Below are a set of links to all reports published by KHRG matching your search criteria and compiled from information received from KHRG's field researchers. If you wish to search for a particular report, please use our main search page.
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SLORC Orders to Villages: Set 96-F, Central Karen State [Orders report]
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Dec 10th, 1996 |
| Following are the direct translations of some written orders sent from SLORC Army units to Karen villages in the area south of Kawkareik, in south-central Karen State. They include demands for forced labour on roads and at Army camps, extortion money, food, building materials, and intelligence. Some are simply a summons for village elders to attend 'meetings' - these meetings at army camps are to dictate forced labour and extortion payment demands, and even though the Camp may be 3 to 5 miles away a 60-year old elder is expected to drop everything and walk there. |
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Porter Stories: Central Karen State [Regional or Thematic report]
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Oct 31st, 1996 |
| This report contains the testimony of three Muslim men who suffered and witnessed serious SLORC human rights abuses in central Karen State in mid-1996, including forced portering, forced road labour, executions, torture and looting. It is important to note that all of these occurred in a part of Karen State where there has been very little fighting over the past year, where SLORC claims to have brought "peace". |
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Interviews from Northern Pa'an District [Regional or Thematic report]
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Aug 4th, 1996 |
| The following interviews are with villagers from Dta Greh Township in Pa'an District of Karen State. (In Burmese, Dta Greh is called Pain Kyone and SLORC considers it to be in Hlaing Bwe township.) The area is 40-50 km. northeast of Pa’an, just west of the Dawna Range and the Thai border. SLORC (Burmese military junta), DKBA (Democratic Karen Buddhist Army, allied to SLORC), and KNU (Karen National Union, fighting SLORC and DKBA) forces all operate in the area, and the villagers are caught in the middle, having their livestock killed and their money extorted from them by all 3 groups. |
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SLORC & DKBA In Papun District [Regional or Thematic report]
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Aug 3rd, 1996 |
| Some of the interviews in this report are with Karen villagers who fled Papun District in northern Karen State to become refugees in Thailand in April and May 1996, and some are with villagers still living in Papun District, some in their villages and some in hiding. Much of this area used to be partly or completely controlled by the Karen National Union (KNU), until it was captured by SLORC in its major 1995 offensive with the help of DKBA (Democratic Karen Buddhist Army, the rival of KNU). |
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DKBA / SLORC Cross-Border Attacks [Regional or Thematic report]
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Aug 1st, 1996 |
| Since its inception in December 1994, the ‘Democratic Karen Buddhist Army’ (DKBA) has vowed to destroy all Karen refugee camps and force Karen refugees back to Burma. Since early 1995, the DKBA has been conducting cross-border raids into Thailand to attack and burn Karen refugee camps, kidnap or kill Karen leaders and refugee camp leaders, and loot both refugee camps and Thai villages. The DKBA allied itself with SLORC as soon as it was formed, and SLORC has been supporting them in the aim of terrorising refugees into returning to Burma. |
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SLORC Orders to Villages: Set 96-E, Central Karen State [Orders report]
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Jul 31st, 1996 |
| Following are the direct translations of some written orders sent from SLORC Army units to Karen villages in the area south of Kawkareik, in south-central Karen State. Most of them are demands for villages to send forced labourers, while some also demand food and building materials. Some are simply a summons for village elders to attend 'meetings' - these meetings at army camps are to dictate forced labour and extortion payment demands, and even though the Camp may be 3 to 5 miles away a 60-year old elder is expected to drop everything and walk there. |
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SLORC Orders to Villages: Set 96-D, Karenni State, 1995 [Orders report]
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Jul 29th, 1996 |
| This report contains direct translations of State Law & Order Restoration Council (SLORC) orders sent to villages and town quarters in Karenni (Kayah State) in 1995. Most of them are demands for frontline porters and bullock carts for SLORC troops to use in their offensive against the Karenni National Progressive Party (KNPP). The KNPP made a ceasefire with SLORC in March 1995 which SLORC broke in June 1995 with fresh attacks against Karenni positions, and these orders to villagers reflect part of the result. |
