MYANMAR TIMES
Swe Lei Mon
27 Feb 2020
The wife and two children of Arakan Army (AA) leader General Tun Myat Naing have flown to Switzerland after being granted political asylum, the ethnic armed group said on Wednesday.
Khaing Thu Kha, AA spokesperson, said Ma Hnin Zar Phyu and her 11-year-old daughter and one-year-old son left Bangkok for Switzerland on Tuesday.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) arranged the asylum, he said.
“We are very thankful to the UNHCR, the friends who helped in this process, and the Thailand government, which acted humanely, not like the Singapore government,” he added.
A person who helped the family of the AA leader said Switzerland accepted the three due to humanitarian considerations. Thai authorities arrested the three in December after the Myanmar government cancelled their passports, but Bangkok did not deport them due to humanitarian reasons.
Ma Hnin Zar Phyu is the daughter of Rakhine State parliament Speaker U San Kyaw Hla. “I am happy that they have been accepted by a third country,” he said.
In July, a brother of Gen. Tun Myat Naing and five of his colleagues were arrested by Singapore police and deported to Myanmar. They face terrorism charges and have been in detention since their arrest.
Tensions have been high between the Tatmadaw (military) and AA in Rakhine since January 2019, when the AA launched coordinated attacks on four Myanmar Police outposts in Rakhine’s Buthidaung township.
Local civic groups said that fighting between the AA and Tatmadaw has displaced an estimated 110,000 people since November 2018.
Comprised mostly of ethnic Rakhine Buddhists, the AA was established in 2009 to fight for autonomy from the central government.
Khaing Thu Kha, AA spokesperson, said Ma Hnin Zar Phyu and her 11-year-old daughter and one-year-old son left Bangkok for Switzerland on Tuesday.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) arranged the asylum, he said.
“We are very thankful to the UNHCR, the friends who helped in this process, and the Thailand government, which acted humanely, not like the Singapore government,” he added.
A person who helped the family of the AA leader said Switzerland accepted the three due to humanitarian considerations. Thai authorities arrested the three in December after the Myanmar government cancelled their passports, but Bangkok did not deport them due to humanitarian reasons.
Ma Hnin Zar Phyu is the daughter of Rakhine State parliament Speaker U San Kyaw Hla. “I am happy that they have been accepted by a third country,” he said.
In July, a brother of Gen. Tun Myat Naing and five of his colleagues were arrested by Singapore police and deported to Myanmar. They face terrorism charges and have been in detention since their arrest.
Tensions have been high between the Tatmadaw (military) and AA in Rakhine since January 2019, when the AA launched coordinated attacks on four Myanmar Police outposts in Rakhine’s Buthidaung township.
Local civic groups said that fighting between the AA and Tatmadaw has displaced an estimated 110,000 people since November 2018.
Comprised mostly of ethnic Rakhine Buddhists, the AA was established in 2009 to fight for autonomy from the central government.
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