* To
monitor human rights situations in Mon territory and other areas southern part
of Burma
* To
protect and promote internationally recognized human rights in Burma
human rights foundation of monland
Human Rights Report 5/95
(
P.O. Box 11, Ratchburana, Bangkok 10140, Thailand
SLORC's
destruction of Kyauktayan Village
Background
of destruction of Kyauktayan village
Kyauktayan village with more than 200 households is situated
in the Andaman sea's coastal areas of Yebyu township,
Tavoy district, Tenasserim Division of Burma. At the beginning of 1995, when
the SLORC started to construct the military camps for security establishment of
gas pipeline, Kyauktayan and other Mon villages were in suspicion of rebel
bases of troops from Mon National Liberation Army, for making disturbance to
their planned projects. In fact, by operating the new tactic in destroying the
specious rebel base around the area, the SLORC destroyed Kyauktayan village in
recent February. Kyauktayan, a biggest fishing community village along the
coast, is actually not on the right along gas pipeline route. But from this
village, it is very convenient to leave into Andaman sea
and the village is meanwhile perceived as posing a threat to the pipeline.
Considerably, the SLORC has plans to destroy all threat perceived villages in
this area since previous time and the SLORC soldiers have committed human
rights violations on the local inhabitants by forcing them to leave the
concerned areas and village community. On the other hand, this Kyauktayan
village is not under complete control of SLORC, which situated similarly in
conflict area and the SLORC could not make possible relocation of this village
to another possible big village. Therefore, they used inhumane ill-treatments
on the villagers to leave their village of their own accord.
On 16 February, about 100 troops of SLORC's Light Infantry
Battalion 406 led by Col. Aung Min and Lt. Col. Win Aung came into village and
arrested village headmen and took them to Natkyisin village which situated one
day walk from Kyauktayan where the SLORC troops taking base. In the military
base, the commander forced village headmen to quickly relocate their villagers
to Natkyisin. When the village headmen suggested about the impossible
relocation of this village as the most villagers were survival for fishing, the
troops did not accept their complaint and issued the order that the village
must be relocated within one week. Or, if not, the troops forcefully will
relocate or destroy the village. In this case, the military gave reason that
the Kyauktayan villagers have allowed Mon troops to stay and rebels were taking
base in their village and it had to move villagers to establish law and order
restoration. Again, on the 23 February, following the order, about 150 troops
of the same battalion came into village and ordered the villagers to move out
from the village quickly and destroyed every house. The soldiers looted all
belongings of the villagers while they did not allow any villagers to gather
their own living stocks and belongings in their houses. According the
villagers, they lost about 1000, 000 Kyat costs of all belongings and stocks
which looted by soldiers. The villagers had to flee out from their village and
displaced in jungle east of village while some were displaced along the coastal
areas. The soldiers also threatened to the villagers that if they met any
villager in village, they will punish or kill. After the village was completely
destroyed, no one dare to return back and stay in their village again. Only
some villagers returned back for few hour to collect
the rest living stocks or belongings in their houses.
The living conditions of the displaced villagers have been
terrible and they arc facing food-shortage problems. Accompanying with the
food-shortage and lack of possible shelters, the villagers especially women and
children have been suffering for malnutrition, malaria and other diseases.
Even they were displaced, they have
been still unsafe from arresting of forced porters by the SLORC troops and
continuously execution of porters on the way when the troops launched military
operations. Some villagers were arrested on the way while they were finding for
some foods for their families and took by military as porters to carry loads.
Anyhow, the most villagers would not like to abandon their own village and
living stocks to flee to border refugee camps, as they think they can return
back to the village again in rainy reason when the SLORC reduced their
activities. For the fishing community of Kyauktayan villagers, most of them do
not have possible farmlands for cultivating crops like other villagers and
their whole survivals totally depended on the fishing jobs in Andaman sea. Thus, it is hoped they will return homes in rainy
season and plan for fishing.
