ND Burma
ND-Burma formed in 2004 in order to provide a way for Burma human rights organizations to collaborate on the human rights documentation process. The 13 ND-Burma member organizations seek to collectively use the truth of what communities in Burma have endured to advocate for justice for victims. ND-Burma trains local organizations in human rights documentation; coordinates members’ input into a common database using Martus, a secure open-source software; and engages in joint-advocacy campaigns.
Recent Posts
- Junta targeting rebel-held areas in northern Myanmar with airstrikes and artillery
- Human Rights Situation weekly update (September 8 to 14, 2024)
- Myanmar National Organizing Committee for ACSC/APF ASEAN Civil Society Conference/ASEAN People’s Forum 2024
- Human Rights Situation weekly update (September 1 to 7, 2024)
- Red Cross chief calls for greater aid access after visit to Myanmar
An elderly woman hit and injured from one sided firing of heavy weaponry shells by Military Council at PanHnin village, Namhsan Township
/in NewsTa’ang Women’s Organization
One sided firing of heavy weaponry shell hit a local woman from Panning village, Namsan Township in northern Shan State.
About noon time yesterday on November 20, heavy weaponry shells fired one sided from military camp based in Namsan hit and injured the left foot of a (85) years old elderly woman.
A responsible person from PanHnin village said, “Three shells dropped around the village, two dropped outside the village and one dropped and blasted in the middle of village. A sharpener from the shell hit the elderly person. She was injured at her leg. Now, they don’t dare to travel and she was treated at the village.”
Villager at Nanning village and Ohmswam village no longer dared to stay in the village after one sided heavy weaponry shelling by terror military council, they had to stay in tealeaf plantation farms, he continued.
“They never came to shoot like this before. This was the first time. When the shells dropped yesterday, it was when the children left the school. Only the children were left in the village, and the parents went to the forest to pick tea leaves. Some children were afraid and crying. Today, the people of the village are going to stay at the tealeaf farms because they don’t dare to live in the village.”
Local residents said that there is no military base in the village and there is no fighting, and the firing of heavy weaponry shells like this without specific target is not safe for the people and it is not convenient for them to work.
Together with this incident in Namsan Township due to aerial attacks and heavy weaponry shelling without specific target, three people were killed, (13) were injured and 27 houses were damaged within two days.
Three Children Injured in Explosion While Playing with Unexploded Ordnance, Undergoing Treatment in China
/in NewsThree children living in Monekoe Township, Muse Division, northern Shan State, were playing with an unexploded heavy weaponry shell when they went to herd buffalo, and it exploded, reportedly injuring all three of them, who are currently being treated at Mang Shi Hospital on the Chinese border.
A monk who is aware of the incident and uses WeChat said: “The children were out herding buffalo, and when they saw an RPG (Rocket-propelled grenade), they started playing with it, tossing it around. When they threw it, it exploded, and all three of them were injured with serious wounds. They are currently receiving treatment at the hospital, and so far, I am not sure if their injuries have improved because there is no phone signal.”
Regarding the current fighting, he further stated that on the side of Monekoe, the local residences and many residents have been affected due to the military council forces using planes and heavy weapons to open fire. However, accurate information collection is currently not possible.
The Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA) announced that during the last week of October, the Terror Military Council conducted an aerial bombardment on Shing Kyait village in Nant Tong, Monekoe Township. This resulted in the immediate deaths of 5 local residents, including 3 children.
Photo- local Resident
Ta’ang Women’s Organization – TWO
The statement on Terror Military Council’s Attacks Targeting Civilians including Women
/in Member statementsHuman Rights Situation weekly update (November 15 to 21, 2023)
/in HR Situation, NewsHuman Rights Violations took place in States and Regions from Nov 15 to 21, 2023
Military Junta Troop launched airstrikes and dropped bombs in Mandalay Region, Bago Region, Mon State, Chin State, and Shan State from November 15th to 21st. Military Junta destroyed 4 of the civilian bridges in Kale, Sagaing Region, and Kyaikmaraw Township, Mon State. The military also prohibited access to travel and fishing in Kyaukphyu Township, Rakhine State on November 19th. Military Junta arrested and extorted the youths who go out at night in the Yangon Region.
Over 50 civilians died and 9 were injured within a week by the Military Junta’s heavy and light attacks. 11 underaged children died when the Military Junta committed violations. PSLF/TNLA released a statement on November 18th that the Military Junta Troop used the Toxic Gas Bombs in the fighting in Namkhan Township, North Shan State.
Infogram
Media release by Kachin Women’s Association Thailand, ND-Burma and Spring Archive
/in Press Releases and StatementsOn October 9th, 2023, at 11:30pm, the Myanmar military launched a deadly attack on the Mung Lai Hkyet IDP camp in Waimaw township, Kachin state. The attack, which took place in Kachin Independence Organisation territory close to the China border, destroyed the camp and the surrounding area, resulting in the deaths of 29 civilians, including 11 children, and leaving 76 camp members badly injured. ‘Skyfall: Myanmar’s Junta Targets IDP Camp Without Warning’ is a collaborative investigation on this incident from Kachin Women’s Association Thailand, ND-Burma and Spring Archive. The piece draws on interviews with survivors, community leaders and on the ground sources to examine the series of events that led to the attack, the event itself and the psycho-social impact on survivors.
