Hundreds of Karen IDPs Settle along Salween River

Hundreds of refugees among the more than 11,000 [Editors note: FBR Now estimates 13,000. See article below] ethnic Karen displaced by recent attacks by the Burmese army in northern and western Karen State have taken refuge along the banks of the Salween River.
Representatives from the Karen Women’s Organization sent on May 5 to gather information on IDPs said that about 670 refugees have taken up residence along the river, including some 108 children under the age of five, and more than 300 others are currently on their way to the river.
This follows the admission of nearly 1,800 IDPs in Mae Ra Moo refugee camp in Mae Hong Son. IDPs traveling to the area are forced by almost daily attacks from the Burmese army to hide in the jungle.
“Hundreds of refugees arriving at the Salween River have not been allowed to enter Mae Ra Moo camp, so they are settling along the river,” Zipporah Sein, general secretary of the KWO, said. “Thai authorities are not allowing them entry because the [Thai] government is claiming that the fighting has stopped.”
She added that the large number of refugees makes it difficult to settle them in Mae Ra Moo without an official agreement from Thai authorities, who will arrest refugees entering the camp without official permission.
“It is difficult and takes time to send these amounts of refugees to the camp without an official agreement with Thai authorities,” she said.
“This group [of Karen refugees] numbers about 1,000 and has been traveling to the Thai border for many months,” said Phitoon Harnpakdeesakul, an official from the Sob Moei District Office. “We did not arrest them, but local Thai military brought them into a temporary shelter.”
“But after that, we will wait for provincial officers to confirm that they have fled because of fighting. If they come here just for economic reasons, they will be repatriated to their country,” added Phitoon.
Phitoon said that no decision has yet been made on a provincial level about what to do with the latest wave of Karen refugees. Options will be discussed at a meeting in the Sob Moei District Office on May 15.
Meanwhile, refugees awaiting permission to enter the camp are being cared for by nongovernmental organizations, Karen social groups and medical relief workers, and the Karen National Union has taken responsibility for their security.
“Their living conditions are very poor, and we are worried because it is coming to the raining season,” said Zipporah Sein.
According to an April report by the Karen Refugee Committee, the number of Karen refugees along the Thai-Burma border stands at 124,727, with 13,978 from Mae Ra Moo camp.
The current offensive by the Burmese army—begun shortly the government relocated its administrative center outside Pyinama—has targeted Karen villagers in Taungoo ad Nyaunglebin

Shah Paung
Irrawaddy
May, 10, 2006
Image: In hiding place shelter, April 26, 2006. This is how people are living now as they hide from the Burma Army - FBR

Dead KNU man spooks Burmese sleuths

A Karen leader who died three years ago is on the Burmese government’s list of suspects involved in the recent series of bomb attacks. The state-owned New Light of Myanmar reported last week that Shwe Sai, former vice-chairman of the Karen National Union and ex-head of the KNU’s 6th Brigade, held secret meetings in Mae Sot this month with exiled dissidents and discussed the dispatch of bombers to Burma. But Shwe Sai died on June 1, 2003.

The risible error is one more sign of the disarray in Burma’s security apparatus, according to observers. One named suspect, Nyo Ohn Myint, an American citizen who was also accused of being a “terrorist” bomber, told The Irrawaddy that since intelligence chief Gen Khin Nyunt was removed in 2004 the country’s intelligence agency has faced a credibility problem and was relying on inexperienced informants and spies.
The regime dismantled the notorious spy agency known as the Office of the Chief of Military Intelligence in October 2004 and detained several intelligence officers, including Khin Nyunt.
Mahn Sha, KNU general secretary, said the new intelligence agency-Military Affairs Security, led by Lt-Gen Myint Swe-lacked the experience to perform well. “They are just sending misinformation to please their boss. On the ground, the MAS hasn’t a clue.”
A former spy recently confirmed to The Irrawaddy that the MAS struggled to reach the sinister standards set by the former OCMI.
In a scatter-gun reaction to the recent series of bomb blasts in Burma, the regime blamed the National Council of Union of Burma and other exile groups, the All Burma Students’ Democratic Front and the KNU. Pro-democracy groups in exile were sending terrorists into Burma, The New Light of Myanmar charged.
Descriptions of wanted “terrorists” verge on the bizarre. Most of them wear gold and diamond jewelry, according to the wanted-list descriptions intended to lead to their capture. Thet Tun, of the Mae Sot-based Democratic Party for a New Society, for example, “usually wears diamond earrings and a gold watch.” It’s unclear whether he is thus adorned while planting bombs for the ABSDF, which The New Light of Myanmar claims is his specialty.
One young woman suspect, Moe Moe Aye, “usually wears a jade ring on her left middle finger.” Commented one sage commentator: “She and how many other young Burmese women?”
Despite the combined efforts of the armed forces, the police, the security apparatus and appeals to the public, not one “terrorist” has yet been detained. Yet suspects were announced only hours after the first of the bombings, in Rangoon last year.

