Armed conflict in Kachin State - hostilities
Websites/Multiple Documents
Description:
Articles on offensives, peace talks etc. from February 2011
Source/publisher:
Mizzima
Date of entry/update:
2012-03-10
Grouping:
Websites/Multiple Documents
Category:
Armed conflict in Kachin State - hostilities, Armed conflict in Kachin State - ceasefires and ceasefire talks
Language:
English
more
Individual Documents
Description:
"The Kachin of northern Burma are beleaguered, desperately in need of aid and vulnerable to attack. The Burma Army has conducted military offensives against civilian populations and forced more than 100,000 Kachin to flee since 2011, becoming internally displaced people (IDPs) in their historic lands. The displaced reside in camps and the jungle in various levels of deprivation, fearful of the army’s return.
They call out for help, and during FBR’s September 2018 humanitarian relief mission the villagers all said the same thing: “We don’t want to run. We need peace in our Kachin land.”
Lawa, the FBR team leader, coordinated with state government officials and camp leaders to locate vulnerable IDPs that the team could impact the most. Several camps were identified in the Putao District jungle in northern Kachin State, where over 900 IDPs struggle to access basic goods as they are located far from supplies, medical care and Kachin State government assistance, yet within Burma Army-controlled territory and the military’s reach..."
Source/publisher:
Free Burma Rangers
Date of publication:
2018-12-08
Date of entry/update:
2018-12-13
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Armed conflict in Kachin State - hostilities, Discrimination against the Kachin, Internal displacement/forced migration of Kachin
Language:
English
more
Title: INTERNATIONAL KACHIN COMMUNITY SUPPORTS FACT-FINDING MISSION?S CALL TO REFER BURMA TO THE ICC
Description:
"We, the International Kachin Community, welcome the August 27 report of the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Burma [Myanmar] and support its recommendations. The Fact-Finding Mission found evidence of ?genocidal intent” in relation to Rakhine State and ?crimes against humanity” and ?war crimes” in the systematic patterns of human rights violations occurring in Kachin and Shan states.
The report makes the case that top figures in the Burmese military?s [Tatmadaw?s] chain of command—including the Commander-in-Chief Senior-General Min Aung Hlaing—should be brought before the International Criminal Court (ICC) or an ad hoc special criminal tribunalshould be set up to determine their liability for genocide..."
Source/publisher:
Kachin International Organizations via "Progressive Voice"
Date of publication:
2018-09-03
Date of entry/update:
2018-09-05
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
more
Description:
"The Government of Myanmar has blocked humanitarian aid to tens of thousands of Kachin civilians forcibly displaced by civil war for more than seven years and in violation of the laws of war, Fortify Rights said today in a new report. The authorities should immediately provide local and international aid groups with free and unfettered humanitarian access to all internally displaced persons in need.
?Consecutive governments and the military have willfully obstructed local and international aid groups, denying Kachin civilians access to aid,” said Matthew Smith, Chief Executive Officer of Fortify Rights. ?This may amount to a war crime, giving even more reason for the U.N. Security Council to refer Myanmar to the International Criminal Court.”
While widely known that displaced civilians in Kachin State lack adequate access to aid, there have been few details to date about why and how aid fails to reach those in need. ?They Block Everything”: Avoidable Deprivations in Humanitarian Aid to Ethnic Civilians Displaced by War in Kachin State, Myanmar details how Myanmar authorities—particularly the Myanmar military?have weaponized the denial of humanitarian aid in Kachin State for years. The government has willfully imposed restrictions on access to food, healthcare, shelter, water, and sanitation to tens of thousands of Kachin displaced by ongoing war between the Myanmar Army and the Kachin Independence Army (KIA), one of the largest non-state ethnic armies in the country.
The new report finds that the Chinese government privately urged Myanmar authorities and non-state ethnic armies to prevent the U.N. and international humanitarian aid organizations from operating on the Myanmar side of the border near China?s Yunnan Province, where tens of thousands of Kachin civilians are displaced and in need of aid.
There are currently more than 106,000 ethnic civilians in more than 140 displacement sites in Kachin and Shan states due to ongoing armed-conflict and human rights violations.
Based on 195 interviews conducted primarily in Kachin State during a five-year period (2013-2018), the 68-page report documents the ways in which the Government of Myanmar imposes unnecessary travel restrictions on humanitarian aid organizations. Fortify Rights visited more than 20 displacement camps in Kachin State between 2013 and 2018 and interviewed survivors and eyewitnesses of violations, internally displaced persons, U.N. officials, representatives of international and national humanitarian aid organizations, Kachin Independence Organization representatives, and KIA soldiers.
