Chin Refugee Father of Three Killed in Malaysia
05 September 2011: Chin refugee, Pu Za Thio, a father of three children, was brutally beaten up to death by a gang of Indians around 11pm at night in Puchong, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia last Saturday.
The Indian men on motorbikes started an unprovoked attack on them while Za Thio, 35, and his brother Thla Bawi, 28, were seeing their Chin friend off to a 14 bus stop near their house, according to the brother.
“Za Thio and his friend were attacked while they were on their way to a toilet near the bus stop. And both of them ran but in different directions. His friend managed to escape,” said Za Thio’s brother.
Later in the night around 1am, the body of Za Thio was later found dumped in a nearby ditch after a thorough search by Chin friends and communities in the neighbourhood.
Za Thio’s body has been kept at Serdang Hospital and there are some injuries on his face, according to the Malaysian Police.
His friend, who cannot be reached at the moment, was quoted as saying that he was beaten up and left by the gang after falling onto the ground unconscious.
“His wife is deeply grief-stricken and keeps crying. No one can talk to her properly,” said Salai Biak Hmun Lian, editor of Seihnam newsletter in Malaysia.
Mr. Za Thio, survived by wife Par Cia and three children aged between 7 years and 6 months, was described by friends and communities as a kind and humble man.
“We are much saddened by the sudden loss of our friend, who is a good and kind-hearted man,” said Siang Nawl, who is from the same village, Hriang Khan in Thantlang Township, Chin State.
No detailed information about the killers has been known up to date although the police are conducting an investigation.
One source from Malaysia suggested that the Chin victim must have been killed by mistake as there was a riot in the Malaysian capital prior to the incident.
A postmortem examination is known to have been carried out in the hospital today but the result has not been revealed yet.
Pu Za Thio and his family are UNHCR-registered Chin refugees from Burma in Malaysia awaiting to get transferred to a safe country under the UNHCR Resettlement programme.
The funeral service is scheduled to take place in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia tomorrow.
Van Biak Thang
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