The headman of Pasing village and his brother were detained by the Maraland Defense Force (MDF) in Mara territory near Lailengpi town of Chin State, according to the Secretary of the MDF.
The MDF is the armed wing of the Maraland Territorial Council (MTC).
Ko Duwun, Secretary of the MDF, confirmed that they have detained Pasing village headman U Kyaw Aung and his brother U Ra Khel since 9 March when MDF troops arrested them at their home.
Ko Duwun explained that they have not arrested the two men, but have only detained them to prevent them from sharing information about the MDF’s activities.
“We have evidence that they have connections to the Chin National Front (CNF) and the Mara Chinland Defense Force (Mara CDF). They provided information about the MDF and local security matters to the CNF and Mara CDF. If we did not detain them, they would continue sharing information about our activities,” Ko Duwun told Khonumthung News.
Ko Duwun said that the MDF observed the activities of the two men for two weeks before detaining them.
He said that MDF frontline officers reported that these two men had sent information to the CNF and Mara CDF about the MDF’s military activities in the area. Ko Duwun said that the MDF detained the two men based on this evidence.
A villager, originally from Pasing village, said that the village headman was elected by all villagers. He was not appointed by the CNF or the Mara CDF. His brother is just a regular villager and not concerned with politics. He said the village headman and his brother are normal villagers.
“We feel sad that an ethnic armed organization (EAO) arrested innocent people. We don’t have any updated information about the whereabouts or condition of U Kyaw Aung and U Ra Khel. I don’t believe that it is right for an EAO struggling for the liberation of our region to also arrest civilians. We strongly oppose the arrest of civilians. All villagers demand that the MDF release these two men as soon as possible and not torture them,” the villager told Khonumthung News.
About 50 MDF soldiers have been deployed near Pasing village for the past two weeks.
For the past two months, the MDF has had multiple armed clashes with the CNF and Mara CDF in Mara territory. Local religious leaders are negotiating between the CNF, the Mara CDF and the MDF.