Shah Paung
Irrawaddy
9 May 2006
Image: The late KNU 6th Brigade Commander Shwe Sai, 1965 File Photo - KHCPS

NCUB denounces Burma junta over attacks on Karen civilians

In a statement issued today, the exiled National Council of the Union of Burma (NCUB) denounced the ruling military government, the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) over the murderous offensives against innocent civilians in Taungoo, Nyaunglebin, Papun and Thaton Districts in eastern Burma.
“The SPDC army group says that they are working on real transitional matters. At the same time, the SPDC troops are carrying out severe offensives in the basic regions of Karen State. We are very surprised by this,” said NCUB’s secretary Myint Thein. “If they want to carry out real democratic transition, they have to consider mainly the affairs of ethnic nationals in their activities. The SPDC army group and the Karen National Union (KNU) carried out activities for ceasefire and solving political problems by political means. Therefore, why are they still carrying out violent method with the help of weapons instead of solving political problems by political means? We believe that they are systematically creating the wars to wipe out our own ethnic nationals. We, the NCUB, responded by issuing this statement to demand an end to these actions and to correctly find solutions to the political problems.”
On the other hand, the NCUB will jointly carry out rescue activities with the KNU to help Karen refugees who were driven out of their homes by the ‘clearing’ offensives of the SPDC troops. Moreover, the NCUB is collecting facts and data on human rights violations by the junta so that the UN Security Council could take action on Burma.
Similarly, the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Myanmar Caucus (AIPMC) also issued a statement on the matter saying that the offensives are clear indications that the junta is committing violent acts against its own people according to the international laws and urged the Security Council to take action immediately. It also pointed out that Burmese troops have been planting landmines at villages cleared of Karen civilians so as to prevent them from returning.

May 08, 2006 (DVB) -

Displaced Figure in Karen State Reaches 13,000

The number of people displaced in Karen State has risen to over 13,000 according to recent reports by the Humanitarian aid group Free Burma Rangers. The new figure is an increase of 2,000 over previous totals as people are forced to flee a prolonged Burmese Army offensive which attempts to secure areas around its new headquarters near Pyinmana. Although the Burmese Army denies the assault against the Karen people, over three thousand have already fled from their homes across the borders into Thailand where refugees camps and Aid agencies are trying desperately to accommodate them.
In a related incident the Free Burma Rangers, who have been instrumental in providing information on the atrocities in Karen State, have announced on its website the death of one

of their relief workers in Mutraw District. Saw Mu, who also acted as a camaraman documenting the Regime's absues against the Karen people, died after stepping on a Burmese laid land mine.

KHCPS
09/05/06
Images: Top: Villagers in Hide Site in Taungoo District 21st April 2006, Bottom IDP Map - Free Burma Rangers

Burma fighting destabilising: Chidchai

Acting Prime Minister Chidchai Wannasathit says the continuing fighting between the Burmese army and ethnic Karen rebels near Thai-Burma border has caused an influx of refugees who have fled the fighting to seek refuge in Thailand.

Pol Gen Chidchai, who is also Justice Minister, said Thailand must shoulder the burden of providing food and shelter for the displaced Burmese. Apart from that, fighting regularly spills over into Thai territory.
Burmese government troops have recently launched an offensive against several bases of the Karen National Union (KNU), a rebel group which has been fighting for independence for more than 50 years.
The Karen first rebelled against Burma’s civilian government after the departure of British colonial forces, but after a Burmese-led military coup d’etat in 1962, the ethnic minority continued to oppose the rule of successive military governments, the latest of which officially changed the country’s name to Myanmar.
Karen bases under attack are located across the Moei River from Tha Song Yang district in the northern province of Tak.
Last week, more than 1,000 ethnic Karen crossed border into the northern Thai province of Mae Hong Son following because of fighting and demands for forced labour in Burma. They sought refuge at a camp in Mae Hong Son’s Sop Moei district and are now staying at Mae La Luang temporary shelter.

