Multimedia journalist Kay Zon Nway has been returned to her original cell in Insein after prison officials allegedly admitted they had ‘mistaken her for someone else’

By Myanmar Now

After more than one month in a separate 8-by-12-foot cell in Yangon’s Insein prison, Kay Zon Nway, a Myanmar Now multimedia journalist arrested while covering the country’s anti-coup protests, has been returned to her original cell shared with other inmates, a family member said.

Kay Zon Nway was separated from the other prisoners and placed in a smaller cell with one other female inmate on April 28. She was forced to remain there until the end of May, according to the relative. Her lawyer, Nilar Khine, told the family that prison officials had attributed her punishment to a case of mistaken identity.

“They said they mistook her for someone else and then they said that she had not caused any problems and didn’t do anything, and that it was a mistake,” the family member told Myanmar Now.

Kay Zon Nway’s family remains hopeful that she will be released.

Her separate confinement began weeks after the mid-April start of Ramadan. Kay Zon Nway, a Muslim, was fasting, and was accused of staging a hunger strike.

Insein officials could not be reached for comment.

Kay Zon Nway was arrested while covering the protests in the Myaynigone area of Yangon’s Sanchaung Township on February 27. She was charged under Section 505a of the Penal Code for incitement, which carries a prison sentence of up to three years.

Lawyer Nilar Khine said that Kay Zon Nway’s health had slightly improved; it was reported that she suffered from issues with her nervous system.

Her case was brought before the closed courtroom within the prison on Thursday.

“A police witness and a police major testified. They just testified on police protocol and what was already written in the complaint. The complaint says she was protesting with the crowd, and not reporting,” Nilar Khine said on Thursday.

A plaintiff and two police witnesses were questioned already, she added.

The Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP) has announced that 51 journalists are currently in detention under the regime.The military council has revoked the publishing licences of eight news agencies, including Myanmar Now.

Original Post: Myanmar Now