The chairwoman of a Mandalay-based charity was rearrested by Myanmar’s military regime on Wednesday after being freed from jail some two months ago under an amnesty.
Ma Shwe Mahar Nwe, also known as Ma Nwe New Win, who leads Shwe Mahar Nwe blood donors association and Mandalay’s branch of the Myanmar Rescue Federation, was released in May after being imprisoned for two years since late 2021.
A family member of Ma Shwe Mahar Nwe said her whereabouts remain unknown and authorities had offered no information about her detention.
“We only knew about her arrest after [pro-junta channel] Han Nyein Oo posted that she had been detained at around 1 pm. She was with us on Wednesday morning. She left home after lunch saying that she would donate blood at the 300-bed hospital on 62nd Street. She said she and other members were donating blood when we had phone contact with her around 1 pm. We have since lost contact with her,” said the family member.
On Wednesday morning, pro-junta Telegram channel ‘Han Nyein Oo’ called for the arrest of Ma Shwe Mahar Nwe, alleging she had participated in activities to mark the 35th anniversary of the pro-democracy 8888 Uprising. Within hours, the channel posted a photo of Ma Shwe Mahar Nwe blindfolded and wearing a mask inside a private vehicle.
A member of Shwe Mahar Nwe charity said: “She did not participate in activities to mark the 8888 Uprising. She has not participated in any political activities since her release from prison. We are worried about her safety. The photo posted by Han Nyein Oo is not of her. It was another person, but [junta personnel] arrested her without verifying the photo.”
Ma Shwe Mahar Nwe was arrested on November 15, 2021 as her association sought donations of clothes for displacement camps and orphanages. After she posted on Facebook that people could also donate camouflage clothing, junta troops arrested her at her office on November 15.
She was then charged with sedition and handed three years in jail. After spending nearly two years behind bars, she was released conditionally on May 3 when the regime granted an amnesty to mark the Kasone Full Moon Day.