Shwe Mann “behind Karen offensive”

Military analysts in Rangoon suggest that Gen Shwe Mann, a Karen Buddhist, might be behind the recent offensive in Karen state.

Shwe Mann, the regime’s No 3 in seniority, is attached to the Defense Ministry and will likely oversee day-to-day operations in Karen State, military analysts in Rangoon said.
He is probably based in the military operations room in Naypyidaw, the regime’s new administrative city, they say.
According to ex-intelligence officers and army officers who were close to military planning in the recent past, the regime had developed a plan to attack No 2 and No 3 Brigades of the KNLA first, while leaving other Karen areas until later.
In fact, the military attack on the areas of Nyaunglaybin and Taungoo was under the command of Lt-Gen Khin Maung Than, chief of the Bureau of Special Operations Number 3.
Khin Maung Than, former Rangoon Division Commander, is reported to be taking an uncompromising stance toward Karen rebels. He received instructions to secure the two areas by moving against civilians and insurgents.
The operation is intended to deprive the rebels of information, supplies and other assistance, and to block their recruiting and propaganda efforts, say analysts.

Irrawaddy
Wed 3 May 2006
Image: Shwe Mann-faprc (top) Khin Maung Than-New Light of Myanmar (bottom)

Myanmar army attacks rebel stronghold near Thai border

Myanmar troops launched ground and mortar attacks against a key stronghold of the Karen rebels Wednesday, stepping up a major offensive against the ethnic minority group, senior rebel commanders said.

Several hundred troops attacked a brigade headquarters of the Karen National Union about 5 kilometers (3 miles) inside Myanmar from the Thai frontier, said rebel commanders speaking from the scene of fighting who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Karen guerrillas have been battling the central government for decades, seeking greater autonomy. Cease-fire talks broke down in 2004, and in recent months the Myanmar army has launched a major offensive in Karen State of eastern Myanmar.
The officers said three Myanmar battalions and a battalion of Karen who earlier broke away from the KNU launched the attack against Watkalupu Camp, where the KNU’s 7th Brigade is headquartered. After two unsuccessful ground assaults, the attackers withdrew but more attacks were expected.
The scene of the fighting is opposite Thailand’s Tak province. Further north along the rugged, porous border, several hundred Karen refugees displaced by the fighting were preparing to cross into Thailand, joining nearly 2,000 others who fled earlier.
The campaign, which began last November, has driven at least 11,000 Karen villagers from their eastern Myanmar homes, according to the Free Burma Rangers, an aid group operating inside the military-ruled nation once known as Burma.
The military has burned villages, destroyed rice fields and killed civilians in northern and western areas of Karen State as it tries to suppress the KNU, the groups says.
The government says it is taking security measures against “terrorist insurgents,” but denies that an offensive is underway, and that its troops have violated human rights.
U.S. lawmakers last week urged the U.N. Security Council to take urgent action against the junta in response to the offensive. The U.S. State Department condemned the recent attacks, which Thai and foreign aid officials fear will add to Thailand’s refugee burden.
More than 140,000 Karen and other ethnic minority refugees live in a string of camps along the border.
Analysts say the scale of the recent attacks is the largest since a 1997 anti-Karen offensive, and the KNU fears it may continue through this year’s rainy season, which generally begins in May.

Associated Press
03/05/06
Image: KHCPS

Myanmar rebel group issues plea to military rulers

A rebel group battling Myanmar’s military appealed for clemency late Wednesday, saying women and children were being killed in the army’s latest offensive and thousands of families left without food and shelter.

