The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has called on the Arakan Army (AA) to immediately release Border News Agency reporter Mu Dra, who was abducted by the rebel group’s forces on September 20 in Rakhine state’s Maungdaw township.

In a statement issued Tuesday(September 23), Shawn Crispin, CPJ’s senior Southeast Asia representative, said:

“All combatants in Myanmar’s civil war have a responsibility to protect and not target journalists in retaliation for their news reporting. The Arakan Army must release reporter Mu Dra now and allow all journalists to report freely on the conflict in Rakhine state.”

According to the Border News Agency, Mu Dra was taken from her home around 11 a.m. on September 20. The outlet’s editor-in-chief, Kaung Mrat Naing, confirmed to CPJ that she is being held incommunicado at the AA’s intelligence office. Mu Dra has been reporting extensively on human rights violations in Rakhine, including forced recruitment, abductions, and violence against vulnerable communities.

The Arakan Army, formed in 2009, is one of the most powerful ethnic armed groups in Myanmar, currently controlling 14 of Rakhine’s 17 townships. While it claims to be fighting for autonomy from the military regime, rights advocates have increasingly accused the group of adopting the same authoritarian and abusive tactics it denounces, including harassment and intimidation of journalists.

CPJ noted that Myanmar remains one of the world’s most repressive countries for press freedom, ranking as the third-worst jailer of journalists globally, with at least 35 imprisoned as of its latest census. Rebel groups as well as the military junta have targeted reporters since the country’s 2021 coup.

The Arakan Army did not respond to CPJ’s request for comment on the abduction.

The abduction of Mu Dra highlights a troubling pattern within the Arakan Army’s behavior silencing independent voices rather than engaging with critical reporting. By targeting journalists, the group undermines its own stated struggle for justice and autonomy, raising serious doubts about its commitment to democratic values and human rights.

BOB Post