(RSF/IFEX) – A fourth journalist, Ohn Kyaing, aged 60, was released on 3 January 2005, from Toungoo jail, north of Rangoon. He was arrested in September 1990 by agents of the Military Intelligence Service (MIS) and sentenced to 17 years in prison for “writing and distributing seditious pamphlets” and “threatening state security”. Less than 24 […]
(RSF/IFEX) – A fourth journalist, Ohn Kyaing, aged 60, was released on 3 January 2005, from Toungoo jail, north of Rangoon.
He was arrested in September 1990 by agents of the Military Intelligence Service (MIS) and sentenced to 17 years in prison for “writing and distributing seditious pamphlets” and “threatening state security”.
Less than 24 hours after his release, Ohn Kyaing went to the headquarters of the National League for Democracy (NLD) in Rangoon on 4 January to take part in Independence Day celebrations.
The journalist and elected NLD member of parliament wrote many articles under the pen name Aung Wint in newspapers such as “Hanthawathi” and “Botahtaung”, from which he was dismissed by the authorities.
He suffered from high blood pressure in prison and his friends and family said he was extremely tired. While in jail, he taught English, journalism and international relations to younger prisoners.
French media – including television channel TF1, Sud-Radio and the dailies “Le Parisien” and “La République du Centre” – and the Swiss newspaper “La Liberté” have campaigned for Ohn Kyaing’s release for several years. Thousands of people signed a petition on http://www.rsf.org calling for his release.
