Discrimination against the Karenni (Kayah)

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Description: "On Monday, February 5th 2024, State Administration Council (SAC) forces conducted 10 air strikes and fired six mortar shells into two villages in Deemaw Soe Township, Karenni State. The attacks killed seven civilians and injured at least 20 people, most of them children. In one hour, two schools, a church, and six civilian buildings were destroyed or severely damaged. The Karen Human Rights Group (KHRG) strongly condemns these attacks by the military junta deliberately targeted at civilians and calls on the international community to take immediate and decisive action to prevent further suffering. As reported by the Karenni Human Rights Group (KnHRG), the strikes on February 5th, at 10:15 am, targeted two schools. In Daw Si Ei School, four boys between 12 and 14 years old were killed, and at least 15 children, including some under the age of three, were injured. The second attack, which targeted Loi Nan Pha School, caused the death of one man and two teachers, and five other civilians sustained injuries. A church and six buildings belonging to local villagers and displaced persons were also damaged. Air strikes and shelling into villages are part of wider, systematic attacks by the SAC in Eastern Burma and other ethnic areas, where fighting with local armed resistance forces has escalated since the 2021 coup. These SAC attacks not only specifically target civilian settlements, critical infrastructure, and places of refuge for thousands of internally displaced persons, but also show intentional targeting of buildings dedicated to education. Children benefit from a special protection under international humanitarian law because of their unique vulnerability and needs. Intentionally attacking buildings dedicated to education puts children at exceptional risk and render them even more vulnerable. International humanitarian law requires a distinction to be made between civilian and military objectives, and therefore the SAC attacks on civilian objects, particularly educational and religious buildings, are a serious violation of the law of armed conflict. Moreover, intentionally attacking protected buildings may amount to war crimes or crimes against humanity under the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC). International criminal law further imposes criminal liability on superiors who order the commission of crimes or fail to prevent or punish the criminal activities of their subordinates. SAC leaders are responsible for ordering air strikes through the chain of command and shall be held accountable for these heinous crimes. The international community must take immediate and concrete action to end these abuses, including by: Supporting coordinated and targeted sanctions on the supply of weapons and aviation fuel to the military junta, on oil and gas revenues, and sanctions against junta officials. Supporting ongoing investigations and trials and seeking additional ways to hold the Burma Army leaders accountable for their many crimes. Increasing financial support for local organisations working on the ground to assist the civilian population in need..."
Source/publisher: Karen Human Rights Group
2024-02-07
Date of entry/update: 2024-02-07
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Description: "“…due to its non-inclusive manner and lack of any genuine gesture to solve [political] crisis…this is not the right time for any negotiation with the SAC.”.....“တစ်နိုင်ငံလုံး လွှမ်းခြုံသည့် တွေ့ဆုံဆွေးနွေးမှု မဖြစ်သကဲ့သို့ လက်ရှိ ဖြစ်နေသည့် နိုင်ငံ၏ နိုင်ငံရေးအကြပ်အတည်း များကို ဖြေရှင်းနိုင်ရန် ကြိုးပမ်းဖော်ထုတ်မှု မဟုတ်သဖြင့် ဤ ဖိတ်ခေါ်မှုသည် တွေ့ဆုံဆွေးနွေးရန်အတွက် အချိန်ကောင်းမဟုတ်ပေ။”..."
Source/publisher: Karenni National Progressive Party
2022-05-05
Date of entry/update: 2022-05-05
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Description: "Intro: In three short months, the situation on the ground in Karenni state continues to deteriorate at an alarming rate. The Burmese military is intensifying its attack under the pretense of eliminating any and all opposition, such as the local ethnic armed organizations (EAO) and the Karenni Defense Force, or associates with ties to the exiled civilian government, the National Unity Government. However, unarmed civilians have become one of the top targets of the Burmese military. About 200,000 civilians are displaced, which is more than 1/3 of the state’s estimated 300,000 population. About 200 Karenni have been killed by the Burmese military since the start of the coup. As junta forces continue to attack villages and cities, their campaign has expanded to include internally displaced person (IDP) camps. Assaults on IDP camps force constant movement of IDPs in the state, as well as a significant number of displaced to flee to neighboring states and regions. Due to the junta’s blocking of humanitarian aid, IDPs in Karenni state are forced to face starvation and, ultimately, death as access to food, clean water, medicines, and other necessary supplies continue to dwindle. This is not a problem that will solve itself with the current noninterference policy most countries are adopting. The Burmese junta is systematically killing the Karenni people in order to maintain control of an already precarious situation. For this quarterly briefer report, the Karenni Human Rights Group (KnHRG) painstakingly collected the raw data found in Tables 1.1 through 3.4 to present accurate information that is typically distorted by the Burmese junta in order to hide their criminal activity. Human Rights Violations In order to take and maintain control of the country, the Burmese military is intensifying their attacks on civilians, including the Karenni people. It has become clear that the Burmese junta aims to remove opposition in Karenni state by any means necessary with complete and utter disregard to the safety and security of the Karenni. Over the last three months, 52 Karenni were killed. As indicated in the data, many Karenni were killed due to mortar shells and airstrikes, but the majority were arbitrarily arrested and detained before they were ultimately killed by the Burmese military. Arrested, Detained, & Missing: There are a total of 42 Karenni that are documented as arrested, detained, and/or missing after detention. In January alone, there were 21 Karenni detained and/or