"Myanmar: Journalist tortured and killed in military custody The body of Western News journalist Myat Thu Tan has been found after he was shot and killed by military personnel on January 31, along with seven other political prisoners in the custody of Myanmar’s ruling junta. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and its affiliate, Myanmar Journalist Network (MJN), strongly condemn this horrific murder and call on the military junta to immediately prosecute those responsible and cease the rampant impunity for crimes against journalists in Myanmar. The body of journalist Myat Thu Tan was found on February 5, after he was shot and killed by military personnel in Myanmar's Rakhine state. Credit: Western News According to IFJ sources, Myat Thu Tan, also known as Phoe Thiha, was shot by two personnel from the Light Infantry Battalion (LIB) 378 in a detainment ward in Mrauk-U Town, in Myanmar’s western Rakhine state. Myat Thu Tan was a contributor with online media outlet Western News as well as a reporter for Democratic Voice of Burma, one of the country’s largest independent media organisations. The journalist’s body was discovered buried in a bomb shelter in the battalion’s headquarters near the town’s hospital, along with six other political prisoners including rapper Kyaw Zan Wai, after the ethnic armed organisation Arakan Army seized the camp on February 5 following several days of fighting. Local media reported the bodies found at the showed signs of torture. The prisoners had been charged by the junta under its amended Section 505 (A) of the country’s Penal Code, which criminalises ‘causing fear, spreading false news, or agitating directly or indirectly criminal offences against a Government employee.’ The draconian legislation has been consistently used to target journalists in the three years since the military coup on February 1, 2021. The junta has yet to issue a statement on the incident, with Myat Thu Tan’s family not notified of his death. The journalist was arrested on September 22, 2022 at his Mrauk-U home for social media posts critical of the junta, and had not been tried or convicted before his death. Amidst intensifying conflict with rebel groups across the country, the junta announced a new mandatory conscription law effective from February 10 for all men aged 18 to 35, and all women aged 18-27. In the days following, thousands of young people have been documented attempting to flee the new legislation into neighbouring countries. The MJN said: “The killing of Myat Thu Tun along with other civilians constitutes the highest threat and intimidation to journalists working in conflict areas. Despite stepping back from the media field a few years ago, the junta continues to see him as a journalist, which triggered his killing. This case stresses that journalists could be killed at any time in Myanmar by the junta forces.” The IFJ said:“The IFJ condemns the heinous, cold-blooded killing of Myat Thu Tan as an attack on press freedom to the highest degree. Held in pre-trial detention without conviction, the journalist and six other civilians were purposefully tortured and murdered by military personnel, with their bodies subsequently discarded. The junta must put an end to the impunity running rife in Myanmar and ensure those responsible are immediately brought to justice.”..."