Journalist and son arrested for allegedly taking photos of bombing sites

Reporters Without Borders and the Burma Media Association urge the authorities to explain the reasons for the arrests of journalist and artist Maung Zeya and his son in Rangoon. It is believed they are being held for taking photos of the locations of last week’s bomb explosions at a celebration of the water festival near Rangoon. “If they were arrested for taking photos of the sites of the recent deadly bombings, they must be freed at once,” the two organisations said. “The authorities have every right to try to track down those responsible for these despicable acts of violence, but they must avoid going after the wrong targets by arresting people who were just gathering information.” It seems that Maung Zeya and his son were arrested on 17 April because his son took photos of the sites of three bomb explosions in a Rangoon park beside Lake Kandawgyi two days earlier that killed eight people and wounded 170 others. The authorities have blamed the bombings on the exiled opposition groups. Sources told Reporters Without Borders and the Burma Media Association that the police targeted Maung Zeya because he is a former political prisoner. Aged 55 and also known by his pen name Thargyi Maung Zeya, he is the son of the writer Linnyone Maung Maung.