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Former journalist Maung Maung shared that one of the prisoners was arrested for liking a Facebook post. He had his legs cut off, boiling water poured on his wounds, and was tortured under the sun until he fainted
A former journalist describes the dramatic shift following the military coup in 2021. (Representative/AP File)
Military rule and dictatorship prevail in Myanmar, keeping the situation largely concealed from the outside world. A harrowing account from a former journalist named Maung Maung sheds light on the dire circumstances faced by those living under the junta’s control.
Maung Maung recounts his perilous journey to escape the clutches of the regime after Aung San Suu Kyi’s ousting, driven by the unbearable brutality he witnessed, including his own brother’s horrific ordeal.
In a poignant piece published in The Independent, Maung Maung, a former journalist from Yangon, Myanmar’s largest city, describes the dramatic shift following the military coup on  February 1, 2021. “As a journalist in Yangon, Myanmar’s largest city, my life was irrevocably altered on February 1, 2021. The military seized control, plunging the nation into chaos. Millions demonstrated against the coup, but their defiance was met with brutal force. The army’s crackdown was ruthless: thousands were killed or imprisoned, a nationwide curfew was imposed, and homes were ransacked, with any deemed ‘suspicious’ detained. Social media, a lifeline to the outside world, was silenced. Torture during interrogation became a chilling reality, claiming countless lives. Faced with such terror, many fled, seeking refuge in neighbouring Thailand,” Maung said.
Maung Maung reveals the chilling consequences of even the slightest perceived dissent.
“One of my friends was kept imprisoned for three months. Foreign journalists who had Aung San Suu Kyi’s photo on their mobile phones were sentenced to seven years’ imprisonment. They were tortured for months in a dark jail cell. Many are still imprisoned there. One of my three brothers was arrested for liking a Facebook post. His legs were cut off. Boiling water was poured on the wounds, causing him to lose consciousness. When he regained consciousness the next morning, soldiers dragged him out. They tied him up and made him lie under the scorching sun until he fainted again. When he woke up a second time, he found himself in a truck headed to Insein Prison,” Maung said.
Maung wrote that he had to pay a huge bribe to a jail officer to get his wife medical treatment. After eight months, he was released due to lack of evidence.
“I also quit my job and left Yangon. The first thing I did was erase all the photos, data and emails from my mobile phone and laptop. We bought rice from farmers, filled sacks, hid them in a truck, and fled in the middle of the night. On the way, we bribed soldiers at military checkpoints with whisky and cash to let us go,” he said.
- Location :
Myanmar (Burma)