From June 2017 to June 2018, the Government of Myanmar unconditionally approved only approximately five percent of 562 applications submitted by international humanitarian agencies seeking ?travel authorization” to assist displaced communities in government-controlled areas of Kachin State. Even fewer requests were approved for aid agencies seeking access to areas under the control of the KIA. Aid organizations have all but stopped submitting requests to the civilian government to access displaced populations in KIA-controlled territory, regarding attempts as futile.
?They block everything,” said ?Zau Raw,” a 60-year-old displaced Kachin man in KIA-controlled territory, referring to the Myanmar military. ?All trucks that are trying to cross into KIA-controlled areas are blocked.
The authorities also block or obstruct humanitarian access to government-controlled territory.
The government?s travel-authorization process for aid groups in Myanmar effectively acts as a restriction on aid and humanitarian access to displaced populations in violation of international humanitarian law. The onerous and vague measures imposed through the travel-authorization process involve civilian authorities and have not only led to undue delays in the delivery of aid to people in need but have completely obstructed humanitarian operations in some areas of Kachin State.
While the Myanmar military is largely responsible for hindering the delivery of humanitarian aid to Kachin civilians, the previous administration of President Thein Sein (2011 to 2016) and the current administration of State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi (2016 to present) demonstrated continuity in their respective policies to deprive war-affected Kachin civilians of adequate humanitarian aid.
Due to the lack of essential aid, displaced civilians in Kachin State reported increased food insecurity, avoidable health-related deaths, poor living conditions, and protection concerns, according to the Fortify Rights report.
The report finds that without ready access to basic and lifesaving aid and assistance, displaced civilians are forced to take risky journeys in search of food and essential items outside displacement camps, exposing them to the dangers of landmines and armed conflict in Myanmar as well as exploitation and arbitrary arrest and detention in China. Aid workers seeking to circumvent the Myanmar authorities? restrictions face similar risks to deliver aid to displaced populations on the Myanmar-China border.
Local aid organizations are under increasing threat in Kachin State. For example, on May 21, the Kachin State Minister of Security and Border Affairs accused the Kachin Baptist Convention—one of the largest providers of aid to displaced communities in KIA-controlled areas—with allegedly violating Article 17(1) of the Unlawful Associations Act for delivering aid in areas under the control of the KIA, which the Myanmar government has labeled as a ?terrorist” group. Conviction under Article 17(1) carries a three-year prison sentence and/or a fine.
?Depriving civilians of aid in an attempt to overcome an ethnic army is a perverse, unlawful, and ineffective strategy,” said Matthew Smith. ?All parties to this war have a duty to protect civilians and that includes by ensuring access to adequate aid.”
The Government of Myanmar?s willful deprivation of humanitarian aid to displaced civilians in Kachin State violates both international human rights law and international humanitarian law, also known as the laws of war. Under international humanitarian law, all parties to armed conflict are obligated to ?facilitate the free passage of humanitarian assistance” and ensure aid workers have ?rapid and unimpeded access to the internally displaced.” The Government of Myanmar?s commitments under international human rights law obligates it to protect and promote the rights to food, health, housing, water, and sanitation for displaced populations in the country.
On August 27, the U.N. Fact-Finding Mission released findings that Myanmar authorities ?frequently and arbitrarily denied” humanitarian aid to civilians in Kachin State. The independent mission said that Myanmar?s top generals should face prosecution for crimes against humanity and war crimes in Kachin, Rakhine, and Shan states. On May 1, the U.N. Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar Yanghee Lee noted that ?any willful impediment of relief supplies” to civilians in Kachin State ?may amount to war crimes under international law.”
By failing to provide aid and imposing restrictions on humanitarian aid organizations seeking to assist displaced populations in need, the Myanmar government has failed to meet its obligations under international law. Certain authorities responsible for willfully denying lifesaving aid to Kachin civilians may be liable for war crimes.
The U.N. Security Council should urgently refer Myanmar to the International Criminal Court to investigate and potentially prosecute those responsible for human rights violations in Kachin and northern Shan states, Fortify Rights said.
