Widow urges activists to 'go forward' after four are executed

The wife of Kyaw Min Yu, a prominent democracy activist whose execution by the Myanmar junta caused global outrage, has urged the country's people not to stop their fight for democracy, but "to go forward with a victory spirit".

- Aung Naing Soe

Ma Nilar Thein, 50, told the Guardian she was heartbroken by the killing of her husband but that the public would "hold our hands together in unity". "We can't stop just because we're sad. And, we can't be mourning. We have to continue our journey by keeping in mind that we will have to eradicate this military regime," she said, referring to the junta that took power in a coup in February 2021.

Kyaw Min Yu, a writer and translator who spent more than 20 years in prison, was one of four prisoners killed in executions last week that horrified people across Myanmar and the world. They had been sentenced to death after closed trials in which they were accused of conspiring to commit terror acts.

Many in the international community had sought to stop the executions, said Ma Nilar Thein, who spoke from hiding, but she added that some wrongly believed the junta would not enact its threat. "The SAC [State Administration Council] didn't care about anything, and they are doing whatever they want," she said, referring to the junta's official title. "Now, the international community should learn that the SAC is not afraid of doing anything."

There are fears that the junta could execute dozens more people who have been sentenced to death since the military coup.