Insein Prison authorities have banned family members from visiting the 15 political prisoners who have been on hunger strike since Oct. 26, saying the ban will last at least one month.
Ohmar, the wife of hunger striker Soe Moe Tun, said that the ban was implemented this week, and that no visits will be allowed until early December, although parcels of personal supplies will be allowed in.
Speaking to The Irrawaddy on Wednesday, Ohmar said, “We heard nothing about the hunger strikers and the prison officials won’t tell us anything. I’m worried for my husband’s health because they have been on hunger strike for a long time. I’m also worried that the officials will transfer them to prisons in remote areas.”
The 15 political prisoners say they are refusing to eat until they and all other political prisoners are afforded the same terms as criminal prisoners who are automatically given one-third off their sentences in return for good behavior.
On the day after the hunger strike started, the prison authorities stopped issuing the 15 drinking water. Then, on Oct 29, eight of the hunger strikers were placed in solitary cells usually used as kennels for guard dogs.
The UN human rights envoy for Burma, Tomás Ojea Quintana, on Tuesday expressed concern for the hunger strikers.
Bo Kyi, a former political prisoner and joint-secretary of the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners-Burma (AAPP), told The Irrawaddy that the authorities usually crack down brutally on acts of disobedience such as hunger strikes.
According to the data from AAPP, about 1,600 political prisoners remain behind bars. During a recent amnesty, 6,359 prisoners were released by presidential decree—however, only about 200 of those were political dissidents; the rest were convicted criminals.
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