?Kachin civil society has long exposed how the military?s crimes are part of a longstanding campaign against ethnic communities,” said Matthew Smith. ?The i
Source/publisher:
Fortify Rights
Date of publication:
2018-08-30
Date of entry/update:
2018-08-30
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
Format :
pdf
Size:
1.63 MB
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Description:
KEY DEVELOPMENT:
Thousands of migrants from Burma and Bangladesh have become stranded in the Bay of Bengal and Andaman Sea since May, increasing media and international attention on displacement and human rights issues in Burma, particularly relating to Rohingya Muslims in Rakhine.
On May 21 and 22, U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken met with Government of Burma (GoB) officials and civil society leaders in Burma?s capital city of Naypyidaw and Yangon city to discuss the humanitarian situation in Rakhine. At the meeting, Deputy Secretary Blinken urged regional actors to reduce the number of displaced people fleeing the country by improving living conditions in IDP camps.
Relief agencies expect monsoon rains, which typically start in June and can continue through October, to increase the vulnerability of IDP camp residents in Kachin, Rakhine, and Shan. An estimated 40,000 IDPs in Rakhine live in camps within 500 meters of the coastline, making them particularly vulnerable to heavy rain and flooding, the UN reports.
To date in FY 2015, USAID has provided nearly $14 million in humanitarian assistance to support activities that strengthen IDP camp management, facilitate access to food and safe drinking water, and improve the health, nutrition, and livelihoods of vulnerable populations in Burma. Additionally, State/PRM has provided nearly $29 million to support Burmese IDPs in Burma and Burmese refugees and asylum seekers in neighboring countries.
Source/publisher:
USAID
Date of publication:
0201-06-19
Date of entry/update:
2015-07-11
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
English
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Description:
"Four different angles on Myanmar?s contemporary conflicts were on offer at the recent 2015 Myanmar/Burma Update, with speakers providing fresh insights into the roots of the Kachin conflict, the use of landmines in Burma, the role of gender in conflict, and the Pa-O-Self-Administrated Zone.
Questioning the view that conflict between the Kachin minority and the Burma military is primarily resource-driven, Dr Costas Laoutides and Dr Anthony Ware of Deakin University suggested that clashes over resources are a manifestation of deeper problems to do with identity.
Laoutides and Ware exposed powerful historical narratives as ideological roots of the conflict, gleaned from fieldwork interviews with key Kachin informants, including state officials and armed group members."
Source/publisher:
"New Mandala"
Date of publication:
2015-06-15
Date of entry/update:
2015-06-24
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Armed conflict in Kachin State - general articles, Armed conflict in Kachin State - hostilities
Language:
English
more
Description:
Below is a list of Burma Army activities in Kachin State and Northern Shan State in April, including
attacks, troop movements and resupply operations...For other reports on the conflict in Kachin and other states, go to http://www.freeburmarangers.org
Source/publisher:
Free Burma Rangers
Date of publication:
2013-04-13
Date of entry/update:
2013-04-18
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
English
Format :
pdf
Size:
127.59 KB
Local URL:
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Description:
"This Project Maje report provides a summary of current (as of January 18, 2013) information on the use of aircraft in the North War. For background on the origins of the conflict, and maps, see Project Maje?s reports The North War: A Kachin Conflict Compilation Report (August 2011) and The North War, Part II: The Kachin Conflict Continues (December 2011.) This update report is intended as convenient background information for journalists, military analysts, and others interested in the situation in Kachinland..."
Source/publisher:
Project Maje
Date of publication:
2013-01-18
Date of entry/update:
2013-03-21
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
English
more
Description:
"The past few weeks have seen some of the heaviest fighting in Myanmar?s decades-long civil war with government forces launching determined attacks against the Kachin Independence Army (KIA), an ethnic force in the far north of the country. And for the first time ever, the government has used helicopter gunships and attack aircraft against the country?s ethnic rebels. Most of the fighting is taking place around the KIA?s headquarters at the border town of Laiza near China, and the government seems determined to crush the Kachin resistance and gain control over the area now administered by the rebels.
The military campaign also sends signals to about a dozen other ethnic armies which have entered into ceasefire agreements with the government. In a statement issued on January 1, the United Nationalities Federal Council (UNFC), an umbrella organisation of 12 such ethnic groups based mainly on the Thai border in the south, said they felt threatened by the offensive as well - and called for unity among Myanmar?s multitude of traditionally factious ethnic militias. "If we are not able to act collectively now we will be destroyed individually," said a participant at the meeting that adopted the statement..."