Last year in March, this village also burnt down by the
Burmese troops after a small fighting between their troops and Mon troops
occurred close to the village. In this year, the SLORC deploys more troops
around this area and they could control large areas than last year. Therefore,
the fighting with Mon troops also decreased down. But the village is still
under suspicion of rebel base and the SLORC had to dislocate it for the
security of gas pipeline. Before the disturbance, the SLORC troops also angered
to villagers for their inadequate arrangements in providing the demanded forced
labourers for Ye-Tavoy railway and military base constructions, forced porters
for military operations, and tax payments. They have no other jobs for
survivals except fishing and sometime, they could not provide labourers or
payments which the troops regularly asked. As a result, the Burmese troops
accused them that the villagers were allegedly encouraged by Mon troops to not
carry out their demands and at the end, the soldiers
destroyed the Kyauktayan village.
Collecting
related informations
In recent June, the HURFOM human rights workers traveled to
this area to collect informations about the displaced populations there. Because
of the proposed infrastructure projects of SLORC, many villages of Mon, Karen,
Tavoyan local inhabitants were relocated, dislocated or destroyed by SLORC
troops. Mostly, those villages were under suspicion of rebel bases by SLORC.
The villages under the SLORC complete control have been more severely
constricted by military for porters, labourers and tax payments than the
villages not under the complete control of them. The villagers who have no
longer tolerate on the conscription of the military fled to refugee camps or
displaced in forests and coastal areas.
According to the villagers who came from village where SLORC
taking base around the gas pipeline route explained that they had to provide
Burmese troops as below free labour and tax payments.
Forced
Labourers have been conscripted since at the beginning of dry season.
Most of the villages on the route of proposed gas pipeline are mostly Tavoyan
and Karen villages. Most of Tavoyan villages were situated along the seashore
and west part of pipeline route while most of Karen villages are situated in
thick forest of east part of proposed route. In the gas pipeline construction
process, even the foreign company TOTAL has not directly used any slave labourers, the SLORC troops have completely used local
civilians as slave labourers in constructing their military barracks, in
clearing the pipeline route and providing facilities related to pipeline. As a
conclusion, it means pipeline construction process totally used slave labour
under the management of local military commanders and TOTAL has been indirectly
related to conscription of slave labourers. But the TOTAL remained quietly on
this issue and blind their eyes anyhow. Even TOTAL
complained they paid for the labourers who they used in construction for 200
Kyat per day, there have been a large number of villagers in that area still
working for SLORC without any payment. Most of villagers had to build the
military barracks in Heinze Boke island, which must
considerably be the main security base for offshore pipeline construction. Some
villagers explained that even the TOTAL paid for the most 1000 labourers who
were brought by SLORC from Rangoon and somewhere not from this area. Very few
villagers became as labourers receiving payments while the most inhabitants
still remain as slave labourers.
Forced
Portering have been recruited by the Burmese
military tatmadaw
for a long time but more terrible in SLORC period. In this portering
recruitment in their military operation, the SLORC ordered the respective village
headmen to gather and provide demanding porters in rotating basis of villagers
in their control areas. For the villagers who are not under their control, must
be recruited forcefully. Normally, as soon as the military came into villages,
they arrested all male villagers for portering and sometimes even women were
used as porters when they could not get men. Those arrested villagers had to
carry heavy burdens of ammunition or foods in front line or other military
operations, starved on the way, and tortured or executed by soldiers when they
could not carry because of weakness or sickness.
Tax payments are separately different in
many kinds. For local inhabitants who
are staying under SLORC controlled villagers have to pay more kinds of tax
payments than who are not in SLORC-controlled areas. For example, there are taxes for
developments like railway and gas pipeline constructions, for security of
villages like the SLORC troops are taking security and protect the villagers
from dangerous manners of insurgent groups and for hiring porters and etc..
The above mentioned human rights violations are mostly
committed by the troops who are active in this area. Most the Light Infantry Battalion
(LIB) No. 401-410, No. 343 and other Infantry Battalion (IB) No. 61, No. 25 and
etc..
Focus
of current report
This report focuses on the Burmese troops' destruction of
Kyauktayan village. To get the true informations, HURFOM conducted interviews
with many villagers of Kyauktayan who were displaced in the forest in recent
June. In interviews, most of victims explained the same event about 23 February
military's destruction of village. Briefly, it states as above. Moreover, the
interview #1 mentions about SLORC's execution of Kyauktayan innocent villager
while the interview #2 mentions about killing of porters by SLORC's soldiers.
