New York [US], July 25 (ANI): A New York-based human rights group has condemned the Myanmar military regime's execution of pro-democracy leaders and elected officials.

Myanmar's military junta today reported the execution of four men in the country's first death sentences carried out in over three decades.

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According to Human Rights Watch (HRW), the men put to death were Phyo Zeya Thaw, 41; Kyaw Min Yu, known as "Ko Jimmy," 53; Hla Myo Aung; and Aung Thura Zaw, all of whom were convicted after closed trials that fell far short of international standards.

A military tribunal sentenced Ko Jimmy and Phyo Zeya Thaw to death on January 21 under Myanmar's overbroad Counterterrorism Law of 2014, the group said. Hla Myo Aung and Aung Thura Zaw were convicted in April 2021 for allegedly killing a military informant.

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The Human Rights Watch opposed capital punishment in all countries and under all circumstances because of its inherent cruelty and finality, and has long called on Myanmar to end all use of the death penalty.

"The Myanmar junta's execution of four men was an act of utter cruelty," said Elaine Pearson, acting Asia director at Human Rights Watch. "These executions, including of activist Ko Jimmy and opposition lawmaker Phyo Zeya Thaw, followed grossly unjust and politically motivated military trials. This horrific news was compounded by the junta's failure to notify the men's families, who learned about the executions through the junta's media reports.

"The junta's barbarity and callous disregard for human life aims to chill the anti-coup protest movement. European Union member states, the United States, and other governments should show the junta that there will be a reckoning for its crimes. They should demand immediate measures, including the release of all political prisoners, and let the junta know the atrocities it commits have consequences."

The volatile situation in Myanmar following the February 01, 2021 coup has increased armed conflict and subsequent population displacement within and across borders, according to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

The security situation continues to deteriorate in Southeast Myanmar with the intensification of armed clashes reported between the Tatmadaw and ethnic armed organizations (EAOs) or People's Defence Force (PDF) in several areas. The Military continues to deploy security forces and has increased the use of heavy artilleries.

As of June 30, the total number of internally displaced people (IDPs) in Myanmar displaced since February 1, is 758,500, of whom 244,500 are in the southeast provinces - Kayah, Shan, Kayin, Mon States, and Tanintharyi and Bago regions. In Kayah State, more than 4,000 people were able to return to Loikaw and Demoso Townships.

Nevertheless, the security situation in Demoso Township continues to be unstable, with more than 2,000 people unable to return to their places of origin. (ANI)

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