missing. According to reports, there were eight Karenni taken from Loikaw and three taken from Six Mile village. Junta forces also targeted traveling Karenni. As civilians flee from their homes, there is a noticeable migration of Karenni IDPs to southern Shan state. At least eight Karenni civilians were reported to be taken as they traveled from Loikaw and/or missing. At least 10 were taken from Warree Su Palain Village. Again, the junta forces targeted traveling Karenni. Four were taken while traveling to Hoe Pon village, southern Shan state and two were reportedly taken after returning home to Zee Phye Gone after staying in an IDP camp (Table 2.1). During the month of March, the number of detained and/or missing decreased tremendously with only five Karenni reportedly taken by junta forces (Table 3.1). Arrested, Tortured, & Killed: While the previous section discussed the number of Karenni that were arrested, detained, and/or missing, this section will look at confirmed number of Karenni that were arrested, tortured, and killed by junta forces. Almost half of the 52 Karenni killed during the 3- month period were first arbitrarily arrested and detained by Burmese troops. Upon discovery of the bodies, evidence of torture was clearly visible. The junta denied use of any kind of torture during the victims’ detention. At least 1/3 of the 30 total number of deaths in January were arrested, tortured, and killed (Table 1.2). In February, four Karenni were reported to be arrested and detained by junta forces in Six Mile village, Deemaw Soe township and Warree Su Palain village in Phe Khone township (Table 2.2). These four Karenni were subsequently killed. In March, nine Karenni were arrested and detained in Six Mile village and Sin Taung village in Deemaw Soe Township and Nan Pae village in Bawlake township. Just like the four cases in February, the nine Karenni were killed by junta forces during their detainment (Table 3.2). Mortar Shells and Airstrikes: Since the beginning of the year, junta forces have been firing hundreds of shells every day. Shelling has reached at least 5km outside of conflict zones forcing thousands to flee from their homes in neighboring areas. Over a three-month period, about 1/4 of those who died were killed by mortar shells. At least eight were killed by mortar shells launched during armed conflict in Loikaw during January (Table 1.2). Another 10 were reportedly injured. In March, three children, one woman, and one elderly woman were killed by mortar shells in Lah Htun village in Loikaw Township and Daw Taw Kue village in Deemaw Soe Township. The usage of mortar shells also prevents local civilians from accessing emergency healthcare. Four elderly women died of heart attacks when shelling was launched near their homes (Table 3.2). As junta forces continue their assault on the Karenni people, the military is also including airstrikes in its arsenal. The junta suffered huge losses with its ground troops due to the armed conflict with local anti-junta opposition. To offset these losses, the junta is supplementing their attacks with airstrikes to effectively eliminate the PDF and local EAOs; however, the Karenni people are also suffering from the onslaught of airstrikes. From January to March, more than 1/8 of Karenni killed were killed by airstrikes. In January, five Karenni were killed, including two young females (Table 1.2). In February, Karenni civilians were targeted by airstrikes three times. From these airstrikes, two Karenni were killed in Sele Done village in Deemaw Soe Township (Table 2.2). The number of airstrikes increased in March to five reported airstrikes targeting civilian areas. Fortunately, there were no recorded deaths linked to these attacks. Outliers (Shot/Killed, Killed/Burned, Unidentifiable): While the majority of Karenni were killed while detained or from mortar shells and airstrikes launched by junta forces, there were Karenni killed that fell outside the common documentation. In January, three bodies of Karenni were discovered; however, the cause of death is unidentifiable (Table 1.2). Even though the cause of death cannot be confirmed, it is believed that the Burmese military is responsible for the deaths of the three Karenni. In February, there were two confirmed kills by the junta forces in Daw Mukla village in Loikaw township. Using a favorite tactic in efforts to remove evidence, the Burmese troops then burned the bodies of the two Karenni (Table 2.2). The last unique death was the killing of a young female in Mine Long Ward in Loikaw City. She was shot and killed by Burmese troops in March (Table 3.2). Destruction of Property Since the beginning of the year, the Burmese military has been systematically destroying entire villages and homes in order to drive the Karenni people out. In three months, KnHRG documented a total of 348 structures that were burned or sustained damage, of which more than half were burned to the ground. In January, a total of 85 structures were burned or sustained damage in Karenni state. More than half of the documented structures in January were burned to the ground. Two religious buildings were included in the total number for January. Both religious buildings were shelled by the Burmese military, but only one was documented as burned to the ground (Table 1.4). In February, there were a total of 80 structures that were reported as burned or sustained damage. A significant amount, an estimated 75%, of structures were intentionally burned to the ground by junta forces in Warree Su Palain village, Wee Thel Ku village, and Six Mile village in Deemaw Soe Township. Two religious buildings were reportedly damaged by shells launched by the Burmese troops (Table 2.4). There was a significant increase of structures that were burned or damaged by junta forces in March. A total of 183 structures were documented by KnHRG as burned or sustained damage. While almost half of the total structures were intentionally burned down by Burmese troops, they targeted several locations: Ce Lie Done village, Pue Par village, Tay Hsoe Leh village, Twe Due Bilar village, Hsaung Dular Ywe Tit village, Sin Taung village, and Five Mile village in Deemaw Soe Township as well as Nan Pae village in Bawlake Township. Four religious buildings were damaged by mortar shells and airstrikes, as well as one health clinic damaged by mortar shells launched by the Burmese military (Table 3.4)..."