And, the interview #3 mentions the situation of displaced villagers and
ill-treatment against porters even after the village already destroyed.
To protect the persons who were conducted interviews, the
report does not use the real name of interviewees and changed all their names.
However, all events and stories were true which really happened in Burma and,
please feel free and can change the better usage of English. It is hoped that
all information must be usefully in helping international community to stop
SLORC from committing such brutal abuses and promote internationally recognized
human rights in Burma.
Interview #1
Name: U
Them Aung
Age/
Sex: 56 years/ Male
Nationality/Religion: Mon-Burmese/ Buddhist
Occupation: Medic
Native Place: Beelin, Mon State
Current Resident: Kyauktayan village, Yebyu
Township, Tenasserim Division
Interview Date: 16 June, 1995.
Because of hardship for the survivals in Burmese Socialist
Programme Party (BSPP) time, the civilians had to move from one place to
another to get more income for their families. U Thein Aung briefed his
previous life and how he decided to move to Kyauktayan.
Q When did you arrive this village and why?
I arrived this village about ten
years ago. Ten years ago, after I retired
from the government service as a medic in the government hospital I moved
here. In the time I retired from works
I tried hard to get some income in my native town, but I got very small income which could
not provide for my family and the commodities price also increased every
day. So I decided to move this local
fishing village to receive more income than my native place Beelin. At that time, because of black market as
the boat traveled to Pinam island of Malaysia, this village was very suitable
to receive more income. When the time I
started moving here, I was only one and later my family came and joined me in
this village. This village was
absolutely under the control of the New Mon State Party and the situation was
better than the current time. No Burmese troops could not
reach to this area, we were free to work and no any tax to give the
Burmese troops from our income. So, in this village, I was the most respected
person as I always helped the local villagers as I can.
General
treatments of troops in local areas
Q Please brief me the ill-treatments of Burmese
troops as you know.
But last four years ago, the Burmese troops tried to control
this area. At that time, I considered some
of them were good and some were bad.
Anyhow, I helped them when they asked as I was a former government
servant. Last two years, after they
SLORC started the railway construction and tried for complete control in this
area, they have treated the villagers inhumanely, I disagreed with them for
everything they did. As I have stayed
with this Mon, Tavoyan community for 10 years, sometime I also complained to
respective commander of the troops for ill-treatments to villagers. But I could
not overcome to solve that problem and protect them at all. At the end, even my
son was killed by them.
Continuously, he explained about the Burmese troops executed
his son as below, when asked him the following questions.
LIB
470's execution of innocent villager
Q Can you tell me the
terrible story of your son?
Yes. I can tell you about my son, Chit Pow.
My son was young and only 23 years old. He was killed in January of this
year. On 24 January, one company of Burmese troops, about 150 soldiers, from
LIB 410 led by Col. Ye Myint arrived to Kyauktayan village about noon time. I
though they came from the Kyaethonenyima village where they have military base.
On that day I was at home. My family members never fled from the village when
any Burmese came into the village because I have been a medic for a long time
and I ever helped Burmese troops when they asked. As soon as they arrived the village, one soldier came to my house and
informed my son to meet their commander. My son went down from the house and
followed along that soldier. T though as normal like the
commander asked for some helps to my son. I never thought they will kill
my son. At that time my son was as a section leader in village. I believed my
son was ordered by commander to go somewhere or to another village to collect
the information about the Mon troops. SLORC In the
evening I also went to the house where the commander stayed and but I did not
ask anything about my son as I still believed he was used to do something by
commander. On the next day 25 January
morning, the Burmese troops left from our village and so I could not meet the
commander again on that day. I still Relieved my son followed with them or
went other village.
I started to worry after one week later because my son did
not return back to home yet. To ask for my son where he was, I went to military
headquarters of LIB 410 in Zinba. When I arrived there, I met commander and
asked him about my son and he told me they already released my son on the half
way. I insisted them that my son did not return home yet. He said he did not
know where my son went and he said he thought my son had another purpose after
the Burmese troops released him. He said he did not use my son as porter and
just to help a little bit to show the way. I was confused and returned back to
my home again. My family waited for him for another one week and but he did not
return back.
