Sai Zaw Thaike, Myanmar Now photojournalist, political prisoner

Detained in Rakhine State while covering the aftermath of Cyclone Mocha in 2023, Sai Zaw Thaike was denied legal representation and sentenced by a military tribunal to 20 years in prison with hard labor.

Since January this year Sai Zaw Thaike has faced daily beatings and torture. The abuse is believed to be a retaliatory response to their informing the junta-appointed National Human Rights Commission that prison staff were violating their fellow inmates’ human rights during a visit by the commission’s representatives last month.

“His sentencing is yet another indication that freedom of the press has been completely quashed under the military junta’s rule, and shows the hefty price independent journalists in Myanmar must pay for their professional work,”

Swe Win, Myanmar Now