Kalay farmer dies in junta custody after arrest on election-day

A 43-year-old farmer from Sagaing Region has died in military custody after being detained at a junta checkpoint during Myanmar’s election-day security sweep, underscoring the human toll of the country’s contested polls.

Ko Maung Gyi, from Myo Hla village in Kalay, was arrested on the evening of 28 December and died the following morning. Relatives say he was shot while allegedly trying to escape, but was denied medical treatment and succumbed to excessive bleeding. Family members also reported facial injuries consistent with being struck with a gun butt.

His body was only returned after villagers faced repeated refusals from soldiers. It was eventually recovered on 29 December following appeals to the Regional Operations Command, and cremated by his family the next day. The fate of another man arrested alongside him remains unknown.

Local accounts describe heavily armed patrols in Kalay since 26 December, with pedestrians subjected to strict interrogations. Residents say civilian deaths have become routine, reflecting what one political prisoner called the military’s “lack of discipline and widespread corruption.”

The Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP) reported on 30 December that more than 30,000 people have been arrested since the February 2021 coup, with 7,640 confirmed dead. A further 4,400 deaths are still awaiting verification.

The incident highlights the climate of fear surrounding Myanmar’s phased election, the first since the coup, which has already been dismissed by international observers as neither free nor fair. For families in Kalay, the loss of Ko Maung Gyi is another reminder that the ballot box offers little protection against the violence of military rule.

-2026-01-02