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Forced Labour Around Taungoo Town [Regional or Thematic report]
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Jul 28th, 1996 |
| The interviews in this report are with two Karen refugees who recently visited relatives in the plains just east of Taungoo town, in the far north of Karen State. Their accounts focus on the land destruction and forced labour of many villages east of Taungoo for the Pa Thee Chaung (Pa Thee River) hydroelectric dam project, as well as other kinds of forced labour such as standing guard along the roadsides. |
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Interviews About Shan State [Regional or Thematic report]
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Jul 27th, 1996 |
| The interviews in this report are with people from 2 areas over 300 kilometres apart: Mong Hsat in southeastern Shan State, about 70 km. west of Tachilek and 50 km. north of the Burma-Thai border, and Hsipaw in northwestern Shan State, along the main road from Mandalay to Lashio. |
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Interviews from the Irrawaddy Delta [Regional or Thematic report]
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Jul 26th, 1996 |
| The following accounts were given in interviews with people from the Irrawaddy Delta region southwest of Rangoon. The area is fertile farmland with a population which is half Karen and half Burman. Out of sight of the rest of the world and with no easy escape for the people who live there, it has seen some of the SLORC's worst human rights abuses, particularly after a failed attempt by the Karen National Union to start an armed Karen uprising there in 1991. |
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Karen Human Rights Group Commentary [KHRG Commentary]
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Jul 18th, 1996 |
| The State Law & Order Restoration Council (SLORC) junta ruling Burma is now using mass forced relocations of entire geographic regions as a major element of military strategy. While this is not new to SLORC tactics, they have seldom or never done it to such an extent or so systematically before. The large-scale relocations began in Papun District of Karen State in December 1995 and January 1996, when up to 100 Karen villages were ordered to move within a week or be shot. |
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Field Reports: Taungoo, Thaton & Pa'an Districts [Field report]
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Jul 18th, 1996 |
| This report provides a summary of some of the daily events in villages of Taungoo, Thaton, and Pa'an districts between February and May 1996. It is an update to "Field Reports: Taungoo and Other Districts" (KHRG #96-10, 29/2/96). |
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Forced Relocations in Karenni [Regional or Thematic report]
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Jul 15th, 1996 |
| Throughout June and July 1996, the State Law & Order Restoration Council (SLORC) military junta ruling Burma has conducted a mass forced relocation campaign covering more than half of the geographic area of Karenni and affecting at least 183 villages so far with an estimated total population of 25-30,000. |
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Forced Relocation in Central Shan State [Regional or Thematic report]
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Jun 25th, 1996 |
| In December 1995 Khun Sa and his Mong Tai Army (MTA) officially surrendered to SLORC. While this was publicized as a victory against the opium and heroin trade, there has been no evidence of any decrease in drug production in newly SLORC-controlled areas. Meanwhile, a common feeling among people in Shan State (many or most of whom never trusted Khun Sa) is that Khun Sa has betrayed the Shan national cause. Because of this, large segments of the MTA have refused to surrender, instead continuing to fight SLORC using guerrilla tactics in various parts of Shan State. |
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Shelling Attack on Sho Kloh Refugee Camp [Field report]
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Jun 19th, 1996 |
| At 6:10 p.m. on Thursday June 13, DKBA/SLORC on the Burma side of the Moei River commenced shelling Sho Kloh refugee camp, home to about 10,000 Karen refugees 110 km. north of the Thai town of Mae Sot. The camp is about 1 km. inside Thai territory. Over the space of 20 minutes, the attackers fired 4 to 6 mortar shells, later identified as Chinese 60mm. shells (which are part of SLORC's armoury but not of opposition groups). The shells were aimed at the centre of the camp. |
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Mass Forced Relocations In Shan and Karenni (Kayah) States [Field report]
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Jun 16th, 1996 |
| SLORC is currently using mass forced relocation campaigns as a method to try to eliminate all civilian support for opposition forces. In December 1995 and January 1996, about 100 Karen villages comprising all the hill villages in eastern Papun District were ordered to move to military sites in order to cut off any civilian support for Karen forces by completely removing the rural civilian population of the whole area. SLORC now seems to have ceased this operation, possibly because the Karen National Union is engaged in ceasefire talks. However, starting in March 1996 it began an even larger forced relocation campaign in central and southern Shan State. |
