Myanmar’s military regime has detained and questioned crony Thein Win Zaw, who has close ties to junta boss Min Aung Hlaing’s family, amid a crackdown over surging commodity prices, according to business owners.
A business owner in the oil industry told The Irrawaddy: “[The regime] raided Shwe Byain Phyu Co head office in Yangon on Tuesday. Almost all members of the Myanmar Petroleum Trade Association have now gone into hiding.”
Thein Win Zaw is the owner of Shwe Byain Phyu Co (SBP), which has interests in gas stations, gem mining, telecoms and logging. The company is one of the regime’s top taxpayers.
SBP was established in 1996 while Myanmar was ruled by former military dictator Than Shwe. It operates in partnership with the military-owned Myanmar Economic Holdings Ltd in mining and the import and distribution of fuel.
Thein Win Zaw has allegedly amassed a fortune from the large-scale smuggling of fuel by sea via southern Myanmar’s Tanintharyi Region and Mon State, and has close links with successive chiefs of the Myanmar Navy.
SBP also has a stake in the Myanmar subsidiary of Norwegian telecoms giant Telenor, now known as ATOM.
In August, SBP subsidiary Shwe Byain Phyu Oil and Gas Co Ltd was liquidated under Myanmar’s Insolvency Law amid sanctions from the West.
The regime has also been questioning other fuel importers and distributors, and has even asked those visiting foreign countries to return immediately.
The detention of Thein Win Zaw followed the arrest of junta trade chief Brig-Gen Yan Naung Soe on September 7. The same day saw business leaders and members of the Union of Myanmar Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry brought to Naypyitaw for interrogation, according to sources.
Among the business owners detained for interrogation were importers and distributors of fuel and of edible oil, exporters of rice, beans and pulses, and corn, and senior officials from private banks.
“Ninety percent of the business owners who made donations for the Maravijaya Buddha statue have been detained for interrogation,” said a business owner. The Irrawaddy could not independently verify his claim.
Hundreds of business owners, cronies and ex-generals contributed more than 30 billion kyats to the colossal Buddha statue built by Min Aung Hlaing in Naypyitaw in June and July.
The arrests came after the regime held a press conference to announce that soaring food prices were due to market manipulation by unscrupulous businesspeople.
Exporters, importers and some banks are selling commodities that they bought at the official exchange rate of 2,100 kyats per dollar for prices calculated at the market rate, said junta spokesman Major General Zaw Min Tun. The exchange rate in the market is around 3,600 kyats per dollar.
Many of those detained had reportedly bribed Lieutenant-General Moe Myint Tun, who chairs the Foreign Exchange Supervisory Committee, a junta body with backroom control of not only the Central Bank of Myanmar but also of any dollar expenditures in the country. The committee also issues export and import licenses.
Moe Myint Tun is the sixth most powerful general in the current regime after junta chief Min Aung Hlaing, deputy junta chief Soe Win, General Maung Maung Aye, Navy chief Admiral Moe Aung and Air Force chief General Tun Aung. He also chairs the Myanmar Investment Commission.
His right-hand man, Yan Naung Soe, is among those who have been arrested and interrogated. Yan Naung Soe served as secretary in the junta’s Central Committee on Ensuring Smooth Flow of Trade and Goods, which is chaired by Moe Myint Tun.
Importers need approval from the committee to buy dollars from the Central Bank of Myanmar at the official exchange rate. Importers therefore had to seek the favor of the two officials to secure permits and buy the greenback at the official exchange rate.
“Yan Naung Soe has been scapegoated as the corruption scandals unfold. In fact, Yan Naung Soe can do nothing without Moe Myint Tun’s knowledge,” a business owner told The Irrawaddy on condition of anonymity.
The task of interrogating business owners has been handed to the junta’s military intelligence agency, officially known as Office of the Chief of Military Security Affairs. The agency has reportedly told business owners to give honest answers about their dealings with Yan Naung Soe.
A source in Naypyitaw said an importer told interrogators that he had to hand over 1,000 tonnes of palm oil and US$ 100,000 per month to facilitate his business.
Meanwhile, retired Lieutenant General Nyo Saw has been brought in to cover for Yan Naung Soe in the Central Committee on Ensuring Smooth Flow of Trade and Goods.
