Six activists charged

25 June 2020
Six activists charged
Photo: Thura/Mizzima

Myanmar police have charged six activists who participated in protests against a year-long government-ordered internet service shutdown in Myanmar’s conflict-ridden Rakhine state, accusing them of violating the country’s peaceful assembly law, RFA reported.

Five of the activists are from Yangon-based Athan, a freedom of expression advocacy group. They were taken into custody for denouncing the internet ban by hanging posters on an overpass in downtown Yangon on June 21, questioning whether the ban was intended to cover up possible atrocities committed by the Myanmar military in the conflict zone.

Myo Min Tun, an activist from the Ramree Township Youth Network in Rakhine state, also was charged for participating in a protest in Ramree town on the same day. A group of young people wearing T-shirts saying “Oppose Internet Oppression” demanded the restoration of internet access, according to photos the group posted on Facebook, the report said.