Myanmar Now
Published on May 12, 2021
Soldiers stationed in the village of Thaminchan in Sagaing Region’s Kani Township shot and killed a mentally ill man on Tuesday night, according to local residents.
The incident occurred at around 9pm, when soldiers went into the home of 35-year-old Kyaw Myint and shot him in the head and thigh, said a villager who spoke on condition of anonymity.
“We heard him cursing at the soldiers, so they went into his house and shot him dead,” the villager told Myanmar Now, adding that the victim’s mental illness had been made worse by the sound of gunfire.
According to a report by The Irrawaddy, the man had been briefly detained by police last week as he was wandering around the village while other men were in hiding.
His family held a funeral for him on Wednesday morning.
Soldiers have been stationed in Thaminchan since clashes between local resistance forces and the military broke out in the area on May 6.
Most of the village’s more than 2,000 inhabitants have fled since late last week, leaving only around 50 people still living there as soldiers loot property from abandoned homes.
Fourteen people, including a teenager, were arrested on Monday following a raid on the village by around 70 soldiers.
Thaminchan is one of a number of villages located along the Kalaywa-Yargyi-Monywa highway and the Chindwin River where locals equipped only with hunting rifles and improvised weapons have clashed with heavily armed troops over the past week.
On Wednesday morning, the military stormed Zeepintwin, a village near Thaminchan where clashes were reported last week, and beat at least 30 locals during a raid, a Kani local told Myanmar Now.
“If you’re a man, you’re not off the hook, no matter how old you are. There are underage boys being arrested as well,” he added.
A spokesperson for the ruling military junta could not be reached for comment on Wednesday.
Thousands of local villagers have fled their homes in Kani and neighbouring Yinmabin Township since the regime mounted a crackdown on resistance forces active in the area.
There have been at least five major confrontations between the two sides since early April, leaving 19 local residents dead and about 50 injured.
Source – Mentally ill man shot and killed by military in Sagaing village | Myanmar NOW (myanmar-now.org)