Source/publisher: Karenni Human Rights Group
2022-04-00
Date of entry/update: 2022-04-22
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Description: "The Ministry o f Human Rights (MOHR) of the National Unity Government o f the Republic o f the Union o f Myanmar expresses its outrage at the military junta’s Christmas Eve Massacre o f civilians in Hpruso Township o f Karenni State. The MOHR extends its heartfelt condolences to the families o f the victims and to the Karenni community at large. On 24 December 2021, members o f Light Infantry Division 66 forced an unconfirmed number o f civilians from their vehicles in Hpruso Township o f Karenni State. After binding their hands, the junta troops shot, stabbed or set the civilians on fire, burning many alive. Four Border Guard Force Battalion members who attempted to negotiate the release o f the civilians were also bound, tortured and shot dead by the junta troops. As many as 42 civilians were murdered in the massacre. Preliminary medical analysis has thus far identified 26 males, including a man with a disability and two humanitarian workers,1 and five females including a girl. While identification efforts are continuing, some bodies were so badly destroyed by fire that they are impossible to identify or to distinguish from the incinerated remains o f other victims. Five children are among the missing. The MOHR welcomes the United Nations (UN) Security Council’s swift condemnation o f the incident and its call for accountability.2 It similarly welcomes the statements issued by UNICEF and by the Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, each expressing outrage.3 The military junta in its own public response offered no denial o f the massacre and admitted to having set fire to the vehicles.4 While it claims that the civilians were "terrorists", this makes no account for the presence or slaughter o f women, children, and humanitarian workers. Furthermore, the fact that victims were immobilised and bound before being murdered proves that these killings were war crimes. The Christmas Eve Massacre is just the latest in a chain o f acts o f terror. With its attempted coup d ’etat o f 1 February 2021 broadly regarded to have failed, the military junta is escalating the scale and nature o f its atrocity crimes to provoke terror. Burning people alive is one such tactic. In a similar incident in Salingyi Township o f Sagaing Region on 7 December, 11 male villagers including five children were rounded up by junta troops, tied up, then set on fire. An earlier act of terror and collective punishment was the junta’s torture and mass killing of at least 40 men and boys in Kan i Township of Sagaing Region during July 2021.5 Another still is its use o f military vehicles to target and mow down peaceful protestors, as it did in Kyimyindaing Township o f Yangon on 5 December, killing at least five civilians, injuring several more, and drawing UN condemnation.6 These terrorist acts are part o f a widespread and systematic strategy in place across Myanmar and directed by the junta at the highest levels. Min Aung Hlaing and other senior junta members must be held personally responsible and brought to justice for their crimes. The Security Council, acting on its call for accountability, must hold an immediate plenary meeting on Myanmar and adopt a resolution that blocks the flow o f arms and cash to the junta and that refers the junta’s atrocity crimes to the International Criminal Court. The Security Council must also take immediate steps to list the military junta for what it is - a terrorist organisation.7..."
Source/publisher: Ministry of Human Rights
2022-01-05
Date of entry/update: 2022-01-05
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Description: "Recent attacks on civilians in many parts of Myanmar, and most recently in Kayah and Karen States, have resulted in thousands of people being displaced. The appalling act of violence perpetrated by the military regime in Kayah State on 24 December, killing and burning more than 35 people, including women and children, as well as humanitarian workers, underscores the urgent need to hold those responsible accountable. The targeting of civilians and humanitarian actors is unacceptable and a blatant violation of human rights and international law, including humanitarian law. Full, safe and unhindered humanitarian access to all people in need, and the full protection, safety and security of humanitarian and medical personnel must be ensured. In view of the escalating violence in Myanmar, increased international preventive action is required, including an arms embargo. The EU also stands ready to impose further sanctions against the military regime. Since the military coup on 1 February, the EU has imposed targeted sanctions on the Myanmar military, its leaders and entities. In addition, EU financial assistance to the government was halted and assistance that could be seen as legitimising the military regime was frozen. The EU supports the efforts of the United Nations Special Envoy on Myanmar, as well as the ASEAN Five Point Consensus, working towards a peaceful resolution of the current crisis in Myanmar. The EU continues to provide humanitarian assistance, in accordance with the principles of humanity, neutrality, impartiality and independence. This year, it allocated €24.5 million in humanitarian aid to address the immediate needs of displaced and conflict-affected communities and related to COVID-19, as well as €65 million in support of basic needs of the civilian population, including education and livelihoods..."
Source/publisher: Delegation of the European Union to Djibouti and IGAD
2021-12-30
Date of entry/update: 2022-01-01
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Description: "The United States condemns the attacks committed on December 24 by the Burmese military in Kayah State, which killed at least 35, including women and children and two staff members of the international aid organization Save the Children. We are alarmed by the military regime’s brutality across much of Burma, including most recently in Kayah and Karen States. The targeting of innocent people and humanitarian actors is unacceptable, and the military’s widespread atrocities against the people of Burma underscore the urgency of holding its members accountable. The international community must do more to advance this goal and prevent the recurrence of atrocities in Burma, including by ending the sale of arms and dual-use technology to the military. Since the February 1 coup, the United States has imposed targeted sanctions against the Burmese military, its leaders, and their financial interests, disrupting their access to the international financial system. We will continue to work with our partners and allies to promote accountability, including by supporting the UN Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar, while also continuing to press for a restoration of Burma’s path to peace and democracy. We call on the Burmese regime to ensure the safety of humanitarian workers and to grant free and unhindered access to those providing humanitarian assistance for the people of Burma..."