Bertil Lintner
Source/publisher:
AL Jazeera
Date of publication:
2013-01-10
Date of entry/update:
2013-01-15
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Armed conflict in Kachin State - hostilities, Armed conflict in Kachin State - general articles
Language:
English
more
Description:
"LAIZA - Helicopter gunships hover in the sky above a battlefield. The constant sound of explosions and gunfire pierce the night for an estimated 100,000 refugees and internally displaced people. Military hospitals are full of wounded government soldiers, while bridges, communication lines and other crucial infrastructure lie in war-torn ruins.
The images and sounds on the ground in Myanmar?s northern Kachin State shatter the impression of peace, reconciliation and a steady march towards democracy that President Thein Sein?s government has bid to convey to the outside world. In reality, the situation in this remote corner of one of Asia?s historically most troubled nations is depressingly normal..."
Bertil Lintner
Source/publisher:
"Asia Times Online"
Date of publication:
2012-12-18
Date of entry/update:
2012-12-18
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Armed conflict in Kachin State - hostilities, Armed conflict and peace-building in Burma - theoretical, strategic and general, Armed conflict in Kachin State - general articles
Language:
English
more
Description:
Deep in the wilds of northern Myanmar?s Kachin state a brutal civil war has intensified over the past year between government forces and the Kachin Independence Army (KIA).
People & Power sent filmmakers Jason Motlagh and Steve Sapienza to Myanmar (formerly Burma) to investigate why the conflict rages on, despite the political reforms in the south that have impressed Western governments and investors now lining up to stake their claim in the resource-rich Asian nation.
Jason Motlagh, Steve Sapienza
Source/publisher:
People & Power (Al Jazeera)
Date of publication:
2012-10-04
Date of entry/update:
2012-10-08
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Armed conflict in Kachin State - economic factors associated with the conflict, Armed conflict in Kachin State - displacement and the humanitarian situation, Armed conflict in Kachin State - hostilities, Gold mining and trade
Language:
English, Burmese, Kachin, (English subtitles
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Description:
• In the past year, the Tatmadaw has deployed nearly 25% of its battalions to Kachin
State, escalating its war with the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) and bringing
further suffering to civilian populations in Kachin State and Northern Shan State.
• Tatmadaw soldiers have constantly targeted civilians in Kachin State and Northern
Shan States as part of their military operations against the KIA. Human rights abuses
have included extrajudicial killings, rape of women, arbitrary arrests, torture, forced
displacement, the use of human shields, forced labor, and the confiscation and
destruction of property. All of these systematic abuses would be considered war
crimes and/or crimes against humanity under international law.
• The ongoing conflict has displaced about 75,000 people, including at least 10,000
refugees who crossed the border into China. Despite the severity of the situation, the
regime has frustrated relief efforts, severely restricting humanitarian access to local
and international organizations.
• The KIA?s political leadership, the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO), has made
repeated attempts to negotiate a lasting peace in Kachin State. However, the regime
has rejected the KIO?s request to discuss long-term political solutions prior to a
ceasefire agreement.
BACKGROUND: 2008 constitution, 2010 elections, BGF, energy projects, and human
rights abuses
Source/publisher:
ALTSEAN-Burma
Date of publication:
2012-06-08
Date of entry/update:
2012-06-09
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
ALTSEAN-Burma archive, Armed conflict in Kachin State - general articles, Armed conflict in Kachin State - displacement and the humanitarian situation, Armed conflict in Kachin State - hostilities, Armed conflict in Kachin State - human rights violations
Language:
English
more
Description:
KEY DEVELOPMENTS:
* The Burma Army is currently attacking within six miles of Mai Ja Yang, a city in Kachin State that is a refuge for over 1,000 displaced people
* The Burma Army is firing an average of 100 mortar rounds per day into this area and is receiving reinforcements.
* Over 40,000 Kachin people now displaced by attacks and more are preparing to run
Source/publisher:
Free Burma Rangers (FBR)
Date of publication:
2012-01-22
Date of entry/update:
2012-06-03
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Internal displacement/forced migration of Kachin, Armed conflict in Kachin State - hostilities, Armed conflict in Kachin State - displacement and the humanitarian situation, Armed conflict in Kachin State - human rights violations
Language:
English
more
Description:
KEY DEVELOPMENTS:
"Burma Army fighting continues in Kachin State since the original outbreak of violence on 9 June 2011, when Burma Army soldiers broke the ceasefire previously held with the Kachin Independence Army (KIA). As Burma Army attacks continue, the KIA attempts to defend the population and numerous clashes have occurred between Burma Army and KIA soldiers. Burma Army soldiers have also repeatedly attacked civilian villages, often occupying and looting the village afterwards and forcing villagers to flee. Free Burma Ranger teams have collected multiple reports of extrajudicial killing, imprisonment and torture. There are over 50,000 Internally Displaced People in camps on the border, with thousands more hiding in the jungle."
