Leading monk charged with treason

November 15, Irrawaddy
Wai Moe

A 29 year-old leading monk in the recent mass demonstrations, U Gambira,
has been charged with treason by the Burmese junta, according to his
family. The punishment for high treason in Burma is a life sentence or
death.

His mother told The Irrawaddy on Wednesday that authorities told U
Gambira’s family that he is charged with treason for his leading role in
the September mass demonstrations.

U Gambira was arrested from a hiding place in Kyaukse, central Burma, in
early November. “They [the security forces] also arrested his father at
the time,” said U Gambira’s mother.

U Gambira, leader of the Alliance of All Burma Buddhist Monks, which
played a significant role in the September demonstrations, had been in
hiding since the demonstrations were violently suppressed by the
authorities.

U Gambira was born in the town of Pauk in central Burma. He has three
brothers and one sister.

“I am very worried,” said his mother. “I am so sad for my son and my
husband. They might be tortured during interrogation. But I am proud of
him [U Gambira]. Since his childhood, my son has been active in helping
other people.”

The monk’s father, Min Lwin, is believed to be in Burma’s infamous Insein
Prison, said U Gambira’s mother.

U Gambira’s brother, Kyaw Kyaw, was also arrested in October as an
exchange while the monk was in hiding. But his brother has not been freed
since the monk’s capture. His mother and three other family members were
also detained and interrogated before he was arrested.

In October, the mother and mother-in-law of an activist, Thet Thet Aung,
were also detained as the authorities called for an exchange with the
fugitive activist. Human rights organizations claim this form of arresting
activists’ family members is simply “taking hostages.”

In the past, monk leaders have been charged with treason for their leading
roles in peaceful demonstrations. In 1989, U Kawira, a leading monk from
Mandalay, was sentenced to death for treason. He was a monk leader during
the 1988 uprising.