{"id":6899,"date":"2025-07-17T03:30:42","date_gmt":"2025-07-16T21:00:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/moemaka.net\/eng\/?p=6899"},"modified":"2025-07-17T03:33:39","modified_gmt":"2025-07-16T21:03:39","slug":"taxation-rule-of-law-and-criminal-incidents-in-upper-myanmar","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/moemaka.net\/eng\/2025\/07\/taxation-rule-of-law-and-criminal-incidents-in-upper-myanmar\/","title":{"rendered":"Taxation, Rule of Law, and Criminal Incidents in Upper Myanmar"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/moemaka.net\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/image-9-1.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-6900\" src=\"https:\/\/moemaka.net\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/image-9-1.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"808\" height=\"454\" srcset=\"https:\/\/moemaka.net\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/image-9-1.png 808w, https:\/\/moemaka.net\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/image-9-1-300x169.png 300w, https:\/\/moemaka.net\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/image-9-1-768x432.png 768w, https:\/\/moemaka.net\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/image-9-1-560x315.png 560w, https:\/\/moemaka.net\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/image-9-1-260x146.png 260w, https:\/\/moemaka.net\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/image-9-1-160x90.png 160w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 808px) 100vw, 808px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Myanmar Spring Chronicle \u2013 July 15 Viewpoint<\/strong><br \/><em>(Moemaka, July 16, 2025)<\/em><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h3>Taxation, Rule of Law, and Criminal Incidents in Upper Myanmar<\/h3>\n<p>In recent days, a series of events have drawn renewed attention to the issues of taxation, law enforcement, and public order across resistance-controlled regions in <strong>Upper Myanmar<\/strong>, particularly Sagaing, northern Magway, and Mandalay.<\/p>\n<p>Among these:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\n<p>A <strong>February murder case<\/strong> in Shwebo involving <strong>Catholic priest Fr. Martin Donnel<\/strong>, who was killed with a machete, has led to <strong>20- and 8-year prison sentences<\/strong> for eight individuals, including the primary perpetrator.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p>In <strong>Wetlet Township<\/strong>, 11 individuals allegedly linked to PDF and PaKaHpa units were arrested in connection with a <strong>home robbery and stabbing<\/strong> incident in Hlattaung village.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p>On social media, lists have surfaced detailing <strong>dozens of taxation checkpoints<\/strong> across Wetlet Township, run by various resistance groups.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p>In Chin State, <strong>over 3 million methamphetamine tablets and 110 kg of heroin<\/strong> were seized at Var Bridge in Falam Township. The traffickers were reportedly <strong>armed members of Yinmabin District PDF Battalion 15<\/strong>, including a key figure named <strong>Kyaw Min Zaw (aka Potee)<\/strong>, who later surrendered to a PaKaHpa unit in Salin.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<hr \/>\n<h3>Concerns About the Rule of Law and Resistance Integrity<\/h3>\n<p>These developments raise key questions about governance and accountability within resistance-held areas:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\n<p><strong>Are resistance forces upholding the rule of law<\/strong>, or is there increasing complicity in criminal activity such as robbery and drug trafficking?<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p><strong>How are taxes and revenues collected in these areas being managed and distributed?<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The Shwebo murder trial, conducted by the <strong>NUG\u2019s judiciary<\/strong>, reportedly sentenced <strong>Wint Zaw Oo (aka Taik Kaw)<\/strong> to 20 years in prison and seven others to 8 years each. However, <strong>concerns have emerged<\/strong> from Fr. Martin\u2019s family regarding the <strong>lack of transparency<\/strong>, limited public information, and absence of full disclosure on the names of all 10 suspected perpetrators.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><em>(Note: The NUG\u2019s official statement lists all names and sentences, stating all eight received 20-year prison terms.)<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>This has prompted further questions:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\n<p>Are there formal <strong>prison facilities<\/strong> under NUG control to serve these sentences?<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p>Is public confidence in judicial procedures being upheld?<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<hr \/>\n<h3>Allegations of Resistance Involvement in Crime<\/h3>\n<p>In Wetlet Township, the aforementioned robbery and fatal stabbing led to the arrest of <strong>11 individuals<\/strong>, including PDFs, PaKaHpa members, and drone unit personnel from Meiktila.<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, in the drug trafficking case, suspects from <strong>PDF Battalion 15<\/strong> confessed to previous smuggling runs and claimed they turned to drug courier work due to <strong>financial debts incurred during resistance service<\/strong>. This stark admission reflects a <strong>ground-level reality of financial strain<\/strong> within resistance groups.