Myanmar junta executes four democracy activists

Myanmar's military authorities executed four democracy activists accused of helping carry out "terror acts", state media said today, the Southeast Asian nation's first executions in decades.

Sentenced to death in January in a closed-door trial, the four men were accused of helping militias fight the army that seized power in a coup last year and unleashed a bloody crackdown on its opponents.

The sentences drew international condemnation, with two UN experts calling them a "vile attempt at instilling fear" among the people.

Among those executed were democracy figure Kyaw Min Yu, better known as Jimmy, and former lawmaker and hip-hop artist Phyo Zeya Thaw, said the Global New Light of Myanmar newspaper.

Kyaw Min Yu, 53, and Phyo Zeya Thaw, a 41-year-old ally of ousted Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi, lost their appeals against the sentences in June. The two others executed were Hla Myo Aung and Aung Thura Zaw.

The four were charged under the counter-terrorism law and penal code. The punishment was carried out according to prison procedure, the paper said, without elaborating. Previous executions in Myanmar have been by hanging.

An activist group, the Assistance Association of Political Prisoners (AAPP), said Myanmar's last judicial executions were in the late 1980s.

A military spokesperson did not immediately respond to telephone calls to seek comment.

Picture of violence

Last month military spokesperson Zaw Min Tun defended the death penalty, saying it was used in many countries.

"At least 50 innocent civilians, excluding security forces, died because of them," he told a televised news conference.

"How can you say this is not justice?" he asked. "Required actions are needed to be done in the required moments."

Thazin Nyunt Aung, the wife of Phyo Zeyar Thaw, said she was not told of her husband's execution. Other relatives could not immediately be reached for comment.

Myanmar has been in chaos since last year's coup, with conflict spreading nationwide after the army crushed mostly peaceful protests in cities.

The AAPP says more than 2,100 people have been killed by security forces since the coup, but the junta says the figure is exaggerated.

The true picture of violence has been hard to assess as clashes have spread to more remote areas where ethnic minority insurgent groups are also fighting the military.

The latest executions close off any chance of ending the unrest, said Myanmar analyst Richard Horsey, of the International Crisis group.

"Any possibility of dialogue to end the crisis created by the coup has now been removed," Horsey told Reuters.

"This is the regime demonstrating it will do what it wants and listen to no one. It sees this as a demonstration of strength, but it may be a serious miscalculation."

- Reuters