Prison authorities in Myanmar’s Sagaing Region have refused to hand over the body of a political prisoner to his family, opting instead to cremate the remains under their own supervision.
Ko Win Myint Soe, who was serving a 10-year sentence at Kalay Prison, passed away on 13 March 2026. According to the Political Prisoners Network Myanmar (PPNM), the 39-year-old had been suffering from severe liver cirrhosis and ascites since January 2025.
The PPNM reported that despite his worsening condition, Ko Win Myint Soe was only permitted to receive treatment at Kalay General Hospital in February 2026. Upon being discharged back to the prison, he reportedly suffered immediate breathing difficulties. He was eventually returned to the hospital’s prison ward, where he died the following afternoon.
“While it is standard for prisons to return the bodies of deceased inmates to their families, the authorities in Kalay refused to do so,” Ma Yaung Ni Linn, a member of the PPNM leading committee, told the Myanmar Pressphoto Agency (MPA).
Authorities reportedly told the grieving family that they could not release the body as police needed to investigate the death. They further claimed that if the family wanted the remains, they would have to file a formal request through the courts.
However, before such a process could take place, prison officials proceeded to cremate Ko Win Myint Soe’s body at the Kan Pu Lel cemetery in Kalay on 15 March.
Advocates have attributed his death to a systemic failure in providing adequate healthcare. The PPNM noted that Ko Win Myint Soe received insufficient care at the prison clinic and was prematurely discharged from the general hospital despite his critical state.
Ko Win Myint Soe had been in detention since 15 August 2021, following the military coup. He had been convicted under Section 505-A and Section 302-A of the Penal Code.
His case is the latest in a string of custodial deaths that human rights groups say highlight the dire conditions and lack of medical accountability within Myanmar’s prison system.
