Watchdog Calls On Myanmar To Stop Jailing People For Violating COVID-19 Restrictions

Myanmar should stop imprisoning people for violating COVID-19 quarantine, curfews and other limitations imposed amid the outbreak, as this practice could only speed up the spread of the virus in crowded detention facilities amid poor hygiene conditions and inability to observe social distance, a prominent rights watchdog said in a press release on Thursday

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 28th May, 2020) Myanmar should stop imprisoning people for violating COVID-19 quarantine, curfews and other limitations imposed amid the outbreak, as this practice could only speed up the spread of the virus in crowded detention facilities amid poor hygiene conditions and inability to observe social distance, a prominent rights watchdog said in a press release on Thursday.

According to Human Rights Watch (HRW), at least 500 people, including children, migrant workers, and representatives of religious minorities, were placed in custody for between one month and one year since March. Most of them were arrested under the National Disaster Management Law, Prevention and Control of Communicable Diseases Law, and other penal code provisions. Cases of hundreds more people are still being investigated by the authorities or resulted in fines.

"Limiting public health risks through social distancing is crucial, but jailing people for being outside at night just adds to everybody's risk. Throwing hundreds behind bars in crowded, unhygienic prisons defeats the purpose of containing the spread of Covid-19," Phil Robertson, the deputy Asia director at HRW, said, as quoted in the press release.

In April, Myanmar released some 25,000 prisoners under its annual Buddhist new year amnesty. However, as a result, the prison population was reduced to just above official capacity with remaining detainees still having no adequate conditions, as there are only 30 doctors and 80 nurses employed by the country's prison system.

"Myanmar did the right thing in releasing thousands of prisoners last month, but jailing regulation violators threatens to undo that progress and put more people in harm's way. The authorities should act to prevent the spread of Covid-19, rather than using the pandemic as a pretext for violating rights," Robertson added.

In March, United Nations human rights experts warned in a joined press release that COVID-19 restrictions "should not be used as a basis to target particular groups, minorities, or individuals," noting that it was necessary to ensure that such actions were not used as a cover for repressive moves.