Date: May 20, 2005

1- There were bomb attacks in Rangoon on May 7, 2005. The Burmese regime promptly blamed the bomb attacks on exiled activists and organizations based on the Thai-Burma border. At the same time, the authorities arrested some former political prisoners in Rangoon, including Zaw Win Htut.

2- Rangoon has bomb blasts every once in a while. Each time, the regime uses the same formula to deal with these crimes. The arrest and interrogation of ethnic minority people and activists follow the bombings. However, in the vast majority of cases it is not the activists or the ethnic minority people who are at fault. The Burmese regime arrests activists for these crimes without any evidence that they are responsible. The regime does this so they have someone to blame for the attacks and hurt the reputation of the NLD and other opposition groups. The events described below illustrate situations in which the regime has used this formula.

3- There was an explosion at Kaba Aye Pagoda, Rangoon on December 25, 1996. No one knows who was behind the attack. As usual, the authorities arrested many people including the following activists.

1) Hninn Hninn Mway (female)
2) Thet Naing Aung (male)
3) Ngwe Tun (male) (currently in exile)
4) Ye Naing Win (male)
5) Tin Win (male) (chairman, Kamayut township NLD branch)
6) Hla Hla Htwe (female) (currently in exile)
7) Khin San Nwel (female) (currently in exile)
8) Mi and her family members

Hla Hla Htwe recalled her experience as follows.
“…When they were disappointed with my answer, they would say, “Stand up at once, who do you think you are? You think you are very brave, but we know all about you. We will skin you. You are connected with insurgents, aren’t you?” They interrogated me about the explosion using beatings…I was released and taken back home after the wounds on my legs had disappeared. We were arrested, interrogated and tortured about the explosion even though we did not know anything…”

Khin San New also shared her experience as follows.
“…Ma Mi, who was together with me in prison, was arrested together with her entire family; even her 12-year-old daughter was not left alone. They were beaten brutally in the interrogation center for 25 days…”

Therefore, based on the experience of previously arrested activists, those recently arrested for the bomb attack of May 7, 2005 are believed to be under torture at present.

4- A parcel bomb exploded in the compound of Thanlyin Oil Refinery on July 7, 1989. The authority arrested several activists near the refinery. Among them Than Zaw, Moe Kyaw Thu and Nyi Nyi Oo each received death sentences twenty days after the bomb explosion. The authorities also claimed that they pleaded guilty to being NLD members and being involved in the bombings.
(Remark: Please see the copies of “The Working Peoples’ Daily” of July 1989 for more detail.)
At the press conference on September 1, 1989, the authorities claimed that Ko Ko Naing, the person behind the bomb attack in the Oil Refinery, was seized and he confessed to being involved in the bomb attack. However, one NLD member who received life imprisonment and the death sentence was still in prison.
Therefore, we are concerned about the fate of the activists recently arrested. The authorities will continuously detain them and accuse them of planting the bombs.

5- Therefore, concerning these recent arrests, we strongly request the people of Burma, the authorities in Burma and the international community to do the following:

To the people of Burma
1) Warmly support to the family members of the activists recently arrested
2) Pass information about the arrests to the activists, journalists and foreign embassies

To the authorities in Burma
1) Publicly admit to having recently arrested these activists
2) Avoid torturing these detained activists
3) Immediately and unconditionally release the detained activists

To the international community
1) Pressure the authorities in Burma not to arrest people unfairly under the title of anti-terrorism
2) Demand the release of the activists recently arrested
3) Pressure the regime to set up an independent investigation initiated by the United Nations

Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (Burma)