Loikaw, 21 December
The military council is using the prison as a fortress and the prisoners as human shields during the fighting in Loikaw, Karenni State, the revolutionary forces told Than Lwin Times.
Despite the intense fighting in Loikaw, the military regime did not evacuate the prisoners but instead used them as human shields and the prison as a fortress.
The Myanmar Political Prisoners Network said that the military, police, and prison staff oppress prisoners and use them as human shields during the fighting.
According to initial information obtained by the Myanmar Political Prisoners Network and the Karenni Political Prisoners’ Association, the situation in Loikaw prison is terrible, and food and medicine are desperately needed.
In addition, in early January 2022, fighting in Loikaw caused shortages of medicine and food in the Loikaw prison, affecting the health of the prisoners.
Loikaw prison houses over 500 male and female political prisoners, and Than Lwin Times contacted the Prison Department to find out if the prisoners would be relocated due to the current situation but received no response.
All of the military council’s mechanisms came to a halt in Loikaw, and the military council could only control the prison, the regional command, and a few other locations, according to local sources.
News-Than Lwin Times
Photo-CJ