MyoTaw: Youth Arrested in Naypyidaw's Lewe Township for Alleged Guest List Check; Six Youths Conscripted

A young man was arrested in Lewe, Naypyidaw, on the pretext of a guest list check and forced into military service, along with 5 other youths

August 5

A 27-year-old man, Ko Zaw Htet, son of U Tin Shwe, a resident of Ywama Village, Naung Bo Village Tract, Lewe Township, Naypyidaw, was arrested and taken away by the administrative officer and his team under the pretext of checking the guest list, and was subsequently forced into military service, according to reports.

Ko Zaw Htet had been renting a house near the railway line in Thayet Khon Village, beside the Great Pagoda Road, Ward (2), Lewe Town, for about 4 months, and had been reporting his guest list monthly, it is understood.

On the morning of July 15, at around 5 a.m., a team consisting of U Myo Aung, administrative officer of Ward (2), Lewe Town, U Moe, a militia leader, and 6 others arrived at Ko Zaw Htet's home saying they would check the guest list, and then arrested and took him away, according to sources.

"That morning, the head administrator and his team came at 5 a.m. saying they were checking the guest list. They said 'show your guest list' and dragged him away. His family was suspicious, so they followed to the general administration office and found him detained in a room. They also saw 5 other young men under arrest, they said. When the family pleaded tearfully, they were told it was just a brief conversation, and they were kept waiting for a long time. Family members were told not to stay at the office but to wait outside. Then they secretly took him out through the back door and loaded him into a vehicle," a person close to Ko Zaw Htet's family told MyoTaw.

Ko Zaw Htet, along with 5 other young men including those arrested under the pretext of the guest list check, were transported to the Ywat Taw conscription camp at around 11:30 a.m. on July 15, according to reports.

Ko Zaw Htet was supporting his father, who is over 80 years old, and a young woman he had married by mutual consent only a few months ago, so the remaining family members are facing various hardships, it is understood.

MyoTaw News Channel