Source/publisher: United States Department of State
2021-12-28
Date of entry/update: 2021-12-29
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Description: "Killing: The number of documented killings by SAC security forces has increased from 76 to 82 during the past two weeks, although the actual total death toll is higher as this does not count the number of decomposed bodies of unidentified civilians that have been found. The six recently killed were civilians who were accused of being informers.....Ongoing military aggression: On July 12, KNPP plus KNDF troops had four armed clashes with SAC troops from LIB 530 and Infantry Division 66, who were carrying out clearance operations and entered into a KNPP controlled area in northern Loikaw township. The four clashes were: 1) at 8 am northeast of Nan Kwe village; 2) at 12 pm near Thiree Dah Wan Kai village; 3) at 4:15 pm near Daw Tahay village; 4) at 6 pm near Daw Tahay and Payapyu villages. The SAC troops fired artillery in the vicinity of Loile Lay town and Tee Lon village tract but retreated from the area when 14 of their soldiers were killed. During their operation. the SAC troops killed local villagers’ livestock, including chickens and pigs, for food. As a result of the fighting, 20 villages with a population of around 8,000 have been displaced as IDPs. On the same day, July 12, KNPLF, KNLP and Kayaw Ni troops found several unidentifed decomposed dead bodies in a ditch next to house No. 3-27 in San Pya 6-mile village of Demawso township where the SAC troops from Infantry Division 66 had been based for two months. The SAC troops had moved out during a troop rotation on July 10. The KNPLF troops helped to burn the dead bodies. On July 16, at 2:45 pm, joint KNPP and KNDF troops had a 30-minute clash with about 50 SAC troops from Infantry Division 66 near Nan Peh village of Bawlake township, where the KNPP and KNDF have been operating. The number of SAC casualties is not known, but the SAC then brought in about 200 more troop reinforcements to continue their clearance operation. On July 18, SAC troops from Bawlake town launched artillery attacks into Nan Peh village tract in Bawlake township, and ground troops entered Nan Peh village and continued to patrol into Taw Kho village tract in Pruso township. As a result, around 2,629 villagers from 7 villages in Taw Kho village tract and Nan Peh village tract have fled their homes to hide in the surrounding jungle. The SAC troops also entered Nan Peh village and broke windows and front doors of villagers’ houses Due to the ongoing offensives carried out by SAC, the KNDF has announced that they will cooperate with local ethnic armed organizations and fight against the SAC, meaning that the temporary cease-fire agreement has failed and there will be more fighting.....Covid situation in Karenni State: As in other areas of Burma, the third wave of the Covid 19 pandemic has also spread to Karenni State. From June 15 to July 17, there were 157 Covid cases, 3 of whom died. Most of the cases were Loikaw town residents. The fast spread of the disease has caused increased worry among the IDPs, who are already facing health problems and insufficient health care. Local communities have set up their own Covid 19 screening points at village entrances, but there is a shortage of experienced health personnel and equipment. The SAC’s mismanagement of the country and collapse of the health care system are fuelling fears that the pandemic will become much worse.....Situation of IDPs and humanitarian aid: Due to the rainy season, it is difficult for the IDPs to shelter from the rain. Some IDPs have plastic tarpaulins, but due to wear and tear, they need to use two tarpaulins instead of one to protect themselves from the rain. However, during heavy rain, even double tarpaulins are insufficient to keep dry. Some IDPs have nothing, no tarpaulins or even thin plastic sheets. Moreover, due to lack of clean water for drinking and cooking, and lack of nutritious food, the IDP children and pregnant women have been suffering from diarrhea and skin diseases, such as scabies. The lack of hygienic toilets is also causing diarrhea. As it is the rainy season, flu and malaria are becoming more prevalent too. There is an acute shortage of medicines to treat these diseases. In some sites, they only have paracetamol. Local civil society groups and church based groups under the Karenni IDPs Support Network (KISN)and Karenni Humanitarian Team (KHT) have been helping the IDPs to receive rice, cooking oil, salt, beans, noodles and other dried food. Mosquito nets, tarpaulins and school materials have also been distributed. However, the aid received has been inadequate to meet all the IDP needs. It is unclear whether international agencies such as Save the Children, UNHCR, Mercy Corps, NRC, ACF, MAG and IRC, who used to have a presence in Karenni State, are still operating there. They have not been seen giving assistance to the local Karenni people..."
Source/publisher: Karenni Civil Society Network
2021-07-22
Date of entry/update: 2021-07-23
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Sub-title: Church leaders say the military’s shelling of places of worship, despite repeated appeals to respect their sanctity, is no accident
Description: "Less than a month into its campaign to crush Karenni resistance forces in eastern Myanmar, the military has hit at least eight churches in what some are calling deliberate attacks. Church leaders have appealed to the military to end its shelling of places of worship, which they say has greatly increased the hardships of civilians seeking refuge from the fighting. “We told them there are no armed groups hiding in our churches, just people taking shelter,” said a Catholic priest who took part in talks with military officials during the early stages of the conflict. “They know that we’re housing the elderly, children and women. Sometimes I don’t even know what to say about them. This is just a planned, deliberate action,” he added. Local resistance forces, armed with hunting rifles and other simple weapons, began clashing with regime troops late last month. Since then, eight churches have been damaged or destroyed by artillery shells in Kayah State’s Loikaw and Demoso townships and Moebye and Pekhon townships in southern Shan State. According to local residents, junta troops have also set up camp in church compounds, further violating their role as sanctuaries for people in need. Ignoring appeals Father Celso Ba Shwe, the apostolic administrator of Christ the King Cathedral in Loikaw, said that church officials met with senior military officers several times to discuss their concerns. “We let them know from the beginning. We’ve had a couple of meetings, both with the chief of the interrogation centre in Loikaw and at the Eastern Command,” he said. However, as the situation continued to deteriorate, the church was forced to make a more public appeal. On May 25, a day after an artillery shell killed four people and injured eight at the Sacred Heart Church in Kayan Tharyar, a village near Loikaw, Cardinal Charles Bo, the Archbishop of Yangon, released a statement calling on the junta to refrain from targeting churches. “Let us remember the blood that is spilled is not some enemy’s blood; those who died and those who were wounded are the citizens of this country. They were not armed; they were inside the church to protect their families,” said the cardinal. While the military has denied targeting churches, few who are familiar with the situation on the ground believe that such incidents are accidental. “There’s no way they shot these churches by mistake. For one thing, they’re on big compounds that are very easy to identify by their buildings. And we’ve set up white flags at every church,” said one priest who spoke to Myanmar Now. On the night of May 26, just one day after Cardinal Bo issued his appeal, junta troops opened fire on the St. Joseph Catholic Church in Demoso, destroying walls and windows. Civilians sheltering at the church were forced to relocate after the incident, according to a local priest who asked to remain anonymous. “There were about a thousand people staying there at the time. Most were very old, or women with young children. Some were in bad health, and there were pregnant women as well. They came to the church because they couldn’t run far,” he said. According to a local resistance fighter, the church is now being used by the military as a temporary base. Three days later, St. Peter’s Intermedia Seminary in Loikaw’s Narnattaw ward came under attack. One 50-year-old man was killed instantly when junta troops raided the church, which was housing around 1,300 displaced people. According to church officials, the soldiers also stole around 2 million kyat ($1,200) in cash that had been collected for charity purposes. Ongoing attacks Despite the military’s denials, attacks on churches continue unabated as the regime moves to bring the conflict zone firmly under its control. On the evening of June 3, after clashing with resistance forces in San Pya 6 Mile, a village in Demoso Township, the military took over the village’s Our Lady of Lourdes Church. The next day, junta forces broke into a church in Moebye Township’s Pwe Kone ward 3 and abducted three men and a 17-year-old boy who were there on security duty. All four were used as human shields when fighting broke out later that day, according to local sources. The boy was also reportedly forced to carry a bomb. “No one will go anywhere near the church now, because they’re afraid they’ll be kidnapped or shot by the soldiers deployed there,” said one Moebye resident. On June 6, two churches—Our Lady of Lourdes in Pekhon and Our Lady, Queen of Peace in Demoso’s Dawngankhar ward—were badly damaged by artillery shells. No longer able to claim that these attacks are accidental, the regime has begun trying to justify them by saying that local “terrorists” are using the churches to launch attacks on regime forces. Resistance fighters dismissed these allegations as ridiculous. “We would never use churches for cover,” said one. “We value religious buildings. Why would we use them to kill people?” Meanwhile, even priests are no longer able to stay in churches, according to Father Celso Ba Shwe. “Churches in these conflict areas aren’t safe for the displaced anymore. But we still have to make sure that they’re OK, so the priests of Demoso can’t stay there, either,” he said..."
