Eight opposition youth arrested

Mizzima News
Than Htike Oo
October 13, 2008

Chiang Mai – Burma’s ruling junta, continuing its detention of opposition activists, has arrested eight youth for their alleged involvement in the dissemination of politically sensitive tracts.

Four members of Generation Wave and four other youth were arrested on the 9th and 10th of October for their believed to be connection with the distribution of anti-government pamphlets.

"They were arrested at 4 p.m. after distributing pamphlets. It seems they were followed by someone after distributing the pamphlets and were all later arrested from one of their houses," said Moe Thway of Generation Wave.

Seven youth were arrested from a house in South Okkalapa Township on the 9th of October and another was arrested the following day, based on statements given during interrogation.

Moe Thway said the pamphlets, bearing the Generation Wave logo, incorporate the words, '2008: The end of dictatorship.'

The whereabouts of arrested Generation Wave members Khaing Mon (also know as Nyein Chan), Ye Thu Ko (also knows as Nyi Nyi), Zin Min Aung and Aung Paing are still not known.

However, the four others – as of yet unidentified – are being held at the South Okkalapa Police Station.

Following last year's monk-led protests, known as the Saffron Revolution, several youth began forming clandestine activist groups, a movement which has slowly gained in momentum.

In one of the distributed pamphlets, Generation Wave urges people to topple the military regime through a mass movement like the 2007 protests.