Myanmar female prisoners face torture and neglect, rights group says
Since the military seized power in a February 2021 coup, a protracted civil war has gripped the impoverished Southeast Asian nation.
Female prisoners in Myanmar are facing severe torture, sexual violence, and medical neglect, according to Human Rights Watch. The rights group detailed the plight of over 30,000 political prisoners held since a military coup in February 2021, which has left the country in turmoil and resulted in thousands of deaths and displacement.
Human Rights Watch's report, based on interviews with 17 former female detainees, paints a grim picture of a prison system where suffering and neglect are both deliberate and routine. Women have reported beatings with sticks, chains, metal pipes, and slingshots, as well as electric shocks, cigarette burns, prolonged stress positions, and sexual violence.
Prison authorities have also been accused of denying prisoners access to necessary medical care, with some giving birth in their cells.
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