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SLORC Orders to Villages: Set 96-C, Ye-Tavoy Railway, Dooplaya District [Orders report]
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May 27th, 1996 |
| This report contains direct translations of several SLORC orders sent to villages in 1995. Orders #1 thru #15 were issued in the Ye-Tavoy railway area and concern railway labour. The Burmese copies of these orders were provided to KHRG by XXXX. Orders #16 and #17 were issued to Karen villages further north in Dooplaya District. |
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Karen Human Rights Group Commentary [KHRG Commentary]
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May 26th, 1996 |
| Right now the Karen National Union (KNU) is trying to conduct ceasefire negotiations with the SLORC (State Law & Order Restoration Council) military junta ruling Burma. Though the SLORC claims to be making every effort to bring peace to the country, they are still refusing to even discuss any political or human rights issues, and as a result the talks are making no progress. Many observers feel that the SLORC is not yet interested in a ceasefire, but wants to launch major attacks against the KNU first in order to weaken the KNU so it can be forced to accept what amount to surrender terms.
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Effects of the Gas Pipeline Project [Regional or Thematic report]
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May 23rd, 1996 |
| In southern Burma's Tenasserim Division, the Yadana Project is continuing. The multi-billion dollar project aims to tap offshore natural gas deposits known as the Yadana Field in the Gulf of Martaban and send the gas by overland pipeline to power plants in Thailand. The partners in the project are SLORC's oil company MOGE (Myanmar Oil & Gas Enterprise), French oil giant TOTAL, American company Unocal, and Thailand's PTTEP. TOTAL is the company actively supervising construction of the 60-km. overland segment of the pipeline from the sea coast to the Thai border. The pipeline is scheduled to go online in 1998. |
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Forced Labour in Mon Areas [Regional or Thematic report]
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May 22nd, 1996 |
| The accounts below were given by villagers from coastal areas of Mon State and Tenasserim Division in southern Burma, ranging from Kya In Seik Gyi Township in the north to Ye Pyu Township in the south. The main problems they discuss are forced labour on the Ye-Tavoy railway, the Ye-Tavoy motor road and other roads, at army camps and as porters, and the increasing extortion of money from villagers by the ever-increasing number of SLORC troops in the region. Ye Town now has regular curfews; parts of Ye Pyu Township are under martial law because of the gas pipeline project; travel is becoming more difficult as more and more army checkpoints are set up where everyone has to pay in order to pass. |
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Interviews with SLORC Army Deserters [Regional or Thematic report]
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May 18th, 1996 |
| The following accounts of life in SLORC's Army were given by four deserters who fled to opposition-held territory or to Thailand, one fleeing in Tenasserim Division of southern Burma around New Year of 1996, the other three fleeing Pa'an District, much further north, in March 1996. As they fled two different battalions in two different areas, their treatment and experiences differ somewhat; however, for the most part their stories are similar and reflect the hardship and brutality of life as a rank and file soldier in the SLORC Army. |
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Forced Labour in the Irrawaddy Delta [Regional or Thematic report]
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May 16th, 1996 |
| The following accounts were given in interviews with people from the Irrawaddy Delta region southwest of Rangoon. The area is fertile farmland with a population which is half Karen and half Burman. Out of sight of the rest of the world and with no easy escape for the people who live there, it has seen some of the SLORC’s worst human rights abuses, particularly after a failed attempt by the Karen National Union to start a Karen uprising there in 1991. Now the region suffers from extensive forced labour on SLORC road-building projects and tourism-related projects such as Bassein Airport and the Nga Saw beach project. |
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The Situation in Pa'an District [Regional or Thematic report]
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May 15th, 1996 |
| A small but steady flow of refugees from Pa'an District continue to cross the border into Thailand as living conditions in Pa'an District continue to deteriorate. SLORC is increasingly in control there, and the DKBA (Democratic Kayin Buddhist Army, the Karen group allied to SLORC) is present throughout the area but is increasingly functioning only as an adjunct to SLORC; DKBA troops are now even supervising forced labour on road construction, especially on a new 50-km. road from Pa'an to DKBA headquarters at Myaing Gyi Ngu. |
