Drop charges against free-speech activist - HRW

21 August 2020
Drop charges against free-speech activist - HRW
Maung Saungkha. Photo: Mizzima

Myanmar authorities should immediately drop all charges against the free-speech activist and poet Maung Saungkha, Human Rights Watch said. Maung Saungkha is to appear in court on today to face accusations of organizing a protest demanding an end to internet restrictions in the conflict-affected Rakhine and Chin states.

On June 21, a banner reading “Is the internet being shut down to hide war crimes in Rakhine and killing people?” was hung on an overpass in downtown Yangon. The authorities charged Maung Saungkha for hanging the banner under Section 19 of the Peaceful Assembly and Peaceful Procession Law, which criminalizes unauthorized protests and carries a maximum three-month prison sentence, a fine, or both. June 21 was the one-year anniversary of internet shutdowns in Rakhine and Chin states.

On July 7, Maung Saungkha first appeared in court to hear the charges made against him by the Kyauktada Township Police. “People are in a difficult situation because the internet is being shut down, and so activists are doing their duty and organizing protests,” Maung Saungkha told the media at the end of the hearing.