Authorities under the military junta have failed to effectively address a series of crimes in Mawlamyine, Mon State, including murder and robbery, according to residents.
On July 2, a 45-year-old motorcycle taxi driver was found dead with stab wounds to the neck at View Point on the Mawlamyine hill range.
Nearly a week after the killing, police and investigators under the military junta have not yet identified or arrested a suspect, sources said.
“According to what the police told us, they haven’t caught the culprit yet. They say the investigation is still ongoing,” a Mawlamyine resident said.
Public concern over security in Mawlamyine is growing as the perpetrator remains at large.
Questions are also mounting over the effectiveness of investigations by authorities responsible for uncovering the truth and upholding the rule of law.
According to residents, police under the military junta tend to pursue cases, large or small, based on whether they receive payment, meaning most crimes are never investigated beyond the initial filing of a police report.
“They’ll only work on your case if you have money. If you can’t pay, no police officer will spend time on it. My motorcycle went missing and I reported it, but nothing ever came of it,” said a man from the Zayekyo ward market area of Mawlamyine.
Most robbery cases targeting motorcycle taxi drivers in Mawlamyine have also gone unsolved, which residents say has emboldened criminals.
As a result, motorcycle taxi drivers say they now have to be especially cautious about distances and passengers before accepting rides.
Since the military coup, crime has risen in Mon areas, along with cases of young people trafficked into forced labor on fishing boats or forcibly recruited as military conscripts, pushing the security situation to its worst point yet.
