MONTHLY
HUMAN RIGHTS SITUATION REPORT
TENASSERIM DIVISION
Mergui-Tavoy
District Information Department, Karen National
May 2003
Forced Labour
Destructions
Torture
Extortion
Land confiscation
MILITARY:
The Burma Army conscripted villagers for military training.
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Forced Labour
Civilian boats were
conscripted by military for bridge construction
Tenasserim
10.5.2003
Those who have bigger
boats for transportation purposes were conscripted to transport stone chipping
and store ballast with their own expense to bridge construction site in the
southern most division of
The Kywegu bridge, 10
miles in the north east of Mergui, the HQ of Coastal Region Military Command in
Tenasserim division. The boat owners who have to transport such construction
materials are Maung Pyit, Ko Myint Htay, Naing Kin, Than Htay Aung, Oo Myint Kyaw from Pawatt village and Ko Win Oo from
Hpayahtwet village in the south east of Mergui.
Those boat owners have to
fill the fuel they need for that transportation with their own expenses. Since
they were ordered to do that task, they have no time to do their regular trips
from Pawatt to Mergui for their livelihood.
One of SPDC military
officers in charged for material collection Captain Kyaw Kyaw Htun said that
those who volunteered to transport stone chippings and ballast for this bridge
construction have ambitious to make merit when it coincide in their life time
and they are "Sedanashin" (merit maker) for the public necessity.
One of the boat owners
said that, this "Sedanashin" will be rewarded only in
"Neikban" (heaven). At this moment we have no time to work for our
income to buy food for our family.
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On Many 25, 2003 SPDCs
No.12 Division Training Centre's deputy headmaster Major Khin Zaw ordered
villagers from Pyicha village tract to build 4 sentry posts on 4 separate
locations. Pyicha village alone was ordered to build one office building and
one rest house. All the structures would cost 260,000 kyat and the villagers
have to bear it. Pyicha is a relocation site on the border of Tavoy and Mergui
in Tenasserim division.
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Villagers were forced to
make rice farms
Source: Myitta villagers
Date: 31.5.03
Related to the shooting
that occurred between Pyithusit (people militia) from Taung Thon Lon
village and Burma army troopers in Taung Thon Lon village concert on the night
of 21st March that resulted one Pyithusit, 3 soldiers, 18
civilians died, the Coastal Region Military Command's No.1 Strategic Command HQ
at Myitta village was recalled and No.3 Strategic Command HQ was substituted to
Myitta base in the last week of April, 2003. The commander of No.3 Strategic
Command is Col. Kyaw Zwa.
Since the arrival of No.3
Strategic Command Col. Kyaw Zwa started his own plan to establish rice
plantation in the east of his new base between Myitta and Kwee Waw Wa (Aing Wine) a deserted village (on planned
At that work site the
villagers have to fell trees, uproot tree stubs, and clear bushes and vines the
whole day time without having chances to rest under the sun. They have to go
with their own food and own tools from their houses. The one who do not want to
go must hire other people by paying 1000 kyat per day.
The commander's plan was
to establish terraced rice fields by the sides of the said highway. The former
No.1 Strategic Commander Col. Soe Thet also had the same plan like that and had
forced those villagers to work for him in the south west of Myitta village. Though
the new comer planed the same thing he chose different place to implement his
dream and use the same people.
The villagers who notice
the nature of such plan understand that, such work will cost time and labour to
be implemented. Maybe it will take at least the whole one or two years and the
other works such as digging drainage, leveling the ground will follow and they
will have to work for it. Knowing that some villagers sneak
out from the village and arrived to border areas every day to escape from
forced labour.
Other villagers who
arrived to Thai-Burma border area said that they (Myitta villagers) were
ordered by that strategy Command that, start from the beginning of June (2003)
they will have to build sentry posts between Myitta and Toung Thon Lon village
and will have to serve as sentry on those posts between Myitta and Taung Thon
Lon village along the car-road sides as in turn sentry.
One villager said that
from last two years in September 20, the ILO representatives arrived to Myitta
village. Before their arrival the former No:1
Strategic Command's Commander Col. Soe Thet had warned the villagers not to
talk things about rights abuses in front of those representatives. On the ILO
arrival the selected villagers welcomed the guests and told that there are no
forced labour, forced porters and extortions in their village. Actually since
before then those human rights abuses were existed and still existing till now.
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CRMC's No.1 Strategic
Command Ordered villagers to build Sentry Posts
Source: Lauk Thine
villager
Date: 2.6.2003
State Peace and
Development Council's No.1 Strategic Commander Col. Soe Thet who had to shift
his frontline HQ to Yahpoo village in the northern area of Yebyu Township
(Tavoy district in Tenasserim division a southern most region of Burma) ordered
villagers to build sentry posts along Ye-Tavoy car-road.
