Myanmar’s army blames the killing on the anti-coup People’s Defense Forces, which fight against the country’s military regime.
The deputy head of Myanmar’s military-appointed election commission has been shot dead by rebels in the commercial capital Yangon, authorities said.
Sai Kyaw Thu, deputy director of the Union Election Commission, was killed on Saturday in Thingangyun township in eastern Yangon, the army intelligence team said in a statement. Local media reported that he was shot multiple times in the chest, neck and head.
The army’s statement said “People’s Defense Forces” were responsible for the killing, but gave no further details.
The self-proclaimed People’s Defense Forces (PDF) – loosely organized, armed wings of the country’s shadow government of National Unity (NUG) – have resisted the army that seized power more than two years ago, sparking social unrest and an economic crisis in the country.
The NGG was founded by democratically elected politicians who were removed from office during the military coup.
Sai Kyaw Thu, deputy director general of the junta-appointed Union Election Commission, was shot dead on Saturday in Thingangyun Township, Yangon, according to media and junta reports. (Photo CJ)#WhatsHappeningInMyanmar pic.twitter.com/vDkYniae5x
— The Irrawaddy (Eng) (@IrrawaddyNews) April 22, 2023
With Myanmar’s military cracking down on dissent since taking control of the country in 2021, PDF fighters have targeted officials known or believed to be working with the military.
Military leaders had tasked the Election Commission with conducting new polls, which opponents of the military say cannot possibly be free or fair.
Last month, the commission dissolved Aung San Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy party for failing to re-register under strict new electoral rules set by the military.
The army deposed Aung San Suu Kyi’s elected government in February 2021 after her party defeated army-backed parties in elections in 1990, 2015 and 2020.
Assassinations of low-ranking officials working with the military or suspected informants occur almost daily across the country. Bloody army reprisals often follow quickly.
In April last year, the deputy governor of Myanmar’s central bank, appointed by the military days after it seized power, was gunned down at her home in Yangon by unknown assailants.
In November 2021, a top executive of Mytel – a telecom company between the military and the Vietnamese company Viettel – was gunned down outside his home in Yangon.
The military’s seizure of power has also led to renewed fighting with ethnic rebels and the emergence of dozens of other opposition groups now fighting across the country.