Soe Htut was appointed Minister for Home Affairs, on 1 February 2020. He was Home Affairs Minister during the coup, on 1 February, when Tatmadaw security forces (including the police) were directed to detain MPs and civil society figures. . The Minister for Home Affairs is responsible for the Myanmar Police Force, Fire Service and Prison Service. The police in Myanmar have committed serious human rights violations since 1 February 2021 including killing a civilian protesting against the military coup, preventing and disbanding assemblies, the arbitrary arrest and detention of opposition leaders and opponent of the coup, and preventing freedom of expression by opponents of the coup. The Ministry for Home Affairs has as two of its functions State Security and Law and Order. Directing and managing the police force is directly under Soe Htut’s command as Minister for Home Affairs. As such, we have strong reason to suspect that Lt. General Soe Htut has command responsibility for these violations.