According to Col. Soe
Thet's order Mayangchaung villagers have to build 4 sentry posts between Yahpoo
and Kywetalin villages, Kywetalin villagers have to build 4 sentry posts
between Kywetalin and Lauk Thaing villages, Laukthaing villagers have to build
4 sentry posts between Laukthaing and Kyaukkadin villages, Laukthaing villagers
have to build 4 sentry posts between Kyaukkadin and Alesakern villages and
Alesakarn villagers have to build 4 sentry posts between Alesakarn village and
Malwedaung village in Yebyu township respectively. According to that order the
responsible villages PDC officials summoned their villagers on
Those sentry posts must
have a checking point and gate, a bunker and trench and a barrack for armed
personals respectively. For the whole camp the villagers have to build fences
around it for security purpose. All those works were done by the vulnerable
villagers along with their own tools and food.
After the constructions,
the No.1 Strategic Command Commander posted the armed personals from Democratic
Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA) and Karen Peace Army (KPA) to take responsible on
those constructed sentry posts. The assigned armed troopers allowed the
vehicles passing through those gates on day time (
No. 1 Strategic Command
issued an order that no vehicle must travel at night (
At the same time the
commander Kyaw Zwa ordered Yepone, Nankye and Kyaukshaat villages on Ye-Tavoy
car-road to build two sentry posts each in between the three villages. When
finished he ordered villagers to take responsible for those sentry posts at
least 6 villagers per post. So those villages have to send 24 villagers per day
in turn for sentry duty. Those who absent on his turn must pay 1000 kyat for
substitution said a Ye pone villager. Vehicle traveling restriction is the same
as above.
---
Source-Yepone villager
Date-2.6.2003
Started from the
beginning of May, 2003 the SPDC's Coastal Region Military Command HQ issued the
same order to build sentry posts between villages along the whole Ye-Tavoy
car-road, Mergui-Tavoy car-road, Mergui-Kawk Thaung car-road with the labour of
villagers along the road and the villages must send their villagers to take
sentry duty 24 hour round.
---
At Yepone village the
military stop demand military porters for some years, but in the areas the
activities of KNU troopers are still existing. So as
other villages Yepone also have to send the information of KNU troopers'
activities every day to Light Infantry Battalion 408 HQ For this, 2 villagers
have to serve as in turn messengers every day. Who absent on his turn must pay
500 kyat.
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Destructions
On
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On 14.5.2003 the troopers
who are attending military training from No.12 Divisional Training Centre near
Pyicha village set land mines in Pyicha deserted village. 3 villagers' oxen
accidentally stepped on some landmines and died. An ox costs 200000 kyat at the
local price. (Equal to 4600 Thai baht or 110 USD)
Note: 100 Thai baht =
2400 Burmese kyat (May, 2003 exchange rate in markets)
1 USD = 41.89 Thai baht.
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Torture
Farmer was detain for
failing to pay rice quota
7.5.2003
An old man was captured
and put into confinement as an "absentee" to pay "duty
rice" to
Oo Toe Toe (67 year) from
Yechochaung village in Tavoy district, Tenasserim division the southern most region of
The authorities said that
he had absent to send 15 baskets of rice to the government's rice collecting
center assigned for him as duty rice quota. He was captured and sent to Winn Wa Police station and put into police confinement and was
told he will be released only after his family come and pay rice he owed.
Knowing that, his family
tried to sold out some household utensils and borrowed
some money from friends and bought 15 baskets of rice which cost 2500 kyat per
basket locally. After finish buying 15 baskets of rice the family brought it
along with them to police station for the release of the old man.
After receiving 15
baskets of rice the police authorities set free Oo Toe Toe. He has to spent 15 days in police confinement.
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Extortion
At Yepone
(Yebyu township, Tavoy district) village there is a
group of Anti Rebel (Tha Ka Hsa Hpa) and it was led by Oo Thein Aung. He used
to ask for 1000 kyat per month per household for what he said Anti Rebel
Group's fund. More over for village PDC members' traveling costs and to host
SPDC officials who arrived to the village, he collected 300 to 500 kyat from
every household 3 times up to 5 times a month. Oo Thein Aung is an armed
group's leader as well as village PDC chairman, so villagers dare not deny what
he asked for.
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Land
confiscation
93 acres of civilian land
confiscated by
Teneasserim
10.5.2002
An
information received on
The LIB 561 which set up
its battalion HQ at Htonedaw village in
Those troops also
confiscated another 20 acre of rice plantation land cleared and used in recent
year. These land confiscation created worry to the nearby villagers from Karen,
Burman, Thai (Thai people in
A villager said that we
afraid to be slave in that field but we will not able to avoid.
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Military
On the beginning of May
2003, the Burma Army demanded villagers from villages near No. 12 Division
Training Center to attend military training. According to the information,
Pyicha, PasawOok, Lerhpado, Hmyitchinzu, Maw Kat Kle, Kahtaungni, Wahgon
villages were ordered to send 120 recruits including some women and all those
villages must supply all the recruits they've sent with 2 sets of military
uniforms respectively. At the moment a set of military uniform for male is 8500
kyat and for female is 9000 kyat. The training started on
Apart from the mentioned
village, the military ordered other villages to send 4 persons per village to
attend military training. The order was released on
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