Sittwe University authorities have admonished a leader of the university’s student union for speaking out against human rights violations in 2020, which landed him in prison for more than a year.

The notice, signed by Rector Dr. Khin Maung Zaw following a meeting of university authorities on March 22, threatened Ko Kyaw Naing Htay with expulsion if he violates university rules and regulations again.

Ko Kyaw Naing Htay, a final-year law student, rejected the notion that he had violated any university rules or regulations, adding that it was unacceptable that he was chastened over his political activism.

“They warned me not because I violated university rules, but because of my political activities outside the university. They can’t do that,” he said.

U Kyaw Naing Oo, head of the Sittwe University Student Affairs Department, said Ko Kyaw Naing Htay was warned in line with the provisions of the university’s admissions guidebook, which says a student shall be expelled or seriously warned if he is in violation of the law.

“We reported it to a higher level and they told us to only issue warnings in consideration of the Covid-19 period. So, we issued a strong warning to him,” U Kyaw Naing Oo said.

Four students including Ko Kyaw Naing Htay were detained on October 19, 2020, after they joined other student union members and non-student demonstrators in Sittwe for an anti-war protest against the then government and Myanmar’s military. He was sentenced to two years in prison but was released on March 11.