Baptist pastor rearrested in Myanmar after mere hours of freedom

By Diana Chandler - Posted at Baptist Press:

KACHIN, Myanmar (BP) – A Baptist pastor and religious freedom advocate in war-torn Myanmar was rearrested by junta leaders April 17 after mere hours of freedom, the Associated Press reported April 18.

Hkalam Samson, former head of the Kachin Baptist Convention in Myanmar and a civic activist, had been released April 17 from a six-year prison sentence alongside 3,300 other prisoners in a mass amnesty customarily granted at Myanmar’s New Year, celebrated April 13-16 this year.

But authorities rearrested him hours later at 10 p.m., whisking him away from his home in Myitkyina reportedly for his own safety, the AP said, referencing a relative who spoke on condition of anonymity. A member of the Baptist convention, who also requested anonymity from the AP, said Samson was taken to Myitkyina Prison with his wife and a fellow civic activist, reportedly to answer questions.

The Independent Myanmar news group The Irrawaddy, based in Thailand, reported the time of Samson’s rearrest as early April 18.

Alongside prisoners given amnesty, ousted Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi was released from prison under house arrest because a heat wave with temperatures surpassing 102 in Myanmar adversely impacted her health. Suu Kyi is serving a 27-year sentence on a variety of criminal convictions which her supporters said were concocted by the junta.

Samson, arrested in December 2022, was sentenced in April 2023 to six years in prison after being convicted of terrorism and inciting opposition to the Tatmadaw junta currently ruling the country. The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) and other advocates said Samson was arrested in retaliation for his religious work and have advocated for his release.

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