After that I had to inquire about my son where he had ever
visited. Then I went to several villages like Kwaethonenyima, Hpaungtaw,
Daneckyar, Natkyisin and etc.. I spent for two months
to ask for my son, and during that period I also met many times to the
commanders of LIB 410. Consistently the commanders replied to me my son was
released on the half way and they did not know where he was. They did not take
any responsibility for the missing of my son. My wife always cried and pushed
me to find out my son. Anyhow, with the helps of village leaders even we hardly
attempted to get information about my son and but the time passed over I could
not received any information about him.
No reason and no trial for SLORC soldiers'
execution
Q
Later, how did you know your son was killed by the military?
After two month, I still inquired for my missing son.
Sometime,! thought he
traveled to Pinam
Then I inquired the way which LIB 410 used on 25 January
when they moved to their headquarters. Later, I knew the way and I tried to
find out the place where the soldiers buried my son for one week, but I did not
meet any suspicious place. I also inquired the farmers who resided along the
way the LIB 410 used about my missing son. One day in the first week of April,
an old farmer who resided beside the road came to me and told me that on that
day (January 25) when he was working in his farms, two soldiers came to him and
borrowed his hoes and went away. But he did not hear any gun sound he said.
Immediately I got that information I and some villagers went to his farm hut.
His farm hut situated close to way the troops used and we tried to know the
place the soldiers buried my son. On the next day we met a suspicious position
as we also met a grenade in there. So, we informed the NMSP authorities and
told them about the grenade and they came and took that grenade. And we exhumed
the position and at the end we saw corpse of my son.
Q
How did you know that corpse was your son?
He was my son and stayed together with me for a long time.
Why not? It was very easy for me to recognize that the corpse was my son. I
knew his clothes and his height. Those are the evidences that corpse was my
son. He was not so high and he was young.
Q How
do you think for what reason the soldiers killed?
I still do not know for what reasons they killed my son. He
was young and sincere. He never acted or performed any kinds of opposing
behaviors to the military. I don't know why the soldiers killed him. I never
thought they will kill my son like this. Even I asked them one time to the
commander why they killed my son, he always denied that the soldiers did not
kill my son. As I knew my son was sincere man and he never contacted any rebel
groups. Sometimes when the rebel came into village, he never met or supported
them in any way. I also told the commander that if my son committed some kinds
of opposing behaviours to Burmese troops, they can inform me. I agreed for
arresting and detaining him, if he made wrong sometime. I think my son did not
commit any crime which reached to accept the punishment of death penalty.
Q Do you have plan to put
trial to the soldiers who killed your son?
You see, I would like to do. As long as I stayed here, I
think I could not put them to trial. This area is black area. They could do as
they like. If the area like my hometown (Beelin), I
will put trial for killing my son. In here, we cannot reach any just decision.
He was dissatisfy on the military too much and also
described other military execution on innocent like his son, but not the same
events. He also mentioned about those
dead villagers.
Other executions by SLORC troops
Q Beside the execution of your son, have you ever
other cases of killing?
Dislike [besides?] my son, other villagers from this village
ever died when they were conscripted as porters on the way. I have not been so
sure that were they died for hardship or by torturing of Burmese troops.
Normally, if one porter could not carry the heavy loads the troops offered, that porter must be beaten by soldiers. In this
year, from Kyauktayan village alone, I heard there were three porters died when
they were with troops along the operations as conscripted porters. The first one is named Maung Sein died around
the Budee village area, which situated south of our village. The second
villager was Ah Baing and he died in Thaung Khun village. Then the last
villager was Aung Naing and he died in Khaw Zar village. According to the
porters released back and villagers, the most dead
porters were severely beaten by solders and they died for the tortures, but
some porter also died in the fighting.
Q Among three of them, do you know how they died
because of tortures or in the fighting?