Source/publisher: "Myanmar Now" (Myanmar)
2021-06-15
Date of entry/update: 2021-06-15
Grouping: Individual Documents
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Description: "The Loikaw Township Court on Monday officially charged six Karenni youths with slander under Article 8(d) of the Law Protecting the Privacy and Security of Citizens for calling the Kayah State chief minister a traitor over his support of a statue of Myanmar independence hero General Aung San. In February, the Kayah State government erected the statue in a park in the state’s capital, Loikaw, amid much protest from Karenni locals. The state government used the police force to crack down on protesters that had gathered at the park and later outside of the local National League for Democracy (NLD) headquarters. Karenni activists said at the time that they have their own history involving their own ethnic leaders, and that the statue of Gen. Aung San is a symbol of the dominant role the interests and identity of the Burmese majority plays in the country, to the disadvantage of ethnic minorities. To them, it’s also a symbol of what they see as yet-unfulfilled promises made by the assassinated general and the Panglong Agreement of 1947..."
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Source/publisher: "The Irrawaddy"
2019-08-26
Date of entry/update: 2019-08-27
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Description: ''In this commentary, the Union of Karenni State Youth and LAIN Technical Support Group provide a chronology of events, outlining how arrests and the government’s handling of events have compounded rather than resolved political frustrations and inter-community understandings.General Aung San is commonly known as the “independence hero of Burma”. His legacy is, however, looked upon differently by the Bamar (Burman) majority and the country’s ethnic nationality peoples. Whilst the Bamar majority consider him a hero for bringing their people independence, ethnic nationality peoples respect him for his promise to bring their people equal rights in a true union. This is a promise that remains unfulfilled to this day, a failure that goes to the heart of the current crisis. After decades of conflict and suffering, Karenni youth are attempting to use democratic rights to achieve the pledges of autonomy, freedom and equality that Aung San promised at the country’s independence in 1948. Sadly, rather than delivering peace and federal reform, the National League for Democracy government is prioritising the building of statues to Aung San in Kayah State and other ethnic nationality lands. The local peoples consider this a misuse of public funds and an attempt to erase their own history, continuing a practice of downplaying ethnic minority cultures by a policy known as Bamanisation. Based on these concerns, a course of non-violent public actions, directed towards the state government, began in June 2018. The chronology is described below...''
Source/publisher: Transnational Institute (TNI)
2019-06-28
Date of entry/update: 2019-07-20
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Description: "The Myanmar authorities must ensure an independent, impartial and effective investigation into the killing of four ethnic Karenni men by Myanmar soldiers in December 2017, Amnesty International said today. The current military investigation into the deaths cannot be considered to be credible and is unlikely to deliver truth and justice. Failure to hold those responsible to account before independent civilian courts would further entrench a climate of impunity in the county..."
Source/publisher: Amnesty International, ASA 16/7918/2018
2018-02-20
Date of entry/update: 2018-02-20
Grouping: Individual Documents
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Description: "Kataerina, a Kayan (also known as Padaung) woman from Pyin Soung village in southern Shan State, is now 35 years old and has three daughters. Her life seems smooth for now, but it was tough and full of struggles for food, education and freedom. Kataerina?s story echoes so many voices from the people of Burma, who have had to endure child labour and an ongoing struggle for food and basic living standards. From armed conflict to being locked up and nearly killed by Burmese soldiers, Kataerina?s struggles finally led her to the Thailand-Burma border where she now lives in the Ban Mai Nai Soi refugee camp in Mae Hong Son Province. From Katarina?s story, you can learn more about the difficulties faced by the Kayan people in eastern Burma, where Kataerina hopes she will not be forced to return to."