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Interviews on the School Situation [Regional or Thematic report]
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May 10th, 1996 |
| The following accounts were given in interviews in early May 1996 with a schoolteacher from Karen State and a student from Mon State. Their names have been changed and some personal details omitted to protect them. |
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The Situation of Children in Burma [Article or paper]
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May 1st, 1996 |
| This summary is intended for consideration by the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child. It has been prepared partly in response to the report filed by the State Law & Order Restoration Council (SLORC), Burma’s ruling military junta. It does not contain a paragraph-by-paragraph analysis of SLORC’s report, but instead attempts to summarize some of the worst problems facing Burma’s children today and point out some of the most glaring fallacies in the SLORC report. All of the observations and quotations included here are taken from our 4 years of living among and interviewing villagers, refugees and the internally displaced. |
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KHRG Intervention at the United Nations Commission on Human Rights [Article or paper]
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Apr 14th, 1996 |
| The intervention below was given on behalf of the International Work Group for Indigenous Affairs (IWGIA) by Kevin Heppner of the Karen Human Rights Group at the April 1996 session of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights |
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Human Rights in Karen Areas of Burma [Article or paper]
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Apr 8th, 1996 |
| Right now the opposition Karen National Union (KNU) is trying to conduct ceasefire negotiations with the SLORC (State Law & Order Restoration Council) military junta ruling Burma. Though the SLORC claims to be making every effort to bring peace to the country, they are still refusing to even discuss any political or human rights issues, and as a result the talks are making no progress. Many observers feel that the SLORC is not yet interested in a ceasefire, but wants to launch major attacks against the KNU first in order to weaken the KNU so it can be forced to accept what amount to surrender terms.
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Abuses in Tee Sah Ra Area [Regional or Thematic report]
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Apr 1st, 1996 |
| The information below was sent in as field reports from independent human rights monitors and the newly formed Hsaw Wah Deh human rights reporting group, an independent group of Karens interested in documenting the situation in the villages. This report focusses on the Tee Sah Ra / Ker Ghaw area of Kawkareik Township, north of Myawaddy and about 15 km. west of the border with Thailand. In the area SLORC are working closely with DKBA to clamp down on the civilian population. There is still some presence of Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA) in the area, and this report shows the nature and extent of SLORC and DKBA's retaliation against villagers whenever the KNLA attacks them. |
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Inside the DKBA [Regional or Thematic report]
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Mar 31st, 1996 |
| This report is intended to provide some insight into the current workings of the DKBA (Democratic Kayin Buddhist Army) through interviews with people who are or have been part of the DKBA, people who have been prisoners of the DKBA, and other general information sources such as the 1996 DKBA Calendar. The report consists of 2 parts: a summary of information about the DKBA, followed by related interviews. |
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Refugees from Pa'an District [Regional or Thematic report]
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Mar 18th, 1996 |
| The refugees in this report are all from the area around Bee T'Ka, north of Kawkareik towards Hlaing Bwe. In this area, SLORC and DKBA are ruling in tandem, with a limited presence of KNLA still in the area. Villagers are finding that now they have to pay fees and provide forced labour for both SLORC and DKBA, and that the DKBA have no qualms about handing over villagers to be tortured or executed by SLORC. |
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Road Construction in Pa'an District [Regional or Thematic report]
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Mar 16th, 1996 |
| SLORC has been initiating more and more projects nationwide to build hundreds of roads with forced labour, primarily with the idea that more roads mean better military access to the countryside, which in turn means more effective military control over the population. Though in some cases they receive foreign money to build these roads, they prefer to keep the money and order out thousands of villagers to do forced labour for nothing. The same villagers are also forced to pay "fees" for the road construction as though it is for their benefit. Heavy machinery is very rarely used; SLORC prefers to use the manual labour of thousands of villagers. |