The Karen National Union called for ceasefire talks, saying the military’s crackdown on the Karen ethnic minority has forced thousands to abandon their villages and flee into the jungles. About 1,000 have reached the Thai border.
“We the KNU solemnly call upon the military regime to immediately stop its military operations and withdraw its operational troops,” the KNU said in a statement.
“They are shelling the villages with heavy weapons, forcing the villagers to relocate, and burning down the villages, orchards, forests, farms and rice barns.”
The statement came after Human Rights Watch urged the United Nations to protect Myanmar’s ethnic minorities from the military, which has also planted landmines along the Thai border to stop civilians from fleeing.
The New York-based group called on the UN Security Council to put Myanmar on its agenda, after the council agreed in an April resolution to shield civilians from genocide and other crimes against humanity.
“The UN has just committed itself again to protecting civilians at risk, and thousands of Burmese are in urgent need of such help,” said Brad Adams, Asia director of Human Rights Watch, in a statement.
Military-run Myanmar, which used to be called Burma, launched an offensive against ethnic rebels in the eastern state of Karen in November.
Since then, humanitarian groups estimate that up to 11,000 Karen villagers have been chased out of their homes and that thousands more have suffered abuses such as execution, torture, rape and forced labor, the statement said.
The KNU said it appeared the military would press on during the upcoming wet season, as they were still moving troops and weapons to their forward camps.
“We strongly protest and condemn the (military’s) wicked act of increasing military operations against us, instead of working towards a nationwide ceasefire,” its statement said.

Agence France Presse
Wed 3 May 2006 

EU calls for cease-fire talks in Myanmar, end to abuses against civilians

The European Union called on the government of Myanmar and rebels with the ethnic Karen minority Wednesday to engage in cease-fire talks and end abuses against civilians.

In a statement from Austria’s EU presidency, the 25-nation bloc said it was “very concerned” that Myanmar’s army recently stepped up its campaign against the Karen rebels, displacing people and increasing the numbers of people fleeing as refugees to Thailand.
“The EU presidency calls upon the Burmese leadership to cease abuses and dislocations of civilians in the zones of conflict and urges both sides to strictly adhere to international humanitarian law,” it said, urging both sides to work toward a peaceful solution.
It asked both the government and the rebels “to pursue talks leading to a genuine and lasting cease-fire and to a sustainable political settlement.”
Karen guerrillas have been battling the central government for decades, seeking greater autonomy. Cease-fire talks broke down in 2004, and in recent months the Myanmar army has launched a major offensive in Karen State of eastern Myanmar.

Associated Press
Wed 3 May 2006 

US to accept Karen refugees

The US government has announced that it would accept Burmese refugees from the Thai-Burmese border on a case-by-case basis, according to Washington-based lobby group US Campaign for Burma.

The US State Department, on the orders of the Department of Homeland Security, recently held up resettlement plans for Karen refugees because of suspected links to armed opposition groups such as the Karen National Union and the All Burma Students’ Democratic Front-organizations that, under the 2001 US Patriot Act, could be classified as terrorist organizations.
Some Karen refugees have connections, sometimes through family, with the KNU, an organization opposed to military rule in Burma and that fights for greater autonomy in Burma’s Karen State.
Last Friday, the DHS announced it would make exceptions to a current blanket ban on groups currently labeled terrorists in the US after 40 congressmen and senators warned they would propose an amendment to current legislation on the issue, the 2001 Patriot Act and the more recent Real ID Act. The DHS on Tuesday said that Tham Hin refugee camp in Thailand, currently home to more than 9,000 Karen refugees, would be the first case to be tested under the new waiver system.
“People in Minnesota and Seattle are now preparing places for more than 1,800 refugees,” a Karen lobbyist in Washington, DC told The Irrawaddy by telephone today.
The State Department is understood to have pushed for the compromise for some time, despite strong resistance from the DHS.
Just before the decision was announced, Eric John, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for East Asia and the Pacific, told The Irrawaddy that Washington had got it wrong regarding its current legislation on refugees: “It’s not the situation that was intended to happen when the law was enacted, so it’s something we’re working on,” he said.
The US currently has a cap on the number of refugees it allows into the country annually-currently 80,000-but in practice, the actual amount is much smaller because the numbers of refugees globally have fallen in recent years.
According to a Karen Refugee Committee report on March 2006, there are more than 122,300 Karen refugees currently living in seven camps along the Thai-Burmese border.

Shah Paung
Irrawaddy
Wed 3 May 2006