FROM THE DVB NEWSROOM
Yangon rocked by shooting and explosions on Friday, Sept. 16
One man was killed and another was injured at the corner of Man Myay 1st street and Zay Ta Yone Road, in Thaketa Township on Sept. 16, according to locals. Two unidentified men opened fire from an e-bike at two men standing at the junction. “The man sitting at the back of the bike opened fire at them. The man who was killed at that place was known as a military informant,” a local told DVB. Police set up a checkpoint at the intersection and checked every e-bike passing through the area.
Two explosions rocked Kamayut township, severely wounding one and injuring three others, locals told DVB. The four were civilians who happened to be near a mobile food truck, parked in front of the Municipal Police Yard on Baho Road, when the twin bombs were detonated. Police arrived after the explosions and found another two unexploded bombs. They were later detonated by police on Baho road. Nobody was injured. A total of 22 incidents involving shootings and bombings have rocked Yangon from Sept. 1 to 16. At least two people have been killed.
More students sentenced
Htoo Wai Lin, a psychology student at Dagon University, was sentenced to 13 years in prison on Sept. 16. He was arrested in June, 2021 for taking part in anti-coup protests, according to a Dagon University students association called Future the Dagon. “The court sentenced him to three years imprisonment last month and this time he faced an additional 10 years in prison,” a friend of Htoo Wai Lin said. A military court sentenced members of the Dagon students union from 10-13 years in prison, including Ma Thinzar Zaw, Min Thukha Kyaw and Sithu Aung Tin. |
A Letter to NMSP
Ten Mon State civil society organizations have sent a letter to the New Mon State Party (NMSP) requesting it not to meet for “peace talks” with the military council. According to this letter, the Burma Army killed 52 people and arrested 450 peaceful protestors in Mon State. More than 30,000 people have been displaced from their homes due to Burma Army attacks, children have been killed, and war crimes have been committed against the Mon, it states. The letter stated the NMSP legitimizes the coup by meeting with junta leader Min Aung Hlaing. It requests the NMSP to unite with its ethnic Chin, Karenni, Karen and Rakhine counterparts to end dictatorship, to achieve equality and self-determination. The NMSP spokesperson, Nai Aung Ma Nge, did not respond to DVB’s calls for comment.
Financial Action Task Force plans to blacklist Burma
FATF was formed by the Group of Seven (G7) countries – an intergovernmental political forum – in 1989 to combat money laundering. Currently, Iran and North Korea are the only countries blacklisted by the FATF. Burma may be next, according to researchers. “Investors look at reviews conducted by independent international groups to see what the financial climate of a country is. It will be an obstacle when they find out investing in the country is financially risky. This will be a warning to current investors in the country to not invest further. It will also impact trading. Every payment can be impacted as there is no trust in the country’s economic institutions,” the researcher told DVB. Burma’s blacklisting by the FATF will be discussed at a meeting in France in October.