Source/publisher:
Free Burma Rangers (FBR)
Date of publication:
2012-04-22
Date of entry/update:
2012-06-03
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Armed conflict in Kachin State - hostilities, Internal displacement/forced migration of Kachin
Language:
English
more
Description:
KEY DEVELOPMENTS:
"While ceasefire negotiations are taking place in some ethnic areas, attacks continue in Kachin State, Northern Burma. The Burma Army is pressing its attacks in Kachin State with over 100 battalions deployed. There are over 50,000 Kachin people displaced, over 60 Kachin civilians killed and 100 Kachin soldiers killed. Burma Army casualties are unknown, but estimated at 1,000 wounded and killed. Along with the KIO, WPN, Partners and other organizations, the Kachin FBR teams are helping those in need"
Source/publisher:
Free Burma Rangers (FBR)
Date of publication:
2012-06-01
Date of entry/update:
2012-06-03
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Armed conflict in Kachin State - displacement and the humanitarian situation, Internal displacement/forced migration of Kachin, Armed conflict in Kachin State - hostilities
Language:
English
more
Description:
Fighting between the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) and the Burma Army broke out on 9 June 2011, ending a 17-year cease-fire agreement between the two groups. As many as 20,000 people have been displaced by the fighting in Kachin State, according to local networks helping IDPs in Laiza. KIA sources have said that the number of standing Burma Army battalions before the conflict began was 93. Currently there are 113 battalions in Kachin State with more troops on the way, according to KIA sources. Divisions 33, 88, and 99 are currently operating in Kachin State.
Source/publisher:
Free Burma Rangers (FBR)
Date of publication:
2011-11-15
Date of entry/update:
2012-06-03
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Armed conflict in Kachin State - hostilities, Armed conflict in Burma - attacks on civilians
Language:
English
more
Description:
"Burmese troops burned down around 50 homes in a village in eastern Kachin state two days ago as they prepare for an offensive against the Kachin Independence Army (KIA), despite assertions from fleeing residents that no rebels inhabit the village.
In response, the KIA has told locals living in areas close to the town of Waingmaw to leave, prompting some 3,000 people to join those who fled the razed Aungja village as they make for the border with China.
A DVB reporter in Kachin state said that Burmese army battalions were closing in on the KIA?s Brigade 3 in Sanpai, which was being fiercely defended by the rebels..."
Source/publisher:
Democratic Voice of Burma (DVB)
Date of publication:
2011-11-11
Date of entry/update:
2012-06-03
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Armed conflict in Burma - attacks on civilians, Armed conflict in Kachin State - hostilities, Internal displacement/forced migration of Kachin
Language:
English
more
Description:
"Ethnic Kachin fighters are locked in battle against Burmese forces after a government offensive on the border town of Laiza – where the Kachin Independence Organisation (KIO) is based – sparked fears that authorities are planning a final push to oust the rebels.
Fighting has been escalating since mid-April, when several rounds of peace talks – forming part of the government?s much-heralded moves toward reform – reached no tangible outcome.
The leadership of the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) – Christians who have fought, on and off, for self-determination since 1961 – are now sandwiched between Burmese artillery and the Chinese border, which runs directly through the centre of Laiza..."
Padraig Byrne
Source/publisher:
"The Independent"
Date of publication:
2012-05-15
Date of entry/update:
2012-05-16
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
English
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Description:
?When Burmese President Thein Sein took office in March 2011, he said that over 60 years of armed conflict have put Burma?s
ethnic populations through ?the hell of untold miseries.? Just three months later, the Burmese armed forces resumed military
operations against the Kachin Independence Army (KIA), leading to serious abuses and a humanitarian crisis affecting tens of
thousands of ethnic Kachin civilians.
?Untold Miseries?: Wartime Abuses and Forced Displacement in Kachin State is based on over 100 interviews in Burma?s Kachin
State and China?s Yunnan province. It details how the Burmese army has killed and tortured civilians, raped women, planted
antipersonnel landmines, and used forced labor on the front lines, including children as young as 14-years-old. Soldiers have
attacked villages, razed homes, and pillaged properties. Burmese authorities have failed to authorize a serious relief effort in
KIA-controlled areas, where most of the 75,000 displaced men, women, and children have sought refuge. The KIA has also been
responsible for serious abuses, including using child soldiers and antipersonnel landmines.
