Released US Journalist Says He Was Tortured While Detained in Myanmar

Many of us know about the ongoing brutality in Myanmar. But many of us Singaporeans have never experienced it personally, safely tucked away in our cosy, warm homes.

Some haven’t been so lucky.

One such person is 44-year-old Nathan Maung, editor-in-chief of online news platform Kamayut Media.

He had been detained on 9 March during a raid in Myanmar, and was freed on 15 June.

However, he came out with his fair share of trauma.

Released US Journalist Says He Was Tortured While Detained in Myanmar

The US citizen said that he was slapped, beaten up and kept blindfolded during an interrogation that lasted more than a week. 

He also shared that his colleague Hanthar Nyein, who is still in detention, was tortured even more brutally, along with others he had met while in prison.

According to the junta, detainees are being treated in accordance with the law. 

Mr Maung said that he had been “punched and slapped several times”, and that he had been beaten up regardless of what he said. 

He said that he was not allowed to stand up. His legs were swollen and he “could not move anymore”. 

What Happened

Mr Maung was born in Myanmar and had fled to the US as a refugee in the 1990s. He was taken at Kamayut Media’s office and brought in for questioning regarding his publication, his role in it, as well as its operations. 

He had been handcuffed and blindfolded, and he was not allowed to sleep for “about three or four days” during the period of “[non-stop] interrogation”.

After it was discovered that he was a US citizen, the beatings had lessened. 

On the eighth day of his capture, a colonel came and removed the cloth blindfold. 

The colonel had recorded Mr Maung’s testimony and asked if he wished to make any statement. In response, Mr Maung asked for his human rights to be respected, requesting for a lawyer to defend against any charges.

The colonel then informed him that he had not been charged with any crime and that he would be freed once the situation cooled down. 

After his release, he met with US officials, who provided assistance to him and his family. 

Mr Maung shared that he had come across other people who had been similarly mistreated. He had heard shouts, screams, and begging from other buildings.

He said that some people “experienced worse torture”, sharing that there was another person with him in a room for two days. His body had been “covered in bruises and injuries”, and his handcuffed hands were placed on the table and beaten.

“The bones were not broken, but he was badly injured and his skin was ripped off.”

After Mr Maung’s arrest, Kamayut Media halted publication. However, Mr Maung said that he intended to continue his work.

Feature Image: Facebook (Nathan Maung) / Shutterstock.com (Bumble Dee)