Local media reported that about 1,000 spectators witnessed the trial, where the accused wore blue tracksuits and carried placards in Chinese identifying them as "criminals." The six men were found guilty of impersonating soldiers to commit murder, kidnappings, and robbery.
The MNDAA, an ethnic Kokang militia of Chinese-speaking Han Chinese descent, previously executed three of its fighters in April for murder and selling weapons and ammunition stolen from the group. The militia operates primarily in the Kokang Self-Administered Zone along the Chinese border.
The executions come as Myanmar's ethnic armed groups have been administering their own justice systems during the ongoing civil war, which began after the military coup in February 2021. Recently, under Chinese pressure, the MNDAA announced its willingness to enter Chinese-mediated talks with the military junta to halt fighting, following a similar move by another ethnic army, the Ta'ang National Liberation Army (TNLA).
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