“We have heavy trauma from this incident. Previously we were displaced by the fighting and lost everything we owned, so now we start our life again from zero. We faced similar situation again so I’m disappointed and don’t want to live anymore. I can’t find proper word to describe our life. Now we all are stay together difficulties in the temporary shelter.” (Survivor, Mung Lai Hkyet camp)
The authors condemn the attack in no uncertain terms, and the research asserts that the incident at Mung Lai Hkyet constitutes a war crime and a crime against humanity. While evidence of crimes and human rights violations by the Myanmar military is ongoing, the survivors of this attack have still to face fresh challenges, as an already displaced population must contend with the destruction of their shelters and possessions, as well as the loss of loved ones.
“We have received some humanitarian assistance, [however] furthermore we need counseling for our mental health; even when we hear phone ring, we are sacred” (Survivor, Mung Lai Hkyet camp)
Urgent and long-term support, operationalised by local CSOs who are the best placed to deliver, must be priortised by humanitarian aid organisations and all ethnic governance institutions. It must also be acknowledged that women and girls suffer disproportionately from conflict, displacement and poverty, and their needs must be particularly considered.
For more information please contact;
Ja Ing
Signal +66 64 195 6721
office@ndburma.org
Karenni officials: 200 university workers are safe after evacuation
/in NewsMyanmar’s junta alleges the teachers and staff members were being detained after recent fighting.
More than 200 civilians evacuated from a university during recent fighting in the Kayah state capital in eastern Myanmar are being provided health care at a safe location, Karenni officials told Radio Free Asia.
The military junta has alleged that the civilians, which include teachers and the rector from Loikaw University, were being detained against their will.
“Some of them seem to be in a good mood, but some others said they are missing their family members,” said Banyar, the director of the Karenni Human Rights Organization. “We have told them that we will proceed in accordance with rules and regulations.”
Fighting began in Loikaw in eastern Myanmar on Nov. 11 when the Karenni Nationalities Defense Force, or KNDF, targeted junta bases and a prison in the city. Junta troops retaliated with airstrikes and shelling, killing 20 civilians, according to the Karenni Human Rights Organization.
The KNDF announced on Nov. 15 that they had successfully occupied the university, where two battalions of military junta soldiers had been stationed. The soldiers had frequently raided and shelled nearby villages, according to KNDF Chairman Khun Bedu.
Regime spokesperson Maj. Gen. Zaw Min Tun said the attack on Loikaw University was a “barbaric act” and alleged that Karenni troops had killed some teachers and taken other teachers hostage.
Khun Bedu denied these accusations, saying the attack was carried out only because soldiers were stationed there.
A Karenni National Progressive Party official told RFA that junta troops used some university staff members and students as human shields during the fighting. They were evacuated to a secure place and no one has been tortured or killed, he said.
“We are working to allow them to go to their destinations safely,” he said. “We are not using them as human shields like the military did.”
On Monday, the KNDP published a recorded video clip on its social media page with statements from the university’s rector and several teachers.
Some of the university staff members were being questioned about possible junta associations, said Banyar, who goes by one name. Legal action may be taken against some of them, he said on Monday. He did not provide specific details.
Artillery attacks and air strikes
Karenni forces launched their offensive this month after their northern allies’ “Operation 1027,” during which rebel groups won control of three major cities in Shan state.
The Karenni Humanitarian Aid Initiative on Tuesday said air strikes and artillery attacks killed 68 civilians between Nov. 11-19 in Loikaw and Shan’s Pekon township. Victims included 10 children and 18 women, the group said.
The information was gathered from the Karenni Human Rights Organization and media reports, they said.
A humanitarian volunteer for Karenni displaced persons told RFA that the actual casualty toll may be higher.
“We cannot get some figures from the frontlines of battles,” the volunteer said. “As the military was being defeated in the battles, they carried out air strikes on civilian targets and shot people dead.”
RFA attempted to contact Myint Kyi, junta spokesperson for Kayah state, but phone calls went unanswered.
Neither the junta nor Kareni forces have stated total casualty tolls from the fighting that began on Nov. 11.
Elsewhere in Myanmar, a People’s Defense Force in Chin state said they have occupied a military outpost at Kennedy Peak between Kalay and Tedim townships.
About 30 junta soldiers had been stationed at the outpost since the February 2021 military coup.
“We began to attack this outpost at 4 a.m., and totally controlled the camp at around 6 a.m.,” an official from PDF Zoland told RFA. “It was the highest mountain in northern Chin and strategically important. So we captured it.”
RFA attempted to contact Kyaw Soe Win, the social affairs minister and junta spokesperson for Chin state government, for his response but was unable to reach him.
RFA News