Myanmar freelance reporter Min Min Aung was arrested on March 16, 2021, while covering a protest-related arson attack in Yangon’s Oakkan Township for The Voice local news website. He is currently being held in detention awaiting trial on various criminal charges.
The arrest of Min Min Aung and his wife, Democratic Voice of Burma reporter May Thwe Aung—who was detained on the same day for unclear reasons—was documented by the Burmese-language Voice of Myanmar, a report by Democratic Voice of Burma, a database maintained by the rights group Assistance Association of Political Prisoners (AAPP), and a separate database compiled by the Detained Journalists Information Myanmar (DJIM) private Facebook group, which CPJ reviewed.
The journalist’s arrest came in the wake of the military’s February 1, 2021, democracy-suspending coup and subsequent protests. Since then, the military junta has engaged in an ongoing crackdown on Myanmar’s independent media, detaining and sentencing dozens of journalists.
Min Min Aung faces charges under Articles 114, 332, and 436 of the penal code, according to the same sources.
According to the code, Article 114 concerns abetting a crime, Article 332 involves causing harm to deter a public servant from doing their duty, and Article 436 concerns causing criminal mischief by fire or explosive device. All carry potential prison sentences.
Min Min Aung was being held in Yangon’s Insein Prison in late 2023, according to AAPP’s and DJIM’s data.
The Ministry of Information did not reply to CPJ’s emailed request sent for comment on the various charges leveled against him and his treatment in detention sent in late 2023.