Burmese anti-narcotic police badly assaulted a man on Saturday, who played a leading role in transforming the former Lasang Awng Wa Peace group into a ethnic Kachin militia in October last year. He was alleged to be in possession of opium.

“Their action lacks fairness and justice,” said Udi Naw Htoi, a member of the Lawa Yang Militia group.

Assistant police officer Phone Naing of the anti-drug squad of division township police station in Myitkyina the capital of Kachin State in Northern Burma led seven policemen and arrested Udi Naw Htoi and his relative Zau Mai (10). They did not find any opium in his home at Pa La Na, 7 miles from the capital.

The police in plain clothes broke the fence, the door and suddenly barged into the house and arrested them without given any reason, said Naw Htoi.

“They handcuffed me from 11 a.m. till 5 p.m. and also tied us up and beat us,” he said.

Then, Naw Htoi was taken by the anti-narcotic policemen to the police station in the city, he added.

The police did not even spare the boy Zau Mai. They beat him up after they found a pistol. They threatened all the family members. Two sustained serious injuries on the face and body.

He was released around 7 p.m. after they got orders from the junta’s Myitkyina-based Northern Regional Command Vice-commander Brig-Gen San Htun, where he apparently said “don’t create any major problems. Treat it as a normal case in the ceasefire period,” said the accused.

“They have to have an arrest warrant, and should come with the township authorities if they follow the law,” he said. “They are treating us just like animals.”

He told them he was a politician and belonged to the Kachin State National Congress for Democracy (KNCD) formed in 1988. However, the policemen shouted at him saying “We don’t care for any organization. The party, militia, they are nothing, we will kill you,” and they beat both of them with wooden sticks.

Policemen took them to the anti-drugs squad office around 5 p.m. and complained to (Sa-Ya-Pha) Military Affairs Security unit because of the pistol they seized. Finally the assistant commander of the state ordered the office to free them.

However, sources said, the accused were released after their former armed group leader Lasang Awng Wa made phone calls to the Northern commander Maj-Gen Soe Win.