Amnesty International is calling for the immediate release from prison of Lahpai Gam, who is suffering from health problems, who the NGO refer to as a prisoner of conscience.
Lahpai Gam, an elderly ethnic Kachin man, is suffering from serious health problems which may be due to the torture he endured at the time of his arrest in 2012. He must be immediately and unconditionally released, and in the meantime, provided with access to necessary health care and treatment.
Lahpai Gam has been hospitalised since March 2017 after he was transferred from Myitkyina prison, Kachin State northern Myanmar. Suffering from anal bleeding and serious stomach problems, he has received several blood transfusions. Some of his health concerns may be due to torture he was subjected to at the time of his arrest in 2012. According to sources close to him, Lahpai Gam does not fully understand the serious health problems he faces, nor the treatment he requires; raising concerns that he does not have access to adequate medical care.
Lahpai Gam was arrested, along with six other people, by Myanmar army officials in June 2012 in Kachin State. Working as a herdsman tending cows at the time, he was held incommunicado for almost a month before being transferred to Myitkyina prison. Lahpai Gam was tortured by the military during interrogation. In addition to being beaten with an iron rod and having a bamboo stick rolled up and down his knees, he was forced into same-sex intercourse with another male inmate.
Lahpai Gam was charged in 2012 with being a member of the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) under Article 17(1) of the 1908 Unlawful Association Act and with four counts under the 1908 Explosive Substances Act. He was sentenced to a total of twenty years’ imprisonment. However, due to insufficient evidence, the Supreme Court overturned the convictions for the Unlawful Association Act and two counts under the Explosive Substances Act.
The two remaining charges under the Explosive Substances Act which relate to bombs that were planted near different bridges in Kachin State were upheld on the basis of a confession letter dated from the time he was tortured and held incommunicado. Lahpai Gam was sentenced to eight years’ imprisonment under these charges, however according to sources, he maintains that he is solely a farmer and not a member of the KIA and has never signed a confession letter nor planted the bombs.
