Myanmar photographers allowed to leave Bangladesh

Myanmar photographers allowed to leave Bangladesh
by -
AFP
Photojournalists Min Zayar Oo (L) and Hkun Lat (C) pose for a photograph next to Myanmar's State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi during the ninth Yangon Photo Festival at the Institut Francais de Birmanie School in Yangon, Myanmar, 11 March 2017. Photo: Nyein Chan Naing/EPA
Photojournalists Min Zayar Oo (L) and Hkun Lat (C) pose for a photograph next to Myanmar's State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi during the ninth Yangon Photo Festival at the Institut Francais de Birmanie School in Yangon, Myanmar, 11 March 2017. Photo: Nyein Chan Naing/EPA

Two Myanmar photographers who were detained while reporting on the Rohingya refugee crisis in Bangladesh were allowed to fly home on Tuesday, their lawyer said.

Minzayar Oo and Hkun Lat were arrested in September in the border district of Cox's Bazar, where more than 582,000 Rohingya Muslims have sought refuge from army-led violence scorching through Myanmar's Rakhine state since August 25.

The pair were accused of espionage and charged with "false impersonation" for using tourist visas instead of journalist visas to enter Bangladesh, according to their lawyers.

The case was lambasted by rights groups and further strained ties between Myanmar and Bangladesh, which has struggled to absorb the staggering tide of weary Rohingya cramming into makeshift refugee camps on its side of the border.

The Myanmar journalists, who were on assignment for Hamburg-based magazine Geo, were released on bail on September 23 but unable to leave the country until Tuesday, according to their lawyer Jyotirmoy Barua.

"The boys finally managed to leave the country today," he told AFP.

"They may have to come back to attend a court hearing in November," he added.

More news from Mizzima
March 6, 2024
The Karenni State Interim Executive Council (IEC) has handed down prison sentences and fines to...
March 4, 2024
Dr. Nyo Twan Aung, deputy commander-in-chief of the Arakan Army (AA), stated in a press...
February 29, 2024
On February 28th, Myawaddy TV, a channel controlled by the Military Council, declared martial...
February 20, 2024
The Three Brotherhood Alliance declared on February 19th that genuine peace and stability in...