Source/publisher: Burma Link
2015-08-29
Date of entry/update: 2016-03-16
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: English
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Description: Executive Summary: "The people of Karenni State are living ghosts. Their daily survival is an achievement; however, it also signifies their further descent into poverty and a spiralling system of repression. Whilst this report documents the deteriorating situation in Karenni State over the past six years, this is nothing new for the ethnically diverse population of this geographically small area. They have been living in a protracted conflict zone for over 50 years with no respite from decades of low-intensity conflict and frequent human rights abuses. All the while both State and Non-State actors have marginalised the grassroots communities? voices, contributing to the militarisation of their communities and societies. Burmese soldiers oppress Karenni villagers on a daily basis. Villagers are isolated from members of their own communities, and other ethnic groups; they report daily to local Burmese troops about Karenni National Progressive Party (KNPP) troop movements and other activities in their areas; community members spy on one another, reporting back to the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC); and they are punished by the SPDC in retaliation for the actions of the KNPP. All of these strategies create an environment of fear and mistrust between ethnic groups, communities, and even family members. These tactics successfully oppress the villagers, as they are too fearful and busy to think beyond daily survival. Further exacerbating the situation is the fact that villagers face oppression not only from the Burmese army, but also ceasefire groups and the KNPP. Soldiers from both the KNPP and ceasefire groups physically maltreat villagers and undermine their livelihoods. While these occurrences are certainly less frequent and less severe than similar acts by the SPDC, they still oppress the civilian population and undermine their ability and capacity to survive. Additionally the presence of many different actors has resulted in the militarisation of Karenni State. Thousands of landmines have been indiscriminately planted throughout the state, without adequate mapping or markings to minimise civilian causalities. The SPDC, ceasefire groups and the KNPP all recruit and have child soldiers in their armies. The Burmese army has the largest number of child soldiers anywhere in the world, and approximately 20 per cent of the KNPP?s troops are under 18 (the minimum age for recruitment into the armed forces under Burma?s national law). The increased militarisation of Karenni State has resulted in increases in human rights abuses. However villagers are staging their own non-violent resistance movement. They have developed and implemented a number of early warning systems and household and village-wide risk management strategies so as to minimise the impact of the SPDC and other armed groups violence and abuses. These resistance strategies have become the biggest threat to local and regional authorities; consequently the villagers are increasingly becoming the targets of hostilities from the Burmese army. Most people in Karenni State rely on agriculture as their primary source of income and are living a subsistence existence. Despite the villagers? best efforts to secure their livelihoods, their ability and capacity to do so is constantly undermined by the SPDC and, to a lesser extent, ceasefire groups and the KNPP via crop procurement, forced production of dry season crops, arbitrary taxation and fines, theft and destruction of property and food, forced labour and land confiscation. This is further exacerbated by the drought that has been occurring in Karenni State for the past decade, which affects crop yields. When coupled with skyrocketing commodity prices, villagers? ability to ebb out a living is further eroded – to the point of impossibility in some cases. The abject poverty in Karenni State prevents villagers from accessing basic health and education services. Whilst the SPDC claims to provide free health care and education, in reality this does not occur. Health and education services provided by the state are extremely expensive and are well-below international standards. As a result, for most people education and medical treatment becomes a luxury they simply cannot afford. As a result of poverty some villagers are turning to illegal activities in order to survive - mainly poppy production. In Karenni State there are two areas where villagers are growing poppies with the permission of ceasefire groups. Farmers can earn a significantly higher monetary return on their poppy yields than for other crops using the same quantity of land. Poppy growers can earn up to 300,000 Kyat per 1.5 kilogram package of raw opium they produce (a 1.5 kilogram package of raw opium can be produced in four months). A teacher supported by the SPDC would have to work for 60 months in order to earn the same amount. Additionally amphetamine type stimulants (ATS) are being produced in Karenni State. Three factories producing ATS in Karenni State have been identified, again in areas controlled by ceasefire groups; however as it is difficult to distinguish between factories and ordinary dwellings it is possible that there are many other ATS factories in Karenni State that have not been identified. Each factory can produce between 250,000 and 300,000 pills per month. From the three known factories in Karenni State between 9 million and 10.8 million ATS pills are being produced and released into the international drug market each year. Today over a quarter of the population in Karenni State have been forced from their homes as a direct result of the actions of the Burmese military junta. Between 70 and 80 per cent of those displaced are women and children. Displacement has increased 42 per cent since 2002 and represents eight per cent of the total population in Karenni State. Karenni State has the highest level of displacement to population ratio in all of eastern Burma. When similar comparisons are made to the five countries with the largest displaced populations in the world (Sudan, Colombia, Uganda, Iraq and the Democratic Republic of Congo) the percentage of displaced persons in Karenni State is alarmingly higher. Over 12 per cent of Sudan?s population is displaced – less than half that of Karenni State. Internally displaced persons (IDPs) in eastern Burma receive very little assistance, if any at all, primarily due to the policies of the SPDC, which severely restrict humanitarian agencies accessing these vulnerable populations. The SPDC deems IDPs as enemies of the state and implements a shoot on sight policy, which includes children and the elderly. IDPs are vulnerable to human rights abuses, exploitation and violence from the SPDC, as well as food shortages and have severely limited access to education and health care services. The most pressing need of the people and the IDP population is physical security. Most people have the capacity to earn a livelihood mitigating food shortages, to educate their children, establish a medical clinic and develop their communities; however, they lack the security necessary to do so. There are humanitarian organisations working in Karenni State, including local community based organisations (CBOs), nongovernmental organisations (NGOs) and international agencies such as the United Nations Development Programme. Despite this presence the humanitarian situation in Karenni State continues to deteriorate and people are finding themselves slipping further and further into the poverty abyss – with no foreseeable escape. The impacts from the situation in Karenni State are not confined to the State?s boundaries - they spill over into other states and divisions in Burma and also across international borders, especially into Thailand. These spill over effects in
Source/publisher: Burma Issues
2008-03-00
Date of entry/update: 2008-04-05
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: English
Format : pdf
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Description: " Threatened with plans by Burma?s generals to dam the Salween River and submerge vast tracts of their homelands, the Karenni are releasing a new report today which exposes the parallels between the devastating impacts of Burma?s first large scale hydropower project, built in their state, and those of the planned Salween dams. The report highlights the destructive mix of development and military rule in Burma. The report by the Karenni Development Research Group (KDRG), Dammed by Burma?s Generals, chronicles the impacts of the Lawpita hydropower project since the early 1960s. Promised abundant electricity and irrigation, the local population instead suffered from forced displacement, water shortages, increased militarization, human rights abuses, and thousands of landmines planted to secure the project. Most of the power was sent directly to Rangoon; still today 80% of the Karenni are without electricity. One of four dams planned for the Salween, the Weigyi Dam, will flood over 640 square kilometers in Karenni State, submerging an area three times the size of the Lawpita reservoir. The report details how twenty-eight towns and villages, including a historical capital of the Karenni, will be inundated, impacting approximately 30,000 people. An entire tribe ? the Yintalai, who now number a mere 1,000 ? will permanently lose all their homelands. Irreversible environmental damage will be caused by inundation of forests internationally recognized for their outstanding biodiversity. Under an agreement signed in December 2005 between Thailand and Burma?s regime, construction on the Salween dams is slated to begin in 2007. With likely investment from China, the dams will provide electricity for Thailand and revenue for the ruling military regime. As Pascal Khoo Thwe, the Karenni author of From the Land of Green Ghosts says in his foreword to the report: ?There is no better way to destroy a country than by the combined power of bulldozers and guns.” Civil war continues in Karenni State, leaving an estimated one third of the population internally displaced and over 22,000 Karenni refugees registered in camps in Thailand. If the Salween dams go ahead, many of these people will never be able to return home. The report urges that the Salween dam projects be scrapped. As KDRG researcher Aung Ngeh states: ?We know from bitter experience what hydropower development means under a military dictatorship. It is not about electricity or irrigation for the people. It is about subjugation and control. The Salween dams will mean more soldiers, more landmines, and the gradual annihilation of our people.”"