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Forced Relocation in Papun District [Regional or Thematic report]
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Mar 4th, 1996 |
| SLORC has seriously stepped up its campaign to clear the entire rural population out of Papun District and make the entire area a free-fire zone. Since December 1995, orders have been issued to every rural village under SLORC control from Kyauk Nyat in the north to Ka Dtaing Dtee in the south, from the Salween River (the Thai border) in the east to at least 10 km. west of Papun - an area 50-60 km. north to south and 30 km. east to west. |
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Notes on Landmine Use: SLORC and KNLA [Article or paper]
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Mar 3rd, 1996 |
| The most common landmine used is the American M-76, of which the Burmese now manufacture their own copies. Almost all of these found used to be American-made, but now more are the Burmese copies. They are the "classic" landmine design, made of heavy-duty metal, cylindrical, about 2" diameter and 4-5" high, with a screw-in top the diameter of a pencil which extends a couple of inches above the body of the mine - this screw-in top is surmounted by a plunger the size of a pencil eraser which is what sets off the mine. |
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Field Reports: Taungoo and Other Districts [Field report]
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Feb 29th, 1996 |
| This report provides a summary of some of the daily events in Taungoo, Papun, Thaton, Nyaunglebin and Dooplaya districts since September 1995. The information was obtained by KHRG in the form of field reports from human rights monitors and relief workers in Karen districts and from radio messages transmitted by Karen military units in frontline areas. |
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Photo Set 96-A [Photoset]
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Feb 27th, 1996 |
| This document gives descriptions for Photo Set 96-A, including Ye-Tavoy railway construction, the shelling of Wah Baw village, and ongoing SLORC abuses in Taungoo District and south of Kawkareik. |
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SLORC Orders to Villages: Set 96-B, Taungoo District [Orders report]
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Feb 23rd, 1996 |
| Following are the direct translations of SLORC typed and handwritten orders sent to Karen villages in Taungoo District in mid-1995. At that time SLORC was intensifying its "Four Cuts" program in the area, ordering villages to move and burning villages and food supplies in order to cut off all possibility of civilian support for the few Karen resistance forces still remaining in the area. |
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SLORC Orders to Villages: Set 96-A, Kya-In & Kawkareik Area [Orders report]
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Feb 20th, 1996 |
| Following are the direct translations of SLORC typed and handwritten orders sent to Karen villages in the Kya In and Kawkareik areas of Karen State. All of these orders were signed by SLORC Army (Tatmadaw) officers or SLORC officials, and most of the orders bear the rubber stamps of the issuing military unit. Many of them were copied and sent to many villages. Photocopies of the original orders (with certain details such as village names blacked out) are available on request. |
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Papun District: Mass Forced Relocations [Field report]
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Feb 18th, 1996 |
| SLORC has seriously stepped up its campaign to clear the entire rural population out of Papun District and make the entire area a free-fire zone. Since December 1995, orders have been issued to every rural village under SLORC control from Kyauk Nyat in the north to Ka Dtaing Dtee in the south, from the Salween River (the Thai border) in the east to at least 10 km. west of Papun - an area 50-60 km. north to south and 30 km. east to west. This area is rugged hills dotted with small villages, averaging 10-50 households (population 50-300) per village. Estimates are that 100 or more villages are affected. |
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SLORC in Kya-In and Kawkareik Townships [Regional or Thematic report]
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Feb 10th, 1996 |
| This report contains interviews conducted between December 1995 and February 1996 with villagers from the area south of Kawkareik in Karen State. When most of the interviews were conducted, the military situation in the area was relatively quiet; however, by February 1996 many people were beginning to flee the area due to rumours of an impending SLORC offensive. Much of the area lies along SLORC's path should they decide to launch a major offensive against the new Karen National Union headquarters areas of Ta Law Thaw and Lay Po Hta. |