Human Rights Watch calls on the Burmese government to support an independent international mechanism to investigate
violations of international human rights and humanitarian law by all parties to Burma?s ethnic armed conflicts. The government
should also provide United Nations and humanitarian agencies unhindered access to all internally displaced populations, and
make a long-term commitment with humanitarian agencies to authorize relief to populations in need.?
Source/publisher:
Human Rights Watch
Date of publication:
2012-03-19
Date of entry/update:
2012-03-20
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Internal displacement/forced migration of Kachin, Armed conflict in Kachin State - displacement and the humanitarian situation, Armed conflict in Kachin State - hostilities, Armed conflict in Kachin State - human rights violations, Armed conflict in Kachin State - economic factors associated with the conflict, Discrimination against the Kachin, Discrimination/violence against women: reports of violations in Burma, Armed conflict, adminstration, development and investment, Burmese refugees in China
Language:
English
Format :
pdf
Size:
1.72 MB
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Description:
"...Since 9 June 2011, Kachin State has seen open warfare between the Kachin Independence Army and the Tatmadaw (Burma Army). The Kachin Independence Organisation signed a ceasefire agreement with the regime in 1994 and since then had lived in relative peace up until 2008 and the creation of a new constitution. This constitution enshrines the power of the military and demands that all armed forces, including those under ceasefire agreements, relinquish control to the head of the Burma Army.
This, combined with economic exploitation by China in Kachin territory, especially the construction of the Myitsone Hydropower Dam, left the Kachin Independence Organisation with very little alternative but to return to armed resistance to prevent further abuses of its people and their territory?s natural resources. Despite this however, the political situation since the beginning of hostilities has changed significantly.
There is little doubt that one of the main reasons for the continuing offensive was the Burmese Government?s attempts to control all ethnic armed forces through its head of defence services. That said, however, the principle reason for both the KIO?s reaction to increased Burma Army deployment, the breakdown of the ceasefire, and the resumption of open warfare in Kachin areas, was also the previous Regime?s attempts to secure China?s lucrative investment projects at the expense of ethnic rights and land..."
Paul Keenan (author); Lian K. Sakhong (editor)
Source/publisher:
Burma Centre for Ethnic Studies (Briefing Paper No. 2)
Date of publication:
2012-02-00
Date of entry/update:
2012-02-07
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Centre for Development and Ethnic Studies (CDES), Armed conflict in Kachin State - hostilities
Language:
English
Format :
pdf
Size:
947.07 KB
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Description:
"Project Maje?s previous report, ?The North War: A Kachin Conflict Compilation Report? (August 15, 2011) contained background information on the Kachin conflict and a compilation of articles about it from June-July 2011. This new report includes first hand observations from a November 2011 visit to the conflict area, two interviews and a compilation of news articles from August through early December 2011. Both reports are intended for journalists, aid workers and other researchers who may be interested in the in the conflict situation in northern Burma.
"Project Maje hopes that the ongoing situation in northern Burma, including resource extraction and human rights issues in addition to the KIO conflict, will be covered in increasing depth and scope by journalists and other investigators in the future. For a detailed view of the human rights and IDP situations in the conflict area, Project Maje particularly recommends two recent NGO reports:..."
Source/publisher:
Project Maje
Date of publication:
2011-12-20
Date of entry/update:
2011-12-19
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
English
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Description:
PHOTO ESSAY..."...The mid-July clashes down from Hkaya Bum camp were the most intense of the nascent conflict. Since then there have been sporadic skirmishes, but apparently without a concerted strategy from the Myanmar military. The two sides have reportedly resumed contacts in recent days, without clear results. Meanwhile, those in Kachin State hold their breath, hoping for real peace and autonomy, not just another ceasefire..."
Tony Cliff
Source/publisher:
Asia Times Online
Date of publication:
2011-08-03
Date of entry/update:
2011-12-03
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
English
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Description:
Executive Summary:
"On 9 June 2011, civil war broke out in northern Burma between the Burma Army and the Kachin
Independence Army (KIA), ending a 17-year long ceasefire agreement. This report presents data
collected from a Partners investigation in southern Kachin State, Burma in October 2011. The
testimony of witnesses and on-site photographs reveal multiple acts perpetrated by Burma Army
battalions 74 and 276 against ethnic Kachin civilians that potentially amount to war crimes and other
extreme crimes. These acts include torture, extrajudicial killing, the specific targeting of civilians,
human shielding, unlawful arrest, unlawful detention, forced labor, forced relocation, displacement,
property theft and property destruction.
