Human Rights Violations Rampant in Burma’s Female Youth Rehabilitation Centres
By Network Media Group
Saturday, June 8, 2024
The Political Prisoners Network – Myanmar (PPNM) has revealed that young females under 18 detained at youth rehabilitation centres across Burma are facing human rights violations, including inadequate nutrition and privacy infringements.
“These children should receive adequate food and care, but they’re being deprived of these essentials, causing both mental and physical suffering,” said Ko Theik Tun Oo, a former political prisoner and PPNM committee member.
The network that monitors abuses in prisons in Burma relies on confidential reports and cannot disclose the sources to protect them.
At the Pathein Gyi Female Youth Rehabilitation Centre in Mandalay Region, staff only provide rice and yellow bean soup daily. PPNM discovered that on one occasion when officials visited, staff served rice and eggs.
Due to poor diet, inmates at this centre and the two others in Burma suffer from malnutrition, with some developing ringworm and other untreated skin diseases causing inflammation or itchiness.
Theik Tun Oo said some of these detainees were not convicted of criminal offences; they were imprisoned for political reasons and should be released to reunite with their families.
At the Bahan Female Youth Rehabilitation Centre, CCTV cameras installed in toilets and bathing areas violate girls’ privacy daily. Guards punish them or assign tasks like cutting firewood or cleaning the compound if they attempt to use the bathroom during restricted times.
Male friends of female prison staff frequently visit the rehabilitation centres, making the youths uncomfortable.
At the Kawhmu Female Youth Rehabilitation Centre in Yangon Region, not enough menstrual pads have been provided to teenagers.