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The Situation in Northwestern Burma [Regional or Thematic report]
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Jan 30th, 1996 |
| This report contains information about the situation for civilians in Chin State, Arakan State and Sagaing Division of northwestern Burma. Despite the fact that there is little or no fighting in the areas covered by this information, the people in these areas are suffering SLORC human rights abuses which are very similar to those being experienced by villagers and townspeople in war zones at the opposite end of the country. The similarity makes it clear that such abuses are not "isolated occurrences", as some foreign governments and international agencies would have us believe, but systematic SLORC policy. |
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Karen Human Rights Group Commentary [KHRG Commentary]
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Jan 15th, 1996 |
| Two words which are getting more attention in Burma these days are "national reconciliation". These two words represent something which desperately needs to occur in Burma. They refer to a reconciliation of the different nationalities in the country - in other words, not only a ceasefire but a lasting political solution to the nationwide civil war, a durable political agreement between leaders of all the ethnic groups in Burma, including the Burmans. |
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SLORC / DKBA Activities: Pa'an District [Regional or Thematic report]
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Jan 14th, 1996 |
| The following report was given in an interview with KHRG in early January by a civilian medic and human rights monitor who just returned from Pa’an District. The area he visited, also known as part of KNU 7th Brigade, was until 1995 mainly controlled by the KNU and not much bothered by SLORC; however, SLORC’s extensive offensives throughout 1995 have greatly weakened KNU presence in the area. In the process, SLORC installed the DKBA in the area and the two groups now effectively control it. |
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The Shelling of Wah Baw Village [Regional or Thematic report]
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Jan 12th, 1996 |
| The Karen calendar is lunar, and Karen New Year generally falls between 15 December and 15 January on the English calendar. This year Karen New Year, the first day of Thalay month of the year 2735, fell on 21 December 1995. Karens throughout Burma, Thailand and other countries celebrated with ceremonies, speeches, giving gifts to elders, music, Don Dance competitions and feasting. It crosses all religious boundaries and is one of the few expressions of Karen identity which is allowed by SLORC. |
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Conditions North of Myawaddy [Regional or Thematic report]
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Jan 10th, 1996 |
| The following reports were collected by independent Karen civilian human rights monitors who visited the area north of Myawaddy in November and December 1995. This area is under firm SLORC control. The DKBA (Democratic Kayin Buddhist Army, often referred to in this report as "Ko Per Baw" - the "Yellow Headbands") also operates in the area in cooperation with SLORC. The Thai Government claims that now that fighting has died down in this and some other areas, it will soon be time to drive all the refugees back across to villages there. |
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Story of a Mon Political Prisoner [Regional or Thematic report]
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Jan 9th, 1996 |
| In early 1994, Thai authorities forced about 5,000 Mon refugees across the border into Burma. The refugees, afraid to go into a SLORC-controlled area, settled just across the border and established a refugee camp at Halockhani, where they continued to receive some cross-border aid from foreign aid organizations. On July 21, 1994, the camp was attacked by a large column of SLORC Infantry Battalion #62 troops commanded by Lt. Col. Ohn Myint. |
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Ye-Tavoy Area Update [Regional or Thematic report]
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Jan 5th, 1996 |
| This report provides an update on some of the conditions existing in the Ye-Tavoy area, with particular focus on the Ye-Tavoy railway construction project. |
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Update on Karen Refugee Situation [Field report]
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Jan 1st, 1996 |
| Burma has agreed to allow over 70,000 of its citizens who have taken refuge in camps along the border to return home. An agreement was reached at yesterday’s meeting in Myawaddy of the Joint Local Thai-Burmese Border Committee, according to Col. Suvit Maen-muan. At the meeting, Col. Suvit and a team of five officials met the team of Lt. Col. Kyaw Hlaing, and the latter accepted a proposal on the return of over 70,000 refugees. A list has been drawn up of over 9,000 refugees at Sho Klo camp in Tha Song Yang who are to be voluntarily repatriated as soon as Burma is ready, Col. Suvit said. |
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