Witnesses reported that Burma Army soldiers entered Nam Lim Pa village on 8 October 2011.
Men were arrested and detained for forced labor. Women and children were detained in the Roman
Catholic church compound against their will and without provocation or expressed reason.
Violent injuries demonstrate signs of extreme physical abuse and strongly suggest the intentional
infliction of severe pain or suffering while in custody. Civilian casualties included torture and execution.
Eyewitness reports indicate no Kachin Independence Army presence during the time of the attacks.
Villagers were forcibly relocated and displaced by armed soldiers. Houses, offices and churches
were robbed and vandalized, all without justification. At least one home was robbed and burned to
the ground while its owner was arrested and detained.
The results from this fact-finding mission to Kachin State reveal evidence of crimes that potentially
amount to war crimes, perpetrated by the Burma Army against ethnic Kachin civilians and their
properties in October 2011. Based on the incidents documented in this report, the Burma Army
is in contravention of its legal obligations under international humanitarian and human rights law.
Considering the nature and scale of these acts in combination with documented abuses in the broader
civil war in Kachin State, the actions of the Burma government and the Burma Army may also amount
to other serious violations, including crimes against humanity. Those responsible must be brought to
justice and held accountable for their actions. Partners makes the following key recommendations:..."
Source/publisher:
Partners Relief & Development
Date of publication:
2011-11-27
Date of entry/update:
2011-11-28
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
English
Format :
pdf
Size:
1.98 MB
Local URL:
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Description:
Executive Summary: "At the same time as Thein Sein?s government is engaging in public relations maneuvers designed to make it appear that reform is taking place, its army is perpetrating atrocities against the Kachin people on a widespread and systematic basis. Seven months after the November 2010 elections and four months after the convening of parliament which, in the words of the ruling generals, ?completed the country?s transition to a multiparty democracy,? the regime launched a new war in Kachin State and Northern Shan State. After a seventeen year ceasefire, the renewed conflict has brought rampant human rights abuses by the Burma Army including, rape, torture, the use of human minesweepers and the forced displacement of entire villages.
Human rights abuses in Burma are prevalent because of the culture of impunity put in place at the highest levels of government. The Burmese regime continuously fails to investigate human rights abuses committed by its military and instead categorically denies the possibility that abuses are taking place. Attempts to seek justice for the crimes committed against the Kachin people have resulted in responses ranging from ?we do not take responsibility for any landmine injuries? to ?the higher authorities will not listen to your complaint?.
These human rights violations have led villagers to flee approaching troops, creating tens of thousands of internally displaced persons. The Burmese regime has refused to allow aid groups working inside the country to provide relief to the majority of these displaced people and international groups have failed to provide sufficient cross-border aid, creating a growing humanitarian crisis.
While the international community ?waits and sees? whether the Burmese regime will implement genuine democratic reforms, the Kachin people are suffering. The time for waiting and seeing is over: now is the time for the world to act. We call on the international community to:
Demand that the Burmese regime put an end to the atrocities against the Kachin people.•
Provide urgently needed humanitarian assistance to internally displaced persons and refugees fleeing • the conflict to avert a humanitarian catastrophe.
Support the establishment by the United Nations of a Commission of Inquiry to investigate crimes • against humanity and war crimes in Burma
Source/publisher:
Kachin Women?s Association Thailand (KWAT)
Date of publication:
2011-10-07
Date of entry/update:
2011-11-24
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Armed conflict in Burma -- offensives, Discrimination against the Kachin, Armed conflict in Kachin State - hostilities
Language:
English
Format :
pdf
Size:
862.07 KB
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Description:
"Armed conflict in Burma?s Karen, Shan and Kachin States continues to fuel large‐scale
displacement of civilians both internally and into neighbouring countries. Between 5,000 and
7,000 civilians remain in temporary, unofficial sites along the Thai‐Burma border in Thailand?s
Tak Province; approximately 20,000 remain internally‐displaced in Kachin State along the border
with China; and thousands have been forced to flee their homes in Shan State due to ongoing
armed conflict. Community‐based groups continue in their efforts to provide assistance to these
populations, who have no access to international protection mechanisms, and little or no
assistance from international humanitarian organisations. The shortage of funding to such
community‐based aid networks is a serious cause for concern, particularly with a high likelihood
of further fighting resulting in more displacement. There is an urgent need for protection
mechanisms and humanitarian assistance for civilians fleeing conflict and human rights abuses in
Burma..."
