Two pastors from the Kachin Baptist Convention (KBC) have been released by Lashio Court under the presidential pardon on April 17 after being imprisoned by the Tatmadaw in relation to the conflict in Mongkoe in northern Shan State.
“They have been released from Lashio Prison. I’m eating a meal with them now. They are in good health. I’m very thankful to the President for doing what he should do. They were released around 4 pm. Since there are 162 people in the prison, they were released in a batch of five, two, and ten,” said U Bran Dee, who assisted the two pastors when they were facing their trial.
U Dumdaw Nawng Lat, also known as U Ti Ti Nawng Lat, and U Langjaw Gam Seng were among 8,490 citizen-prisoners who were released from prison by the new President U Win Myint on humanitarian grounds to mark the Myanmar New Year Occasion.
The two men have assisted the media during the fighting in Mongkoe.
“I’m very happy about their release, but they shouldn’t have arrested in the first place. What U Ti Ti Nawng Lat [and U Langjaw Gam Seng] have done is helping the media to obtain the truth. Arresting them for helping the media is an attempt to hide the truth and it’s the same as threatening the news sources to make them scared. The best thing is not to make such kinds of arrests in the future. It won’t work for us if we have to thank them for releasing them after arresting them,” said Daw Khon Jar from the Kachin Peace Network.
U Dumdaw Nawng Lat and U Langjaw Gam Seng are pastors from Mongkoe KBC, which is under the KBC.
Lashio Township Court sentenced U Dumdaw Nawng Lat to four years and three months under Section 17/1 of the Unlawful Associations Act, Section 500 of the Penal Code for defaming the Tatmadaw, and Section 8 of the Export Import Act. U Langjaw Gam Seng was sentenced for two years and three months under Section 17/1 of the Unlawful Associations Act and Section 8 of the Export Import Act.
The Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP)’s secretary U Tate Naing said political prisoners were included among the prisoners that have been released under the presidential pardon.
“[They said] 36 political prisoners were included among over 8,000 prisoners that have been released today. Among 54 people who have named in the list, 36 people have been released. This means there are 18 people left. We want to request [the government] to scrutinize this again,” he said.
After U Dumdaw Nawng Lat and U Langjaw Gam Seng went missing near the strategic hill in Mongkoe on December 24, 2016, the office of the Tatmadaw Commander-in-Chief announced on January 19, 2017 that the two men have been arrested for providing financial support and information to the Kachin Independence Army (KIA), recruiting soldiers for the KIA, and spreading fabricated news.
Heavy fighting broke out between the Tatmadaw and the Northern Alliance members, the Kachin Independence Army (KIA), the Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA), and the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA) in Mongkoe from November 20, 2016 to early January 2017.
