Inside the Lady's Prison Cell
The following information comes from a prison guard who was oversaw the detention of both Win Myint and Aung San Suu Kyi. He shared his story during an interview in Burmese, and a volunteer has given the following commentary to share with a foreign audience.
“We were ordered to count the number of times Aung San Suu Kyi used water, how many times she turned on the light in her room, and small details of everything that happens in and around the house,” said a defector (Aung Kyaw Htet) of the Myanmar Military who was part of the special security force guarding her house.
On the eve of the first of February, military personnel were asked to assemble at the military assembly point in NayPyiDaw. They were unaware of what they were going to be used for. Some had initially thought that the reason for the assembly was a potential threat of invasion from a neighbouring country. The real reason would only become clear to them when they were grouped and tasked with going to separate locations to arrest the NLD members. “Our phones and watches were confiscated, so we did not have any idea what time it was, nor were we able to communicate with the outside world,” said the defector (Aung Kyaw Htet), who was one of the soldiers that day at the assembly point.
Aung San Suu Kyi and the NLD members were nervously awaiting the soldiers because they had already expected this move from the military. She was supposedly enjoying herself with some snacks and was waiting for the military to come to her house, ready to be detained. When they finally arrived at her house, she offered no resistance and complied with the orders from the military. She was put under house arrest at a military general’s house. Aung San Suu Kyi was accompanied by her cook and a few others who lived with her at the house.
“Most of the time, she would be found reading a book or walking around inside the house,” said Aung Kyaw Htet, who was stationed at her house arrest as a special security force officer. “We were ordered not to talk with her or anyone who was in her house; we were threatened with legal action if we were found to be talking with them, and there were CCTVs in every corner of the house.” Sometimes the military generals in plain clothes would come to meet and talk with her. Whenever she was to be transported to the court, her eyes were blindfolded. “She has problems with her stomach; the military would only allow their own doctors to treat her,” said the defector.
On the other hand, President Win Myint was put under house arrest in a different location. He was accompanied by his wife, his granddaughter, who was a student and a few other middle-aged women. The granddaughter of the president was not allowed to continue her studies. “He and his wife would always walk twice a day, once at 5 a.m. and again in the evening,” said Aung Kyaw Htet, who was also stationed at the president’s house as a security guard. Groceries and other necessities were provided by the military, and when the president requested some things that he liked, he would not always get them. This was also the situation for Aung San Suu Kyi. “The soldiers liked President Win Myint; he is very kind. I heard from my friends that he paid the security guards around him 30,000 MMK each and would always ask them how they were doing," stated Aung Kyaw Htet.