<\/p>\n<p>According to reports, this was their <strong>third or fourth attempt<\/strong> at cross-border drug delivery to India. Some of the accomplices fled during the bust in Falam.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h3>Taxation Checkpoints and Local Frustration<\/h3>\n<p>In addition to criminal cases, <strong>complaints about excessive taxation<\/strong> have gone viral online. Shared lists document numerous toll points in <strong>Wetlet<\/strong>, where <strong>local and cargo vehicles are charged fees<\/strong>, adding pressure to ordinary citizens.<\/p>\n<p>Upper Myanmar areas with no access to gold or mining revenue appear to rely on <strong>road-based taxation<\/strong> for income, targeting passing trade and transport. This has led to complaints about:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\n<p><strong>Inconsistent rates<\/strong> across checkpoints<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p><strong>Lack of coordination or exemptions<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p>Burden on <strong>local travelers and consumers<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>This suggests a <strong>patchwork system of taxation<\/strong>, lacking unified policy or regulation.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h3>Resistance Struggles to Sustain Itself<\/h3>\n<p>In the early phase of the revolution, <strong>public donations<\/strong> sustained the resistance. But after several years, amid intensifying conflict, many ordinary citizens have <strong>lost income sources<\/strong> and can no longer donate as before.<\/p>\n<p>This has forced resistance units to <strong>generate their own funds<\/strong>, sometimes by questionable means. In the Chin drug case, the alleged trafficker\u2019s claim that <strong>debt from fighting led him to carry narcotics<\/strong> illustrates the dangerous <strong>intersection of survival and ethical compromise<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>This also raises questions:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\n<p>Is the <strong>lack of rule of law<\/strong> in some areas enabling crime?<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p>Has lawlessness become normalized in certain zones?<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<hr \/>\n<h3>Urgent Need for Accountability and Reform<\/h3>\n<p>These events threaten to <strong>erode public trust<\/strong> in the revolution and tarnish its moral legitimacy. To preserve its integrity, resistance authorities\u2014especially the <strong>NUG, PDFs, and PaKaHpa units<\/strong>\u2014must:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\n<p>Take swift action against <strong>criminal activity<\/strong>,<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p>Improve <strong>transparency in judicial procedures<\/strong>, and<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p>Establish <strong>consistent, regulated taxation systems<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>In the struggle against dictatorship, <strong>governance standards must not be abandoned<\/strong>. Without accountability, the revolutionary movement risks being undermined from within.<\/p>\n\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Myanmar Spring Chronicle \u2013 July 15 Viewpoint(Moemaka, July 16, 2025) Taxation, Rule of Law, and Criminal Incidents in Upper Myanmar In recent days, a series of events have drawn renewed attention to the issues of taxation, law enforcement, and public&hellip;<\/p>\n<p class=\"more-link-p\"><a class=\"more-link\" href=\"https:\/\/moemaka.net\/eng\/2025\/07\/taxation-rule-of-law-and-criminal-incidents-in-upper-myanmar\/\">Read more &rarr;<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":6900,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[9,58],"tags":[100],"class_list":["post-6899","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-current","category-features","tag-myanmar-spring-revolution"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/moemaka.net\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/image-9-1.png","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p3RDLm-1Nh","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/moemaka.net\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6899","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/moemaka.net\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/moemaka.net\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/moemaka.net\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/moemaka.net\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6899"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/moemaka.net\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6899\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6902,"href":"https:\/\/moemaka.net\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6899\/revisions\/6902"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/moemaka.net\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6900"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/moemaka.net\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6899"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/moemaka.net\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6899"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/moemaka.net\/eng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6899"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}