Source/publisher:
Back Pack Health Worker Team
Date of publication:
2011-08-31
Date of entry/update:
2011-09-05
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Backpack medics and other health projects in Eastern Burma, Health and internal displacement/forced migration, Armed conflict in Kachin State - hostilities
Language:
English
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Description:
"This is a resource compilation report which is intended for journalists, aid workers and other researchers who may be interested in the in the June/July 2011 conflict between the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO) and Burma?s military regime in Kachin State, Burma. News stories and documents related to the conflict are categorized and reproduced or linked here, with a list of background information sources. They are in chronological order within each category.
Project Maje hopes that the ongoing situation in northern Burma, including resource extraction and human rights issues in addition to the KIO conflict, will be covered in increasing depth and scope by journalists and other investigators in the future..."
Source/publisher:
Project Maje
Date of publication:
2011-08-00
Date of entry/update:
2011-08-17
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Discrimination against the Kachin, Armed conflict in Burma -- offensives, Armed conflict in Kachin State - hostilities
Language:
English
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Description:
"Myanmar moved closer to civil war in recent weeks after fighting broke out in Kachin State, a former ceasefire area in the remote northern region. Myanmar?s newly elected government now faces ethnic insurgencies on three separate fronts, threatening internal and border security.
There is also the potential for more insurgent groups to take up arms and push their claims against the government. The escalating conflict is not going all the military?s way and risks further stunting Myanmar?s development and international confidence in its supposed democratic transition..."
Brian McCartan
Source/publisher:
Asia Times Online
Date of publication:
2011-06-29
Date of entry/update:
2011-07-01
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Armed conflict in Kachin State - ceasefires and ceasefire talks, Armed conflict in Kachin State - hostilities, Armed conflict and peace-building in Burma - theoretical, strategic and general
Language:
English
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Description:
• Despite the 7 November election?s illusory promise of an inclusive democratic
system, the situation in ethnic nationality areas continues to deteriorate...
• In addition to the ongoing offensives against ethnic non-ceasefire groups, the
Tatmadaw increasingly targeted ceasefire groups who rejected the regime?s
Border Guard Force (BGF) scheme...
• In Shan and Kachin States, the Tatmadaw broke ceasefire agreements signed in
1989 and 1994 respectively...
• Ongoing fighting between the Tatmadaw and ethnic ceasefire and non-ceasefire
groups displaced about 13,000 civilians in Kachin State, at least 700 in Northern
Shan State, and forced over 1,800 to flee from Karen State into Thailand...
• Civilians bore the brunt of the Tatmadaw?s military operations, which resulted in
the death of 15 civilians in Northern Shan State and five in Karen State...
Tatmadaw troops gang-raped at least 18 women and girls in Southern Kachin
State...
• Desertion continues to hit Tatmadaw battalions, including BGF units, engaged in
military operations in ethnic areas...
• Reports on the alleged use of chemical weapons by Tatmadaw troops surfaced
during offensives against Shan State Army-North forces...
• In February, in response to the Tatmadaw?s ongoing attacks in ethnic areas, 12
ethnic armed opposition groups, ceasefire groups, and political organizations
agreed to form a new coalition - the Union Nationalities Federal Council (UNFC)...
• The situation for residents living in conflict zones of ethnic States remains grim
as the regime re-launched its ?four cuts? policy which targets civilians...
• The situation is likely to continue due to Burma?s constitution and the recently
enacted laws, including the national conscription law.
Source/publisher:
ALTSEAN-Burma
Date of publication:
2011-06-29
Date of entry/update:
2011-06-30
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
ALTSEAN-Burma archive, Border Guard Forces (all states), Armed conflict and peace-building in Burma - theoretical, strategic and general, Armed conflict in Kachin State - hostilities, Armed conflict in Kachin State - ceasefires and ceasefire talks
Language:
English
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Description:
The uneasy peace in Kachin State is under constant pressure, as the Burmese junta?s border guard force scheme meets continued resistance
WAI MOE
Source/publisher:
"The Irrawaddy" Vol. 18, No. 4
Date of publication:
2010-04-00
Date of entry/update:
2010-04-19
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Ceasefire and ex-ceasefire Groups, Border Guard Forces (all states), Armed conflict in Kachin State - hostilities, Armed conflict in Kachin State - ceasefires and ceasefire talks
Language:
English
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