Monthly Report of Mon National Reli

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Subject: Monthly Report of Mon National Relief Committee (May 1996)

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"But the manners of Thai authorities in
driving out the suffering farmers and
confiscating land are inhumane and
maltreatment of a weak community." 



Monthly Report of Mon National Relief
Committee
(May, 1996)

Rice Plantation, Land Dispute and New
Arrivals

Since January, the MNRC and the Mon
Resettlement  Committee which was
formed with mostly New Mon State Party
(NMSP) members from concerned District
Administrative Body, have encouraged
the refugees to prepare for rice
plantation in this rainy season. To
facilitate for smooth plantation
process, that NMSP's committee has
arranged sharing land to the refugees
who planned for growing rice, and the
MNRC and the donor organization,
Burmese Border Consortium, provided
available tools such as machete, grass
scythe, hoe, axe, saw, file and whet
stone for them. The method of rice
plantation in the mountainous area is
normally slash and burnt. 

According to registers received by MNRC
from respective sites, there were 259
families from Halockhani, 143 families
from Bee Ree and only 91 families from
Tavoy Area registered to grow rice and
then, when MNRC distribute rice seeds
to those farmers, it was noted that 29
families from Halockhani and 5 families
from Bee Ree have failed to grow. They
explained that because of land soil
they changed for other crops instead of
rice, such as chilly and vegetables,
and some said they failed to grow
because they have been delayed for
preparation time. Even the MNRC and Mon
Resettlement Committee have attempted
in encouraging to all refugees to grow,
the rebuilding houses and other needed
structures in the camps, only few
percent of a total population enabled
to grow rice. 

Furthermore, when the numbers of
estimated farmer families reduced for
several reasons, the land dispute in
borderline area that close to
Halockhani camp occurred between Mon
refugee farmers and Thai authorities.
For several decades, the land along the
borderline of Three Pagoda Pass has
remained a complicated area for owning
land between Thai and Burmese peoples,
and since 1991, the Mon refugees have
become victims of forced relocation
because of land disputes in this area.
The current land dispute area is so
called "Baleh Hanook" where a few
hundred of Mon refugees had been moved
and relocated to Loh Loe in 1991. The
Thai authorities always believe that if
the Mons took longer time staying
there, the Burmese authorities will
claim the land is owned by Burma. That
is the Mon refugees has been moved from
one place to another. 

Following the land dispute, the Thai
authorities including military and
border police drove out about 50 Mon
refugee farmers from that area and also
confiscated their tools which were
mostly distributed by donor
organization. The fears of the Thai
authorities has consistently created
the forced relocations of Mon refugees
since 1991 and then, they also did not
allow the Mon refugees to resettlement
them again in Thai territory after
those refugees were attacked by Burmese
troops in July 1994. The Thai military
forced the refugees back from border
police check-point to former dangerous
campsite again. 

Undoubtedly, the Thai authorities did
not to allow Mon refugees even for
temporary shelters in their territory
along the borderline of Three Pagoda
Pass area. 

But the local Mon refugee farmers and
the NMSP local authorities claimed that
that land dispute area is in Burma
territory and in case they have been
certain they planned to grow rice. The
Thai authrities ignored for the claims
of the Mons and also accused that the
Mons would like to create arguments
with them as the Burmese authorities
have encouraged behind after the NMSP
reached for a cease fire agreement with
SLORC. Anyhow, the accusation of Thai
authorities is not true and the land
dispute must be settled between the two
governments. But the manners of Thai
authorities in driving out the
suffering farmers and confiscating land
are inhumane and maltreatment of a weak
community. 

At the same time when Mon farmers were
forced out from their rice plantation
without receiving any protection even
from the NMSP, the new arrivals from
several local Mon villages have
plantation was confiscated, they have
no rights to clear grass and reap crops
there. Because of the reduction of
farmer numbers and land confiscation,
the rice products in coming dry season
must be reduced. 

According to the report sent by
respective camp committee, there have
been 45 families of new arrivals have
taken refuge in Halockhani camp in May
while 40 families have arrived in Tavoy
Area. They already registered to be
camp residents. The most of them have
the same story why they abandoned their
original native home and fled to
refugee camps. The original native
places of new arrivals of Halockhani
are from various villages of Ye
township of Mon State, Yebyu township
of Tenasserim Division and Kya Inn Seik
Kyi of Karen State. All new arrivals
from Tavoy Area have come from their
origin home villages of Yebyu township. 

