Disturbing video of Myanmar junta allegedly torturing victim goes viral

A disturbing video featuring an alleged Myanmar junta military member torturing a man has caused an uproar after going viral. The video was retrieved from a phone that was found on November 6 in the Moe Bye township in Kayah state by members of the Karenni Nationalities Defense Force. The group is one of many who are fighting the junta for control of the country. They shared the video with a Radio Free Asia reporter.

In the video, two men are seen sitting with one bound and blindfolded and the other holding a gun. The man holding the gun is wearing a jacket with a Myanmar military badge on its sleeve. The unsettling video shows the man in the military jacket setting aside his rifle and picking up a rod to strike the victim repeatedly while asking if the man is a member of the People’s Defense Force in the Burmese language. The organisation in which he questions the victim is part of the militia groups that have been fighting the junta.

“Are you part of the PDF? Did PDF and KNDF come to your village?”

After hearing the questions, the victim seems to not understand, which RFA says could be an indicator that the victim speaks Karenni, Kayan, or another dialect. RFA says it has not identified the perpetrator or the victim and cannot verify the video’s authenticity.

A KNDF secretary says the video was shot in September, but the phone was discovered in November after a firefight with military forces. It then claims the victim in the video is a resident of Kayah and not a member of the organisation. The video further shows the perpetrator stabbing the victim with a small knife and ends with the tortured man lying on his back as his torturer plays audio of a Buddhist monk. Then the perpetrator speaks to the victim.

“I’ve filmed you. I feel sorry for you only after I’ve tortured you.”

KNDF also shared photographs from the same phone which show a decapitated man. There is no information on what happened to the victim in the video. The RFA received seven videos from the KNDF that run for a total of about 17 minutes, all in the same room.

Myanmar’s junta took over in a coup in early 2021. Since then, it has waged a violent campaign after ousting the democratically-elected government, which was famously headed by Aung San Suu Kyi.

The Institute for Strategy and Policy has reported that the junta has killed at least 5,600 civilians in the country since the coup began. When contacted by RFA, the military did not respond.