Source/publisher: Karenni Development Research Group
2006-03-14
Date of entry/update: 2006-03-14
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: English
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Description: "A new report released by CSW alleging the SPDC?s use of chemical weapons against Karenni Army (KA) soldiers in February 2005 has once again raised the question of Burma?s offensive chemical weapons capability. The symptoms identified in those affected appear to be consistent with exposure to a chemical weapon of some sort. The evidence produced in the CSW report also appears to be consistent with research conducted by KHRG following similar occurrences in Karen State a decade ago, suggesting that the SPDC continues to both manufacture and employ chemical weapons..."
Source/publisher: Karen Human Rights Group (KHRG #2005-B4)
2005-05-03
Date of entry/update: 2005-05-23
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: English
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Description: Click on the on the html link above to go to a neater, paginated table of contents or on the pdf links below to go straight to the document .... PDF File 1: Cover and Contents. PDF File 2: Boundaries; Climate; Physical Features; Population; Ethnic Groups in Karenni; Gender Roles in Karenni; Agriculture, Land Distribution and Patterns of Recourse; Resources; Water; Communication, Trade and Transport Conflict in Karenni; A History of Conflict; The Pre-Colonial Period; The Colonial Period; Independence in Burma and the Outbreak of Civil War in the Karenni States; State and Non-State Actors including Armed Groups and Political Parties; The Role of the Tatmadaw; The Karenni National Progressive Party (KNPP); The Karenni National People?s Liberation Front (KNPLF); The Shan State Nationalities Liberation Organisation (SSNLO); The Kayan New Land Party (KNLP; The NDF and CPB Alliances and their Impact in Karenni; War in the Villages; The Formation of Splinter Groups in the 1990s; The Economics of War; The Relationship between Financing the War and Exploitation of Natural Resources; The Course of the War; Cease-fires.... PDF file 3: Conflict-Induced Displacements in Karenni -- Defining Population Movements; Conflict Induced Displacement; Displacement in 1996; Displacements by Township; Relocation Policy; Services in Relocation Sites; Smaller Relocation Sites and so-called ?Gathering Villages?; Displacement into Shan State; Displacement as a Passing Phenomenon; Displacement, Resettlement and Transition; Women outside Relocation Sites. Development Induced Displacement -- Displacements in Loikaw City; Confiscation of Land by the Tatmadaw; Displacement as a Result of Resource Scarcity; Food Scarcity; Water Shortages; Voluntary Migrations. Health and education needs and responses: Health Policy; Health Services; Health Status of the Population; Communicable Diseases; Nutrition; Reproductive and Women?s Health; Landmine Casualties; Iodine Deficiency and Goitre; Vitamin A Deficiency; Water and Sanitation; Responses to Health Needs; Education Policy; Educational Services and Coverage; Traditional Attitudes to Education; Educational Services in Karenni; Responses to Educational Needs; Responses from the Thai-Burma border; Responses by International Humanitarian Agencies from Inside Burma. Appendices: A Comparison of Populations in Relocation Sites in Karenni; Refugee Arrivals at the Thai Border; Displacements by Township; Examples of Population Movements.
Creator/author: Vicky Bamforth, Steven Lanjouw, Graham Mortimer
Source/publisher: Burma Ethnic Research Group (BERG)
2000-05-00
Date of entry/update: 2003-06-03
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: English
Format : htm pdf pdf pdf
Size: 5.46 KB 472.28 KB 782.74 KB 1.32 MB
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Description: Internal conflict and ideological differences have taken their toll on the decades-old Karenni insurgency, but the Karenni National Progressive Party remains one of the few ethnic-based political organizations in Burma still actively engaged in armed resistance against the Rangoon regime. Now, reports Neil Lawrence, the KNPP is facing a new challenge, as opium and other narcotics once confined to neighboring Shan State make their way into territory controlled by Rangoon?s Karenni allies.
Creator/author: Neil Lawrence
Source/publisher: "The Irrawaddy", Vol. 8, No. 6
2000-06-00
Date of entry/update: 2003-06-03
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: English
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Description: This report documents human rights violations carried out by troops from the ruling State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC) against Karenni people in Karenni (Kayah) State in eastern Burma. Information regarding human rights abuses in the area has come from interviews with Karenni refugees who have fled into Thailand, and with officials from the Karenni National Progressive Party (KNPP). ADDITIONAL KEYWORDS: forced resettlement, forced relocation, forced movement, forced displacement, forced migration, forced to move, displaced
Source/publisher: ABSDF
1997-05-00
Date of entry/update: 2003-06-03
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: English
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Size: 31.16 KB
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Description: "Early 94. Description of events in North Karenni State and South Shan State by an elected Member of Parliament. Cease-fire talks in Karenni State as a SLORC demand for surrender; forced labour incl. road building, railway guarding,10,000 people on a fishpond project; extortion; inhuman treatmenton forced labour projects; massive confiscation of the best land, on which villagers are forced to do forced labour for SLORC; economic oppression; reprisal economic oppression; threats to get people to go to the USDA rallies..."
