Myanmar jails 12 Muslims for having links to 'unknown' terror group

Rights activists say trial tainted by acts of torture.

Mandalay:  A court in Mandalay jailed 12 Muslims on Dec. 7 for five years for having links to a terror group that rights groups say probably does not exist.

The 12 men, whose ages ranged from 19 to 58, were arrested between Nov. 14 and Dec. 26, 2014. All were charged under Myanmar's Emergency Provisions Act.

Daw Nandar Myint Thein, who defended six of the accused, called the trial a travesty.

"There was no strong evidence and police admitted to the court that information regarding the case came from above [higher authorities]," she told ucanews.com Dec. 8.

The Bangkok-based Fortify Rights group, which had been monitoring the trial, said the men were tortured into making confessions.

One of the men, Soe Moe Aung, 24, told the court on Sept. 17 that he was beaten while in detention, deprived of food and water, and drugged during interrogations that lasted approximately one week.

He said he was subsequently coerced into signing a confession.

"A trial should be based on facts and evidence, not suspicion and secrecy. The state has so far failed to show evidence to justify the charges against these defendants," Matthew Smith, executive director of Fortify Rights said in a Nov. 7 statement.

Fortify Rights also claimed not to have heard of the group linked to the 12 men.

Myanmar has been grappling with religious violence as it emerges from decades of isolation and a military dictatorship. During that time anti-Muslim sentiment has been growing steadily.

Thein Than Oo, a Mandalay-based human rights lawyer who has defended several Muslims in court called the trial of the 12 Muslims a political stunt.

"This is propaganda for political gain by attempting to show to the public that the military-backed government needs to save the country from terrorist groups," he told ucanews.com.

Outspoken Catholic leader Cardinal Charles Bo of Yangon in September voiced concern that hate speeches from hardline Buddhist monks, denial of voting rights and violence committed against Muslims could lead to some of them being radicalized and developing links with terrorist organizations such as the group that calls itself the Islamic State.

"I'm very concern that oppressed Muslim groups might develop links with terrorists and attack the country," Cardinal Bo told ucanews.com in an interview.

Source: UCAN