Tortured, humiliated and killed: the women who disappear into Myanmar’s prisons

What Happened

Since the February 2021 military coup, more than 30,000 political prisoners—including over 6,400 women—have been held in Myanmar’s prisons, where the UN has identified ‘systematic torture, killing and other serious abuses’ alongside ‘systematic commission of sexual and gender-based crimes.’ The Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP) has documented 40 female political prisoners who died in detention, often from torture or medical neglect. Testimonies from former prisoners like Thazin, detained in Mandalay after a protest, describe beatings, invasive strip-searches, and being secretly filmed in showers by male guards; footage was allegedly used to blackmail families. Ma Khaing, a nurse arrested for treating injured protesters, reported psychological trauma, constant CCTV surveillance, and claims by fellow inmates of having plastic melted onto their genitals during interrogations. Fortify Rights, which interviewed 10 former prisoners since late 2025, states that sexual violence is a systematic tool of intimidation from arrest through detention. Despite a January 2026 amnesty freeing about 4,000 prisoners and the junta’s installation of Min Aung Hlaing as president after a widely condemned election, Amnesty International’s Joe Freeman notes that ‘nothing has really changed’—the same military figures remain in control and an estimated 22,064 political prisoners were still detained as of last month, according to AAPP.

Key Actors

Why It Matters

The targeted sexual abuse of female political prisoners reveals the junta’s strategy of using gendered violence to crush dissent and enforce compliance, with implications for international accountability. The pattern—from arrest to interrogation to imprisonment—underscores how the SAC exploits control over detention facilities to blackmail families and break opposition networks. Despite the January 2026 amnesty and the regime’s cosmetic shift to a civilian-led government under Min Aung Hlaing, continued mass detention and documented abuses signal that the junta’s core repressive apparatus remains intact. This will likely impede any genuine political reconciliation and risks prolonging the civil war, while human rights documentation may fuel future prosecutions at the International Criminal Court or under universal jurisdiction.

Watch For

Monitor AAPP and Fortify Rights updates on detention numbers and conditions following the 2026 amnesty; look for whether the newly installed civilian government repeals or enforces repressive laws. The UN Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar is collecting evidence—any referrals to the ICC or ICJ could signal new international legal pressure. Also watch for cross-border refugee testimony from women fleeing to Thailand, as groups like the Justice Network for Political Prisoners document ongoing abuses, and for any shifts in ASEAN or Chinese mediation that might include prisoner releases as a confidence-building measure.