February 21, 2017
Hlun Htein arrested 28 people from Hassu Rata in Maungdaw South and beat them up forcing them to accept the controversial National Verification Card.
Earlier, seven people, including the wife of a community elder were detained when they refused to cooperate in the NVC scheme.
Many of those released allege mistreatment including beatings in Hlun Htein custody and said under such circumstances there was no choice but to accept the NVC.
The NVC has been rejected by a majority of Rohingyas as it forces them to register as Bengalis, implying they are illegal immigrants from Bangladesh and only offers temporary residence in Arakan.
The Hlun Htein however says movement restrictions in place for Rohingyas since the start of the crackdown in October will not be eased unless they have accepted the NVC.
In a separate incident, three women and four men travelling by bus from Ferang Fru in Maungdaw North to Maungdaw town were stopped at the Bauk Shu Phwai Yah checkpoint where they were asked to provide the NVC. When the passengers said they did not have NVC, the Hlun Htein forced them down from the bus and cursed them in foul language. They were threatened with dire consequences if they ever left their village without NVC. They were also asked to relate the warnings to rest of the villagers.
Community elders were also arrested from Kullung and Ang Dhang in Maungdaw South on Monday morning. Details are not known at the moment.
Meanwhile, sources say the Hlun Htein along with the La Wa Ka will start checking for NVC in the entry points of the town.
