Strong Condemnation of the Arbitrary Arrest and Sentencing of Ko Than Htike Myint, a reporter from Myay Latt Athan News Agency, to Five Years in Prison under the Anti-Terrorism Law

Strong Condemnation of the Arbitrary Arrest and Sentencing of Ko Than Htike Myint, a reporter from Myay Latt Athan News Agency, to Five Years in Prison under the Anti-Terrorism Law

Ko Than Htike Myint, a journalist from Myay Latt Athan News Agency, was arrested by the SAC on February 6, 2025, at his home in Ein Pin town, Myan Aung Township, where he had temporarily returned.

Following his arrest, he was taken to the 51st Light Infantry Battalion base in Myan Aung, where he was reportedly tortured and interrogated for about seven days. He was then transferred to the Myan Aung Township Police Station and charged under Section 52(a) of the Counter-Terrorism Law.

On April 3, 2025, he was unjustly sentenced to five years in prison and transferred to Hinthada Prison.

According to the IMJA’s research, it has become common for the military to arrest journalists and later sentence them under various anti-terrorism charges or even execute them.

Since the February 1, 2021 coup, the SAC has killed seven journalists, arrested more than 200, and 47 journalists remain in detention as of today.

We, the Independent Myanmar Journalists Association (IMJA), urgently call on the SAC to immediately stop targeting and arresting journalists, and unconditionally release all detained journalists.

IMJA strongly condemns this latest act of injustice and records it as a grave crime against journalists and media freedom.

We also urge the United Nations and the international community to take effective actions against the SAC, which continues to arrest, imprison, and kill journalists.