The central military court of the Karenni Nationalities Defense Force (KNDF) has sentenced three people found responsible for the tragic incident involving 18 resistance medic trainees who were swept away during a river crossing exercise, under the military penal code, the KNDF stated on 15 December.
Based on the investigation team’s report, witness testimonies, and court proceedings, the court sentenced a school principal and a physical training instructor under Sections 17 and 27 of the military penal code to one year and three months in prison with hard labor respectively and a training assistant to three months in prison with hard labor under Section 27.
The incident occurred during a medical training course organized by the KNDF, which was attended by 102 trainees from various units.
On the night of 11 September, during a forest training exercise in Karenni (Kayah) State, 18 medic trainees were swept away by strong currents.
After a three-month investigation, the KNDF issued these sentences.
They had previously committed to investigating the incident and publicly sharing their findings.
In a similar previous incident in February, the KNDF had also sentenced two of its members to 20 years and 1 month imprisonment under the military act for an inappropriate shooting incident involving a civilian detained for unruly behavior due to intoxication.
Kantarawaddy Times
