Young political prisoner dies of heart attack in Myanmar prison

A 21-year-old political prisoner who was sentenced to a long term in Myanmar’s Insein Prison died of a heart attack at the weekend, sources close to the family told Radio Free Asia on Monday.

The prison authorities informed family members about the death of Min Hein Khant on Sunday evening and they went to the Yangon prison to see the body.

A source close to the family said Min Hein Khant was in good health before his arrest, but he was severely tortured during interrogation and did get treated for heart disease in prison.

“I found out that he had a heart attack in May,” said the source.

“He fell down and went to prison hospital. There, the doctors checked and found out that he had a heart attack but he was told to see a specialist only after he was released from prison. There was nothing in the prison. 

“He fainted once again in August and I heard that he was fine yesterday, but he died after fainting. It happened because he could not have proper medical treatment.”

Min Hein Khant was a member of Pazundaung and Botahtaung townships’ Youth Strike Committee and was arrested on Nov. 1, 2021.

He was sentenced to 27 years in prison under the Explosive Substances Act.

RFA phoned the junta’s prison department about his death but no one answered.

Translated by RFA Burmese. Edited by Mike Firn and Taejun Kang.