Description:
Executive Summary:
"The Burmese army launched a large scale offensive in the districts of Toungoo,
Nyaung Lay Bin and Muthraw in northern Karen State in November 2005 targeting the
civilian Karen population. This offensive has been ongoing for over a year and it
continues today. Villages are being shelled with mortars, looted and burnt to the
ground. Crops and food supplies are being destroyed. Burmese soldiers are ordered
to shoot on sight, regardless of whether it is a combatant or a defenseless civilian. As
a result more than 27,000 people have been forced from their homes, either hiding in
the jungle or trying to find refuge in Thailand. The Burmese army continues to increase
its military presence in these areas and carry out attacks against villagers.
In addition to the increased number of military attacks and militarisation of
these districts, which has been ongoing for a number of years, in particular since the
Karen National Union (KNU) and State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) agreed
to a verbal ceasefire in January 2004, there has also been a rise in human rights
abuses perpetrated by the army. These include: force labour and portering demands,
land confiscation, rape and other gender based violence, looting and destruction of
property, arbitrary taxation, restriction of movement, torture and extra-judicial killings.
Despite the fact that this offensive has been underway for over a year now there
is not a clear singular reason behind the attacks. However, a number of contributing
factors have emerged: the move to the new capital Pyinmana and the establishment
of a five kilometre security zone around it, the acquisition of land for national development
projects, and the need to secure transportation routes to and from these sites.
Additionally, the three districts targeted are considered the heartland? of Karen resistance
to Burmese oppression. Despite the armed struggle though the KNU and Karen
National Liberation Army (KNLA) against the regime, it is the people, the civilian
villagers, that pose the biggest threat to local and regional SPDC power these days.
The non-violent resistance strategies, such as defying orders from the military and
fleeing into the jungle rather than being controlled, employed by the villagers make
them active participants in the struggle for peace and justice in Burma, not passive
victims.
Nonetheless, the reasons behind the offensive do not detract from the fact that
the Burmese army is attacking the civilian Karen population without any form of
provocation. In addition to purposely attacking villagers the Burmese army is also
undermining the grassroots people?s ability to survive. The villagers in the offensive
area, who are mainly farmers, were beginning to harvest their crops when the offensive
began last November. As villagers had to flee to safety in the jungle, their crops
either rotted in the fields or were eaten by animals, leading to food shortages.
This acute food shortage will be further exacerbated next year. As the offensive
continued over the past twelve months more villagers had to flee the Burmese troops.
This meant that they could not prepare for next years crop. Consequently in November
and December 2006 there will be no crop to harvest and food scarcity will continue
next year, regardless of the political situation.
Most of the 27,000 people who have been displaced have very little, if any, food.
Their diets are supplemented with food that they can find from the jungle. Due to the
severe landmine contamination of the areas, it is extremely dangerous to search for
food.
In addition to food scarcity internally displaced persons (IDPs) face serious
Executive Summary
Executive Summary
9 Burma Issues
health issues, especially during the wet season. Malaria is prevalent, as are skin
diseases, dysentery and malnutrition. It is the children and the elderly who suffer the
most under the given conditions. Heavily pregnant women also face additional hardships
as they have to flee the same as other villagers, walking for days and giving
birth while on the run. Villagers, as a result of military attacks, are more likely to be
injured by a landmine or through soldier violence, for example being shot or stabbed.
Access to medical services is virtually non-existent, and what is available is gravely
insufficient. As a result people often die from preventable and curable diseases and
treatable injuries.
The regime prevents all non-governmental organisations and United Nations
agencies inside Burma giving humanitarian aid to the villagers affected by the offensive.
The junta prohibits organisations traveling to these areas and documenting human
rights violations and the humanitarian crisis. It is virtually impossible to bypass
these regulations, as the region is very mountainous and all transportation routes,
apart from walking, are controlled by the SPDC.
Some community-based organizations that work cross-border from Thailand
manage to bring some assistance to the IDPs, but it is only a tiny amount of what is
needed. The SPDC deems the activities of these groups illegal and if the Burmese
army catches workers they will simply disappear – never to be heard of or seen again.
While the majority of IDPs choose to stay in hiding near their villages as a form
of non-violent resistance, others decide to travel to Thailand to seek refuge in the
camps along the Thai-Burma border. So far this year Thai authorities have allowed
approximately 3,000 people to cross the border and enter a refugee camp near Mae
Sariang, Thailand. However, the Thai authorities have not consistently kept the border
open and have frequently refused IDPs entrance to the kingdom, reasoning that
they are not fleeing fighting, but are merely capitalising on the resettlement opportunities
that are being opened up to the refugees in the camp.
As a result of the border?s sporadic closure, approximately 1,400 IDPs (a figure
that is continually rising) are living in a makeshift camp along the Salween River, on
the Burmese side of the border. This temporary IDP settlement receives aid from
organisations working along the Thai-Burma border, at the discretion of the Thai authorities,
but there are numerous protection issues associated with the camp. There
is a Burmese army base that is only an hour?s walk away, making the IDPs vulnerable
to a potential attack.
This is the worst offensive that the junta has conducted since it joined ASEAN
in 1997. However, the offensive is not an isolated event, but rather the continuation of
a campaign by the military junta to control the population of Burma. Despite the fact
that this offensive has been underway for over a year, the international community is
yet to find a solution that will persuade the SPDC to stop their attacks on civilians.
Throughout the numerous military campaigns thousands of lives have been lost – all
valuable and irreplaceable."
Source/publisher:
Burma Issues
Date of Publication:
2006-12-00
Date of entry:
2007-01-26
Grouping:
- Individual Documents
Category:
Language:
English
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Format:
pdf
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645.99 KB