Among three of them, Maung Sein and Ah Baing died because of
tortures by Burmese soldiers. Firstly, the troops used them as porters and on
the way, they could not carry the loads such as foods or ammunitions of the
soldiers and they were severely beaten and later they died. Aung Naing was died
because of the fighting Mon troops and Burmese troops near Khaw Zar village.
Khaw Zar village is the biggest village in the area. When the Burmese troops
launched an operation, they were ambushed by Mon troops on halfway. In this
case, The Burmese troops used him and other porters to walk in front of the
troops as human shields. After he died, the troops consisted that they used him
only to show way not for human shield.
The following interview is related to the interview which
conducted with U Thein Aung, in his inter- view, he mentioned about the three
dead porters. This interview states for the death of one porter named Nai Ah
Baing, who was died after severely tortured by Burmese soldiers. The
interviewee is a person who had eye-witness in this Burmese soldiers' human
rights violation. He explained the whole story as follow.
Interview #2
Name: Nai
Sike Kao
Age/
Sex: 29 years/ Male
Nationality/ Religion: Mon/ Buddhist
Occupation: Farmer
Native Place: Kyauktayan village, Yebyu
Township
Interview Date: 16 June, 1995.
Firstly, the interviewee explained how oftenly the Burmese
military came into village, before and after it was destroyed.
Forced labour, forced porters and taxations by SLORC
troops
Q How oftenly the Burmese troops came into your
village in this dry season and what kinds of ill-treatments on villagers?
The Burmese troops oftenly came to
our village about three times at the beginning of dry season. As usual, when
the Burmese troops came into our village, they always arrests the villagers to
subject as porters even the villagers had paid portering tax recently. In this
dry season, only in October and November, the villagers were conscripted as
labourers in constructing Ye-Tavoy railway and the soldiers came to take forced
labour also. Furthermore, starting from December, when the troops came to
villages they also asked for taxation for railway construction and other
military buildings but they did not take labourers for railway. Our villagers
had to pay nearly 25, 000 Kyat each month to the Burmese troops to avoid from
such forced labours. After they did not conscript forced porters, they asked
more cashes and they arrested more porters in village when they came. Many man
villagers have even been arrested as porters since December. And after our
village was destroyed in the last week of March, men were also arrested as
porters on the way, in the farmlands, in places where they were displaced
together with their families.
Q How many times have you ever been conscripted as
porter in this dry season?
I have ever been as porters for two times in this years. I was arrested as porter in my farm last year December,
while I was harvesting rice. When my rice was ripe, my wife had a birth of child, I lost half amount of rice produced from my farm. It
lasted for six days I was along with Burmese troops to carry ammunition. They
took security along the railway construction and when the troops arrived Paukpingwin military base, they released me. For
latter time, I was arrested to be a porter on 15 May just recently in my
farmland. In this trip, we had to carry heavy burdens to Kwaethonenyima
military outpost which situated one and half day walk from our village. In this
time, one of porters from our village died after the Burmese soldiers severely
beated him. I was the one who brought him to village.
He told his experiences when he and his friend were used as
porters in May. His friend was died on
the way.
Q Please describe me the whole story about that
dead porter.
On 14 May, about 100 Burmese troops of SLORC LIB 408 arrived
closely to our village, they also arrested me on my
way secretly returning home in village in the evening. I tried to return to
take some left facility to start new cultivation in coming rainy season. When I
was arrested, Ah Baing, 36 years old, was with them and I did not know where he
was arrested. Even we were not staying in same section of village, we knew each
other. When we were arrested, there was no villager in the village and mostly
they were displaced outside of village. After the soldiers arrested me they
gave me some load which was comprised mostly the belongings of the villagers from
other village. On the first day, the troops advanced to Min Galon village. We
slept one night in Min Galon village.
