The past president and former general secretary of the Kachin Baptist Convention in Myanmar was detained by the Burmese military junta and is being held in an undisclosed location in Myitkyina, Kachin State.
Radio Free Asia reported Hkalam Samson, now chair of the Kachin National Consultative Assembly, was taken into custody at Mandalay International Airport Dec. 4 before he could board a flight to Bangkok, Thailand, for medical treatment.
After holding Samson overnight, authorities reportedly released him the next day and put him on a plane back to Kachin State, where he subsequently was arrested again at Myitkyina Airport.
Samson’s family does not know exactly where he is being detained at this time, said Tu Laumg, executive minister with the Kachin American Baptist Association.
“At a time when faith leaders can play an indispensable role in building lasting and just peace, many continue to be targeted and imprisoned. I strongly advocate for the immediate release of Dr. Samson and for his free and full movement,” said Elijah Brown, general secretary and CEO of the Baptist World Alliance.
“We continue to echo a call for the military to honor the theological convictions of all people of all faiths, including that of the Baptists, and to work together with communities of faith in the establishment of peace for which they long.”
‘We fear for his safety and life’
The Burma Advocacy Group of the American Baptist Churches, USA, called for Samson’s immediate release.
“We fear for his safety and life while being unlawfully detained. This is now the most recent string of attacks directed against the people of Kachin State by the military junta,” reads the statement released by Roy Medley, convener of the advocacy group and general secretary emeritus of American Baptist Churches, USA.
The Burma Advocacy Group statement identified Samson as “a key religious leader in Burma” who worked “tirelessly with people of different faiths to promote religious liberty and tolerance.” The group also noted his role in providing humanitarian assistance to people affected by violence in Kachin State.
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“We join our voices with those demanding his release and consider Dr. Samson to be in grave danger of torture. We call upon the international community to work for his release,” the advocacy group’s statement reads. “We stand united in prayer with the Kachin people in their suffering.”
In an email to the Baptist Standard, Medley referred to Samson as “one of the most fearless Baptist voices in Burma.”
“The attacks against the Kachin are mounting over the past several months,” Medley wrote. “And the Chin, Karen and others continue to endure ongoing attacks by the junta.”
‘A reign of terror’
Randel Everett, president of the 21Wilberforce human rights organization and former executive director of the Baptist General Convention of Texas, said the military junta in Myanmar “has established a reign of terror” throughout the nation.
Everett noted the historic contributions of Baptists in Burma, beginning with pioneering American Baptist missionary Adoniram Judson 200 years ago.
Samson’s detention “is another glaring example of the disregard for Burmese history, religious freedom and basic human rights from current leadership in Myanmar,” Everett said. “Global Baptists should join others in demanding Dr. Samson’s release.”
Christian Solidarity Worldwide, a human rights organization based in the United Kingdom, likewise called for Samson’s immediate release.
“CSW is deeply troubled by the arrest of such a prominent and internationally respected religious leader in Myanmar and are very concerned for his well-being,” said Benedict Rogers, the organization’s senior analyst for East Asia.
“We call on the Myanmar authorities to release him immediately, and we urge the international community to demand his unconditional release and ensure his well-being.”
In July 2019, Samson traveled to Washington, D.C., for the U.S. State Department’s Ministerial to Advance Religious Freedom and for an Oval Office visit with then-President Donald Trump. An officer in Myanmar’s Northern Military Command brought a lawsuit accusing Samson of defamation for comments he made during the White House visit, but he later dropped the suit.
In April 2021, two months after the military coup in Myanmar, Samson and Hpauyawng Tu Mai of the Kachin Baptist Convention issued a call for global prayer and advocacy on behalf of their country.
‘Campaign of terror and violence’
More recently, Samson officiated the funerals when more than 60 people were killed in October by a military airstrike while attending a pro-democracy concert.
In early November, the Burmese military shelled the Kachin Bible School in northern Myanmar.
The BWA general council at its July meeting in Birmingham, Ala., approved a resolution condemning the coup in Myanmar and singling out the Burmese military—known as the Tatmadaw—for waging “a campaign of terror and violence, particularly against minority religions.”
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