According to interviews conducted by
MNRC, most of them escaped of human
rights abuses committed by SLORC local
troops such as conscriptions of forced
labours and porters, and collection of
various kinds of tax in their origin
villages. Besides such kinds of abuses,
the torturing of villagers are still
occurring in local areas, as the
Burmese soldiers never abandoned their
previous bad behaviours toward the
people. The most terrible area is
Tenasserim Division where the military
government is implementing several
infrastructure projects such as Ye -
Tavoy railway and gas pipe - line. 
For the moment, the MNRC already
completed transportation process of all
supplies to its all camps to stock -
pile in rainy season. The rainy season
have already started in the third week
of May and it might be difficult to
transport rice to Halockhani and
impossible to Tavoy Area, because all
roads which was used for transportation
have collapsed. Therefore, the MNRC
could not transport more supplies for
those new arrivals and the stock -
piling assistance in the camp could not
cover for the refugees to the end of
year. 


Lack of International Protection on
Burma's Ethnic Refugee

In comparison with other refugees over
the world such as Cambodians, Kurds and
Afghans who escaped of human rights
abuses in their origin country, Burma's
ethnic refugees received very little
international protection. The Burmese
refugees who have the same stories like
other world refugees, because of the
civil war in their country and
accompanied persecution, racial
discrimination and other abuses, they
have sought for safe haven in Thailand
as a country of asylum. But
consistently, Thai never welcome for
the well organized international
protection on Burmese refugees like the
principles they had accepted in Thai -
Cambodia border. 

Since the Burma's ethnic refugees have
not been accorded the available
international protection, the possible
decisions to relieve for the better
conditions and security of refugees are
adopted by its own community and
closest political party which holds
arms and has fought for self -
determination. But the protection from
such community leaders is always
lacking, and while strong pressure from
government nearby reached to refugees,
the protection became weak. And that
organization or community leaders could
not prevent the terrible conditions
which hit on their people. The refugees
became as pawns in political game or
economic struggle of stronger
governments for their profits. The
terrible situation such as forced
relocation or repatriation, threats for
cutting supplies and blockage of
transporting roads were often
instructed by concerned authorities
until the refugees abandon tolerance. 

In case of CROSS BORDER RELOCATION of
Mon refugees, some organization would
like to accuse the Mon community
leaders, MNRC and NMSP, as making the
relocation of refugees without their
own desires and the relocation is as
"involuntary repatriation" or "forced
repatriation". The MNRC agreed that the
recent development of Mon refugees was
as "community organized relocation",
but the MNRC never satisfy for such
relocation which was not organized or
presented by international community
along with adopted UN principles. 
The all Burma's ethnic refugees have
been similarly suffered for many kinds
of pressure and lack of the
international protection under the same
conditions.  

The Kachin refugees who have been
taking refuge along Chinese border
neither received the international
protection nor available assistance for
survival and therefore, the Kachin
refugee community is the most isolated
one among the several refugees from
Burma. 

Even though the Mon, Karen, Karenni and
Shan refugees of Thai - Burma border
received available assistance for
survival, but sometime the supplies
were blocked to transport when the
pressure from Thai authorities was
intense, and the safety of them always
in danger. The international protection
is reluctant and possible safety was
never provided by country of asylum. 

Particularly, the Mon and Karen
refugees have been attacked by Burmese
troops and refugees were arrested,
detained, killed and kidnapped. Because
of such experience, the refugees always
feel very unsafe in anywhere even in
Thailand. 

Initially, those victims were suffered
under the military inhumane governance
and latter, suffering has been terribly
reached to them even in the border
camps where they hope safe haven. 

However, the practical international
protection is still reluctant and no
organization enabled to relieve such
sufferings. The international attention
ever reached to them only when they
were in hard situation such as they
were forced to move, attacked by
military and other violations. After
the situation was over and the refugees
have been terribly suffered, the
international attention also
disappeared again. 
The situation of Burma's ethnic
refugees is considerably lack of
international protection while Burma,
the country of origin, did not have
productive situation for repatriation.
Until the time is reached for
repatriation, the refugees still need
the international protection which ever
provided to refugees in other countries
of asylum according to international
protection law on refugees. 


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