Actions: Free Brang Shawng
Brang Shawng
Brang Shawng is a 25-year-old Kachin farmer who was living in a refugee camp with his family after fleeing from conflict areas in Northern Burma. He was arrested in June 2012 and charged under Article 17/1 of the Unlawful Association Act. His trial is still continuing at Myitkyina court in Kachin State. While he was under interrogation, he was brutally tortured.
Please take action for the release of Brang Shawng and the remaining political prisoners in Burma.
Email Foreign Office Minister Hugo Swire, urging the UK government to take action to ensure the immediate release of all political prisoners.
Brang Shawng is one of the innocent victims who has been wrongly accused and illegally detained by the military-backed government in Burma. He was arrested in June 2012 and charged under Article 17/1 of the Unlawful Association Act. His trial is still continuing at Myitkyina court in Kachin State.
Brang Shawng is a 25-year-old Kachin farmer who was living in a refugee camp for Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) with his family after fleeing from conflict areas in Northern Burma. He was arrested under suspicion of being a captain of Kachin Independence Army (KIA) and carrying out bombing operations near Myitkyina. The KIA is the armed wing of Kachin Independence Organisation, which works for democracy and more autonomy for Kachin people.
While he was under interrogation, he was brutally tortured and forced to confess to different bombings in the area. He was seen with several wounds on his body when he was brought out to trial. According to his lawyers, Brang Shawng had knife scars and bruises on his cheeks, thighs and the skin on his calves showed evidence of extensive peeling. After being tortured by Burmese police officers, Brang Shawng has difficulty hearing from his left ear. Although his health has deteriorated, he has been denied medical treatment.
He was charged under Article 17/1 of the Unlawful Association Act and he is currently on trial while remaining in detention. In July his wife and the Kachin community in Burma led a peaceful demonstration demanding his release. His wife told Burmese exile media, “Police punched, kicked and beat him for three days and nights. They forced him to confess to being a KIA captain. Brang Shawng is not a KIA Captain, since he is an uneducated person, just a farmer.”
No civilians should be arrested illegally and tortured in Burma.
Please take action for the release of Brang Shawng and the remaining political prisoners in Burma.