades.
Members of the security forces continue to use torture as a means of extracting information; to punish political prisoners and members of ethnic minorities; and as a means of instilling fear in anyone critical of the military government.
KEYWORDS: This report summarizes a five-page document (1805 words),: MYANMAR Min Ko Naing - Student leader and prisoner of conscience (AI Index: ASA 16/001/2001) issued by Amnesty International in January 2001. Anyone wishing further details or to take action on this issue should consult the full document. An extensive range of our materials on this and other subjects is available at amnesty.org and Amnesty International news releases can be received by email:
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