(LiCAS News): Sister Benedetta Nya Moe of the Institute of Sisters of Reparation [ISR], was sentenced to eight months in prison by a military tribunal in Myanmar for providing aid to internally displaced people [IDP].
The sentence was handed down inside a prison two weeks after the 50-year-old Sister Nya Moe was detained and interrogated near Loikaw in Kayah [Karenni] State, according to sources familiar with the case.
She was sentenced under Section 505(a) of the penal code, which has been widely used by the Myanmar junta to target both its opponents and civilians. The section carries a maximum prison term of three years.
Sister Nya Moe, an ethnic Kayan who recently marked 25 years of religious life, has been providing healthcare and medical access to IDPs and residents in camps and villages across eastern Demoso and near Loikaw.
She worked alongside fellow ISR sisters and personnel from other Catholic missions, in collaboration with the Diocese of Loikaw, a local nun who previously worked with her in Demoso Township said, requesting anonymity.
She was sentenced under Section 505(a) of the penal code, which has been widely used by the Myanmar junta to target both its opponents and civilians. The section carries a maximum prison term of three years
“From what we have learned, she crossed paths with a military column and was arrested while transporting a displaced patient to a hospital in Loikaw,” the nun said on June 25.
Two local residents were with Sister Nya Moe as they drove a female patient from Zayatphyu village near Loikaw, on June 10.
“During a search of their phones, soldiers found records of donations received on Kpay [a mobile banking app] and news related to the armed conflict on the nun’s phone, which led to their arrest,” Ben Khoo, a resident of Loikaw, said.
The three were detained at a military battalion base in Loikaw for interrogation. The two villagers were released four days later, but the junta continued to detain and question the nun.
Sources said that Sister Nya Moe and her team regularly travelled to Demoso Township to provide medical care, distribute pharmaceuticals, and run food and nutrition initiatives for IDPs.
“She just recently came to western Demoso to celebrate her religious jubilee,” said a member of the management committee of an IDP camp in the township.
“They only work within their assigned duties. It is deeply heartbreaking to hear about this,” he said.
Demoso Township was held by Karenni resistance forces until August last year. The junta have since claimed full control of the township, though it remains heavily contested.
The Myanmar Peace Monitor says the military lacks total control anywhere, and resistance groups maintain an active presence surrounding the capital, Loikaw.
