New Delhi – The Burmese military junta on Thursday arrested 13 prominent youth leaders of the country's main opposition political party – the National League for Democracy - a senior party member said.
Thirteen important leaders of the NLD were rounded up by Rangoon's police of the Special Branch and officials from the Ministry of Home Affairs early on Thursday from their homes, a NLD senior member Aung Thein told Mizzima.
A relative of Ohn Mar, one of the arrested youth leader's said, a group of officials including the police from the Ministry of Home Affairs and the SB came to their house at about 3:15 a.m. and took her away.
"They said they wanted to talk to her and took her away. They clarified that they were not arresting her but she has not returned till now," a family member of Ohn Mar told Mizzima over telephone.
The family member, who declined to be named, said she saw several other NLD youth members including Ma Pah Pah, Ma Cho, and Ko Lay Lwin on a Hylux light-truck that the officials came in.
The NLD youth leaders including Tun Zaw Zaw, Khin Tun, Ohn Mar, Ma Pah Pah, Ma Cho, Ma Nilar, thet Wai, Lay Tun, Htet Htet Oo Wai and Ko Pauk have been playing a pro-active role in trying to help cyclone victims in Rangoon and Irrawaddy division and were planning to leave for Dae Da Ye town for relief work, the family member said.
"We are terribly worried and her mother could not even eat," the family member said.
While the reason for the arrest of the NLD youth leaders is still not clear, Aung Thein said it may be connected to the visit of the United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to the country today. But he failed to explain how the UN chief's visit relates to the arrest.
The world body chief on Thursday arrived in Rangoon on a mission to persuade the ruling junta to allow relief supplies and aid workers access to the cyclone affected regions of Irrawaddy delta and Rangoon division.
A young NLD party member in Rangoon, speaking to Mizzima on condition of anonymity said the arrested youth leaders have been secretly working to expose the junta's unfair practices in the referendum.
"These people are key members of the NLD youth and they have been also working undercover to expose the junta's unfair means to win supporting votes in the constitutional referendum," the NLD youth said.
The junta on May 15, five days after the nation-wide referendum, declared that the constitution had been supported by 92.4 percent of voters. However, due to the killer Cyclone Nargis' lashing the country on May 2 and 3, the junta postponed the referendum date in 47 townships in the affected areas to May 24.