LIB 408 killed a porter from Kyauktayan
From Min Galon village, we altogether moved to Chaung Phar
village in the morning on the next day. When we left from there, the soldiers
did not feed any food to us. Along the way the soldiers did not allow us to
take a rest or we were too tire because of the hot
sun-shine. Before we arrived Chaung Phar village, on the way, Ah Baing terribly
tire because of his heavy load. So he could not walk like soldiers and his
steps were slow down. And the soldiers told him to walk quickly but he could
not walk. The soldiers were angry to him and beated him to walk quickly. But he
could not walk at all and also asked for water. Instead of
offering water, the soldiers beated him. Three soldiers including one
sergeant beated him several times in front of all porters and told us that was
punishment for the one who lazy. They
beated him with their rifle butts and combat boots. After several times
of beating, he became weak and weak. When the soldiers asked why he did not
walk like other persons, he insisted he was recovered from sickness just two
days ago and explained why he could not walk. The soldiers did not believe on
him. And they continuously beated him.
Q Did he get any injury on his body and what
happened at the end?
He did not get any outside injury. I think he got inner
injuries a lot. The soldiers beated in his stomach mostly and we could not see
outside injury. After several times of beatings, at the end, he became losing
consciousness and lied down on the ground. No one dare to help him because we
were afraid the soldiers. After he lost consciousness like that, the soldiers
asked the porters who knew him. I replied to them I knew him. Therefore they
told me to bring him to Chaung Phar village. We arranged a salon stretcher to
carry him to Chaung Phar.
Q
Did you have an eye-witness when he
died?
I was an eye-witness when he died in Chaung Phar village. We
carried him to Chaung Phar with stretcher and but the medic in the troops did
not treat him at all. After we walked for one hour, we arrived
Chaung Phar village. When we arrived the village,
there were no body in the village and we could not get any traditional herbal
medicine. The soldiers did not ask about his conditions and we treated him as
possible as we can. We offered him some coconut water. But he did not recover
to continue for another breath and we knew he could not survive. We went to
medic and appealed for help. Later he came and gave him some medicine. I did
not know what kind of medicine. About five minutes later, he died on that
house.
Q What the soldiers respond after he died?
After he died, again the soldiers warned us not to claim he
was died because of their several beatings. They also forced us to tell his
family and his native villagers that he was died because of weakness and
sickness of diseases. When the troops left from Chaung Phar, they put me and
other our villagers to bury him. So, the other man returned back to Kyauktayan
and informed his family about his death. In the evening his family came to
Chaung Phar and with the helps of that villagers we
buried him on the next day afternoon. Even I did not claim the man was died
because of beatings, his family and villagers knew well what happened on him.
Interview #3
Name: Nai
Maung Htaik
Age/
Sex: 41 years/ Male
Nationality/ Religion: Mon/ Buddhist
Occupation: Fisherman
Native Place: Kyauktayan village, Yebyu
Township.
Interview Date: 16 June, 1995.
After Kyauktayan village was destroyed by SLORC troops, the
villagers have been displaced in several places outside village. They were
threatened by SLORC soldier that if they were arrested by soldiers they must be
killed.
The
situation of displaced villagers
Q Could you manage for fishing after the Burmese
troops destroyed your village?
I could not manage too much. I could go to the sea for
fishing only two times after the Burmese soldiers destroyed our village. After
that my family has been displaced like other villagers. We did not dare to stay
in the village because we frightened for the Burmese soldiers" accusation
on us as supporters of Mon rebel. At
presence, I temporarily resided with my brother family in his pine-apple
plantation. The survival of our family has depended on some products from that
plantation and borrowing rice from him. He is a farmer. To get some small
income, I went to the sea for two times to fish and but after I got fishes,
there was no market in our village to sell. Therefore I needed to send my
fishes to Daneekyar village. It was inconvenient and my fishes became useless
to sell in both times. Later I decided not to fish again.
Q At presence, what are
another hardships for our family and other villagers who were displaced like
you?
We are the most lucky family among our villagers as we
stayed in plantation where is easier to get foods. Many families have been
terrible for survivals to receive foods and suitable shelters. After we have no
more opportunity for fishing, every families have no
enough income to buy foods and so they had to borrow rice or cashes from
another villages like Khaw Zar and Hangan.
Other families have been taking shelters along the seacoast area and
staying about five to ten families together in one place. They separated
several places. Some families are staying in the forest or in valley position
of mountainous areas east of our village. Most of them have been suffered for
the shortage of foods. In coastal area for whom taking refuge there have to eat
fishes or crabs without rice. If we got rice, it needed to keep it well and
arranged making rice soup and took it. Because of shortage of food and improper
shelters, mostly women and children suffered from sickness. No one dare to
return to village. I was also arrested and subjected as porter one time when we
were displaced. It was just recently in May.
