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Military launches airstrikes after soldiers defect to resistance

July 18, 2022/in News

Thousands of people were forced to flee as their villages in eastern Depayin Township came under attack last Thursday Myanmar’s military carried out airstrikes on several villages in Sagaing Township’s Depayin Township last week following the defection of three soldiers, according to local sources. Thousands of people have fled their homes since Thursday, when the […]

As many as 15 anti-regime teachers arrested in Myanmar

July 18, 2022/in News

They include the founder of an online school for students boycotting classes. Myanmar’s military junta has been rounding up teachers who are members of the Civil Disobedience Movement (CMD) and have been giving online lessons at a school linked to the shadow National Unity Government (NUG). Kaung for You was set up to educate pupils […]

Military launches airstrikes after soldiers defect to resistance

July 18, 2022/in News

As many as 15 anti-regime teachers arrested in Myanmar

July 18, 2022/in News

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Military launches airstrikes after soldiers defect to resistance

July 18, 2022/in News

Thousands of people were forced to flee as their villages in eastern Depayin Township came under attack last Thursday

Myanmar’s military carried out airstrikes on several villages in Sagaing Township’s Depayin Township last week following the defection of three soldiers, according to local sources.

Thousands of people have fled their homes since Thursday, when the eastern Depayin villages of Mayakan, Nyaung Hla, Namyar, Yin Kyay and Nyaungbintha all came under attack, residents said.

People living in neighbouring Khin-U Township, which is on the eastern side of the Muu River, opposite the area targeted by the airstrikes, said the offensive began at around 1:30 and lasted more than 40 minutes.

“Two helicopters were used to drop soldiers into the area, while two more fired relentlessly. It was brutal, and very loud,” said a resident of Muu Thar, a village on the eastern bank of the river.

Another Khin-U villager told Myanmar Now that the helicopters carrying the reinforcement troops landed in Namyar and Yin Kyay, while Mayakan bore the brunt of the aerial assault.

“They launched an air attack on Mayakan, even though there hasn’t been any recent fighting there,” said the resident of Tataing, a village on the eastern side of the Muu River.

“The soldiers who were transported into the area immediately started attacking the villages nearby,” he added.

The attacks appeared to have been prompted by the recent defection of soldiers stationed in the area.

According to the leader of a local defence force, the incident occurred a week after two soldiers turned themselves in and a day after another defected.

“Three junta soldiers have surrendered to us. One brought his weapons with him, but the other two didn’t,” said Kaung Kin, the leader of a Depayin-based resistance group.

“They said they were forced to torch civilians’ houses for no reason and arrest and execute people without proper evidence that they had done anything wrong. They said they didn’t want to do those things anymore,” he added.

According to a support group for displaced civilians, at least three people, including two children, were injured as they fled the attack. More complete casualty figures were not available, however, as many villagers were still on the run, they added.

Myanmar Now attempted to reach junta officials for comment on the airstrike, but did not receive a response.

Myanmar’s military regime routinely denies targeting civilians in its efforts to crush resistance forces, despite abundant evidence that it does so on an almost daily basis.

The junta also declines to comment on defectors. According to the shadow National Unity Government, nearly 3,000 soldiers have deserted from the military since last year’s coup, with many joining the side of the country’s anti-regime resistance forces.

Myanmar Now News

As many as 15 anti-regime teachers arrested in Myanmar

July 18, 2022/in News

They include the founder of an online school for students boycotting classes.

Myanmar’s military junta has been rounding up teachers who are members of the Civil Disobedience Movement (CMD) and have been giving online lessons at a school linked to the shadow National Unity Government (NUG).

Kaung for You was set up to educate pupils who are boycotting classes or have been unable to attend school. It offers online education by CDM teachers for around 20,000 children across the country.

“We heard that up to 15 people were arrested in Yangon, Mandalay, Shan state and Thanintharyi region,” a member of the Myanmar Teachers’ Federation (MTF) told RFA on Monday.

“The parents of the students are so worried. I warned Kaung for You school to be careful before the arrests. Anything can happen at any time when [the school] is public,” said the MTF member, who declined to be named for safety reasons.

The arrests took place between July 13 and July 18 and included Kaung for You founder Kaung Thaik Soe, the assistant director for education at Myitthar township in Mandalay region.

The school’s plan to move from online lessons to classroom teaching last Wednesday was halted by the arrests that day of Kaung Thaik Soe and two teachers. The junta announced the arrests three days later.

The school says its website was then hacked, allowing the military council to locate and arrest other teachers.

Students and parents told RFA they were also afraid of being arrested if their names and addresses had also been leaked.

The NUG’s Ministry of Education denounced the arrests as a violation of children’s rights to free education. It said it would offer help to the detained teachers, continue courses for pupils and open an emergency hotline to provide advice and assistance.

Aside from school boycotts, many children in Myanmar have been denied education since the coup on Feb.1, 2021 due to a surge in attacks on schools, teachers and students.

There were at least 260 attacks on schools between May 2021 and April this year, non-profit organization Save the Children said in a report last month.

In April bombs were found in four schools and there were three explosions in or close to schools. There were also 33 recorded cases of educational buildings being set on fire, 10 direct attacks on teachers and 10 schools occupied by the military.

The ruling junta says at least 40 teachers have been killed in demonstrations and fighting between troops and militias.

RFA News

Spring Revolution

Human Rights Situation weekly update (September 8 to 14, 2024)September 20, 2024 - 2:30 pm
Human Rights Violations took place in States and Regions from Sep 8 to 14, 2024 Military Junta Troop launched airstrikes and dropped bombs in the Magway Region, Shan State, Kachin State, and Rakhine State from September 8th to 14th. Military Junta arrested the civilians as human shields from Mindon Township, Magway Region, and Salingyi Township, […]
Human Rights Situation weekly update (September 1 to 7, 2024)September 13, 2024 - 5:08 pm
Human Rights Violations took place in States and Regions from Sep 1 to 7, 2024 Military Junta Troop launched airstrikes and dropped bombs in the Sagaing Region, Mandalay Region, Magway Region, and Shan State from September 1st to 7th. The Military Junta threatened that they would launch airstrikes on the townships which they lost. The […]
Human Rights Situation weekly update (Aug 22 to 31, 2024)September 7, 2024 - 4:09 pm
Human Rights Violations took place in States and Regions from Aug 22 to 31, 2024 Military Junta Troop launched airstrikes and dropped bombs in the Sagaing Region, Magway Region, Bago Region, Mandalay Region, Tanintharyi Region, and Shan State from August 22nd to 31st. Head of Prison which works under Military Junta, tortured and blackmailed the […]

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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.

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