Rangoon Bombing Suspects Released

Burmese military authorities released 17 ethnic Karen—detained last June on suspicion of involvement in the May 7 Rangoon bombings—on August 15, according to a spokesperson for the opposition party National League for Democracy.

The spokesperson, Myint Thein, added that one of the 17—Saw San Poe—died in custody from injuries sustained while being tortured in prison.

The 17 detainees were arrested in the village of Ta Hku Hkee in Irrawaddy Division, Ein-me Township by Burmese authorities—comprising nearly 100 police, soldiers and intelligence agents—on suspicions that they were directly involved in the May 7 bombings in Rangoon, and that they aided the ethnic opposition group Karen National Union by hiding weapons.

According to Myint Thein, Burmese authorities failed to discover any incriminating evidence against the detainees and released them. The authorities have focused on the village of Ta Hku Hkee since early July, when soldiers from Infantry Battalion 93 based in Myaungmya surrounded the village and cut off access, as reported by the Democratic Voice of Burma in early August.

Original reports from Ein-me Township suggested that the village was under suspicion of hoarding weapons for the KNU. It has since been discovered that the arrest of the 17 ethnic Karen—and an unspecified number of other villagers, including women—is in connection with the May 7 bombings in Rangoon.

Burmese authorities are said to be considering compensation for the death of Saw San Poe and the lengthy detention of the 17 villagers in the form of local development projects and direct compensation to Saw San Poe’s family. And while military forces have now withdrawn from the area, they have warned the released villagers against revealing any details of their incarceration, said Myint Thein.