Q Do you hope you can
return back to your village again?
I would like to return back to my home as soon as possible,
but the situation did not allow us for decision to return. I am surely, if the
villagers were arrested by Burmese soldiers in village, they will punish and
severely torture up to die. I think in this rainy season we can return back if
the troops did not launch military operation oftenly. It must be also difficult
for them to travel from one place to another because of water level.
Q Can you tell me your other experiences before or after you
was displaced?
In this dry season, I was conscripted as porter for one time
before I was displaced or escaped from my village. It was in February. When the
Burmese troops from LIB 410 came into our village I was arrested by them and
they took me for three days as porter to carry ammunition like 60 mm mortar
shells. When the troops arrived to Natkyisin military outpost the troops
released all porters. Nothing happened to the porters except the soldiers
beated them a little bit when they walked slow. In
second time, when I was arrested and subjected as porter, one porter for our
village was severely beaten by Burmese soldiers. They released me with that
suffered porter on the half way.
He explained about one porter who was severely tortured by
SLORC troops just recently May.
Forced
porters used by LIB 470
Q Please
explain me the whole story for the terrible suffering porter.
On 6 May, when I returned back from finding some sea
products, the Burmese soldiers who came from Daneekyar village suddenly
arrested on my way to temporary place. The troops was from LIB 408 and the numbers
of soldiers were nearly 150 men and with another about 40 porters. After they
arrested me, they subjected as porter to carry some belongings. I thought those
belongings were looted from another village by troops. Among the porters, Nai
Khaing (47 years) was also arrested by troops and I knew him as he was from our
village. He told me he was arrested in Daneekyar village while he borrowed some
rice from his relatives there.
LIB
408 tortured porter who was sick
Before we left from the place, he was looked like weak and
too tire as he carried loads from Daneekyar village.
After the arrested and put me some loads, we moved forward to our village,
Kyauktayan. When we arrived there, the soldiers gave a little food and slept
there for one night. At that night, Nai Khaing became sickness of malaria. He
could not sleep for the whole night. In the morning his face was faint and
weaker. When the troops warned to be ready for the trip, he also told the
soldiers he was not so well and to release him. They angered to him and one
sergeant slapped. Then they gave him yesterday's heavy loads to carry. They did
not reduce his loads even Nai Khaing complained to them. Then we left from
Kyauktayan to Ah Buee village.
About 10 o'clock, because of the heavy loads and weakness,
he was too tire and impossible to continuously carry the loads. At the end
after he was intolerable he dropped down his loads to ground. The soldiers
behind him angered on his manners and, came and healed him. One sergeant also
accompanied with two soldiers in beating him. The sergeant
beated him with a stick and the soldiers beated him with rifle butts and combat
boots. The sergeant continuously beated him until his stick was
completely broken into pieces. But he did not stop and found another sticks to
beat him. He was terribly lied down on the ground and no one dare to help him.
After three sticks were totally broken into pieces, the sergeant stopped
beating. He lost consciousness and could not stand up. And, the sergeant
informed the medic to check his conditions. The medic came and injected some
kinds of medicines which I did not know. After that they asked all porters who
know Nai Khaing well and no one dare to answer. At the end I replied that I
knew him well and he was our villagers. So, the sergeant told me to wait Nai
Khaing until he died and to quickly inform them if he died. He also warned me
if I failed to inform them about him, they will punish me. They never left any
foods for us.
Therefore, I waited for Nai Khaing and the troops left to Ah
Buee village. About half hours after they left, I carried Nai Khaing in my back
and brought him to Kyauktayan as quickly as I can, because I would like to save
his life. After one hour walk, he was awakened when I called him. I was very
glad and continuously brought him to village. After half hour, he told me he
could walk with my help and he managed for walking with my assistance. After
four hours walk, we arrived back close to the village in the evening. We
entered to one my friend's hut and found out one traditional herbal medic to
treat him. And, after one week treatment with traditional medic, he recovered.