Zaw Htet Ko Ko
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Zaw Htet Ko Ko (, ) is a Burmese political activist. In 2008, he was sentenced an 11-year prison sentence for his work with the pro-democracy
88 Generation Students Group The 88 Generation Students () is a Burma, Burmese pro-democracy movement known for their activism against the country's State Peace and Development Council, military junta. Many of its members were imprisoned by the Burmese government on charge ...
, and his detention was criticized by human rights groups including
Amnesty International Amnesty International (also referred to as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The organization says that it has more than ten million members a ...
, which named him a
prisoner of conscience A prisoner of conscience (POC) is anyone imprisoned because of their race, sexual orientation, religion, or political views. The term also refers to those who have been imprisoned or persecuted for the nonviolent expression of their conscienti ...
. He was released in October 2011 in a series of amnesties for political prisoners.


88 Generation Students Group involvement

Zaw Htet Ko Ko became involved in the 88 Generation Students Group shortly after its 2005 founding through his friend Htay Kywe, one of the group's leaders. The group called for an end to the rule of Burma's military leadership, the
State Peace and Development Council The State Peace and Development Council ( ; abbreviated SPDC or , ) was the official name of the Military dictatorship, military government of Burma (Myanmar) which, in 1997, succeeded the State Law and Order Restoration Council (; abbrevi ...
; the release of all alleged political prisoners; and a return to democracy. Described by Amnesty International as an "Internet enthusiast", Zaw Thet Ko Ko helped the group communicate news of its protests to the outside world. He also served as the group's photographer at events such as its "White Sunday" campaign, in which activists wore white prisoner's clothing each Sunday to show solidarity with imprisoned activists.


Involvement in Saffron Revolution

When rising fuel and commodity prices led to
Saffron Revolution The Saffron Revolution (; ) was a series of economic and political protests and demonstrations that took place during August, September, and October 2007 in Myanmar. The protests were triggered by the decision of the national military govern ...
in August 2007, the 88 Generation Students Group played a major role in organizing protests. The largest of these rallies drew over one hundred thousand protesters, most notably a number of
Buddhist monks A ''bhikkhu'' (, ) is an ordained male in Buddhist monasticism. Male, and female monastics (''bhikkhunī''), are members of the Sangha (Buddhist community). The lives of all Buddhist monastics are governed by a set of rules called the prātimo ...
. Zaw Thet Ko Ko participated in several of these rallies, most notably a march on 23 August led by group members
Mie Mie Thin Thin Aye (, ; 1970 – 13 August 2018), better known as Mie Mie ( ), was a Burmese democracy activist who organized and led numerous anti-government protests. She was imprisoned three times between 1988 and 2012, and Amnesty International co ...
and
Nilar Thein Nilar Thein (, ) (born 4 March 1972) is a Burmese democracy activist and political prisoner imprisoned from 2008 to 2012 at Thayet prison in Burma's Magway Region. Amnesty International considered her a prisoner of conscience. 8888 uprising an ...
. Following the arrest of several group leaders, however, including Min Ko Naing, he joined Htay Kywe and Mie Mie in hiding. On 13 October, the three were arrested at a rubber plantation along with fellow group members Aung Thu and Hein Htet.


Trial and imprisonment

In the weeks following Zaw Htet Ko Ko's arrest, his father alleged that he believed Zaw Htet Ko Ko was being tortured in prison. While Zaw Thet Ko Ko escaped the 65-year sentences given to fellow members such as Min Ko Naing, Htay Kywe, Mie Mie, Nilar Thein, and others, on 21 November 2008, he was sentenced to five years of hard labor by a special court at
Insein Prison Insein Prison () is located in Yangon Division, near Yangon (Rangoon), the old capital of Myanmar (formerly Burma). From 1988 to 2011 it was run by the military junta of Myanmar, named the State Law and Order Restoration Council from 1988 to 2003 ...
. Seven days later, he was charged with an additional six years of imprisonment, for a total of eleven years. The sentence was protested by
Front Line A front line (alternatively front-line or frontline) in military terminology is the position(s) closest to the area of conflict of an Military, armed force's Military personnel, personnel and Military technology, equipment, usually referring to ...
and Amnesty International, the latter of which named him a
prisoner of conscience A prisoner of conscience (POC) is anyone imprisoned because of their race, sexual orientation, religion, or political views. The term also refers to those who have been imprisoned or persecuted for the nonviolent expression of their conscienti ...
.
Human Rights Watch Human Rights Watch (HRW) is an international non-governmental organization that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. Headquartered in New York City, the group investigates and reports on issues including War crime, war crimes, crim ...
stated its belief that the imprisoned 88 Generation Student Group members were
political prisoner A political prisoner is someone imprisoned for their political activity. The political offense is not always the official reason for the prisoner's detention. There is no internationally recognized legal definition of the concept, although ...
s and called for their immediate and unconditional release. On 6 February 2009, he was transferred from Insein to Kyaukpyu Prison in
Rakhine State Rakhine State ( ; , ; ), formerly known as Arakan State, is a Administrative divisions of Myanmar, state in Myanmar (Burma). Situated on the western coast, it is bordered by Chin State to the north, Magway Region, Bago Region and Ayeyarwady Re ...
. According to an ''
Irrawaddy Irrawaddy or Ayeyarwady may refer to: *Irrawaddy River, the main river of Burma *Irrawaddy Delta, a rice growing region of the country *Irrawaddy, an alternative spelling of Ayeyarwady Region, an administrative division of Burma *''The Irrawaddy'' ...
'' story on Zaw Htet Ko Ko's case, "transferring political prisoners to distant prisons is one of the tactics to further punish prisoners and increase the burden on their families and friends." On 11 or 12 October 2011, Zaw Htet Ko Ko was pardoned as part of a series of amnesties for political prisoners.


Family

Zaw Htet Ko Ko is married to San Latt Phyu, a medical doctor at Yangon Muslim Free Hospital. They have one son.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Zaw Htet Ko Ko 1981 births Amnesty International prisoners of conscience held by Myanmar Burmese democracy activists Burmese prisoners and detainees Living people