Myanmar authorities detained a Japanese journalist in Yangon on Sunday evening, the Japanese government said Monday, adding that it was trying to seek his release.
BBC Burmese quoted a witness as saying that freelance journalist Yuki Kitazumi was picked up from his home and taken into custody by troops on Sunday evening. He was asked to raise both hands and was taken in a car, it said.
The spokesman for the Japanese government described the journalist as a man in his forties, without mentioning him by name.
“We are seeking, from Myanmar, his prompt release, and we are trying to ensure the safety of Japanese nationals,” cabinet secretary Katsunobu Kato told a news conference, adding that the government was seeking details about the conditions surrounding the journalist’s detention.
A junta spokesman did not respond to calls for comment.
Kitazumi runs a media production company, Yangon Media Professionals, and was a journalist with the Nikkei business, according to his Facebook page and interviews with online media.
He was arrested earlier in February while covering protests against the February 1 coup, but was released shortly afterwards.
According to the activist group of the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, 737 people have been killed by security forces since the coup and 3,229 are still in custody.
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