Source/publisher: Karen Human Rights Group Regional & Thematic Reports
1994-04-10
Date of entry/update: 2003-06-03
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: English
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Description: Report of an expert fact-finding mission in December 1999. Particularly strong on methodology and the clinical description of torture. Includes high-quality photos. Most interviewed were Karenni or Mon... TOC: Summary; Preface; Introduction; Methods; Ethics; Results; Forced labour; Porter service; Forced relocation; Arrests; Other incidents; Looting; Killings; Rape; Disappearances; Torture; Landmine accidents; Army units; Discussion; Conclusion; Appendix, cases; References; Tables; Figures... "We interviewed and examined 129 persons who had fled Burma / Myanmar from December 1998 to December 1999, and compared the degree of reported human rights violations with that from the previously examined persons who fled November 1996 to November 1997. Of the interviewed persons, 88% reported forced labour and 77% porter service, 54% had been forcibly relocated from their villages, 87% had had their possessions looted, and 46% had lost at least one relative through killing, disappearance, or landmine accident. 20% reported that they or a near relative had been tortured. Of the former, four had remarkable scars that strongly corroborated their histories."
Creator/author: Hans Draminsky Petersen, Lise Worm, Mette Zander, Ole Hartling, Bjarne Ussing
Source/publisher: Amnesty International, Denmark, Danish Medical Group, Danchurchaid.
2000-03-14
Date of entry/update: 2003-06-03
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: English, Danish
Format : htm
Size: 353.1 KB
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Description: "In mid-1996 the State Law & Order Restoration Council (SLORC) military junta ruling Burma broke a ceasefire with the Karenni National Progressive Party (KNPP) by launching a military offensive aimed at gaining complete control over areas of Karenni (Kayah) State near the border with Thailand. To support this military campaign, at the same time the junta launched a mass forced relocation campaign against rural villagers throughout the state, hoping to undermine the KNPP by removing or wiping out the entire civilian population in rural areas. Since then over 200 villages covering at least half the geographic area of the entire state have been forcibly relocated, burned and destroyed by Burmese Army troops under the command of the SLORC, which was renamed the State Peace & Development Council (SPDC) in November 1997. There is no accurate census data available, but most of the villages only have 10 to 50 households and estimates of the number of villagers affected range between 30,000 and 50,000..."...Forced relocation in Karenni. ... ADDITIONAL KEYWORDS: forced resettlement, forced relocation, forced movement, forced displacement, forced migration, forced to move, displaced
Source/publisher: Karen Human Rights Group (Information Update KHRG 99-U2)
1999-04-14
Date of entry/update: 2003-06-03
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: English
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Description: During the first half of 1996, the tatmadaw, or Myanmar armed forces, began a massive relocation program of civilians as part of its counter-insurgency strategy in the Kayah (Karenni) State, eastern Myanmar. 20,000- 30,000 members of the Karenni ethnic minority were forced from their home villages into designated sites, where there was inadequate food, water, medical care, and sanitation facilities necessary for survival. In the last three years hundreds of people have reportedly died of treatable diseases, thousands have fled to Thailand, and still others have chosen to hide in the forest in an attempt to live outside of military control. During February 1999 Amnesty International interviewed dozens of those Karenni civilians who had escaped to Thailand in late 1998 and early 1999. They reported recent widespread incidents of forced labour and portering, arbitrary arrests and torture, and extrajudicial killings by the military, which occurred in the context of the internal displacement of civilians in the Kayah State. Keywords: ethnic groups, indiscriminate killing, forced labour, torture, ill treatment, military, displaced people, refugees, extradudicical execution, farmers. Interviews with Karenni refugees. ... ADDITIONAL KEYWORDS: forced resettlement, forced relocation, forced movement, forced displacement, forced migration, forced to move, displaced
Source/publisher: Amnesty International
1999-06-30
Date of entry/update: 2003-06-03
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: English
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Description: "Testimony by a refugee from central Karenni (Kayah) State and List of Villages Relocated in March 1992." "(Northwest Karenni State) List of 76 villages relocated in March 1992. Deemawso and Pruso Townships March, July 92. Karenni men, women: Rape; forced labour incl. portering and work on the Loikaw-Aung Ban railway -- 91); extortion; forced relocation; religious intolerance (the villages were Christian)..." ADDITIONAL KEYWORDS: forced resettlement, forced relocation, forced movement, forced displacement, forced migration, forced to move, displaced
Source/publisher: Karen Human Rights Group (KHRG) Regional & Thematic Reports
1992-12-31
Date of entry/update: 2003-06-03
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: English
Format : html
Size: 14.34 KB
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Description: "Statement by Karenni refugees fleeing a SLORC ultimatum to all villagers in a large part of the State where the Karenni opposition is strong to leave their villages or die. Their statements describe some of the SLORC army?s activities in civilian villages of western Karenni..."
Source/publisher: Karen Human Rights Group (KHRG) Regional & Thematic Reports
1992-06-12
Date of entry/update: 2003-06-03
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: English
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Description: "Since mid-1996 the State Law & Order Restoration Council (SLORC) military junta, now renamed as the State Peace & Development Council (SPDC), has forcibly relocated and destroyed over 200 villages covering at least half the geographic area of Karenni (Kayah) State in eastern Burma. At least 20,000-30,000 people have been displaced, forced to move into military-controlled camps where many of them have been starving and dying of disease, or to flee into hiding in the forest where they face similar suffering as well as the possibility of being shot on sight by SLORC/SPDC patrols. Some have escaped to Thailand but the vast majority are still struggling to survive in the relocation sites or in hiding in the forests near their destroyed villages. There is no sign that their situation will improve anytime soon, as the SPDC continues its campaign aiming at the complete military control of Karenni State and the obliteration of all possibilities of resistance ..." ...... ADDITIONAL KEYWORDS: forced resettlement, forced relocation, forced movement, forced displacement, forced migration, forced to move.
Source/publisher: Karen Human Rights Group Regional & Thematic Reports (KHRG #98-06)
1998-06-12
Date of entry/update: 2003-06-03
Grouping: Individual Documents
Language: English
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