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Media release by Kachin Women’s Association Thailand, ND-Burma and Spring Archive

November 21, 2023/in Press Releases and Statements

On 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 […]

Karenni officials: 200 university workers are safe after evacuation

November 21, 2023/in News

Myanmar’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 […]

Media release by Kachin Women’s Association Thailand, ND-Burma and Spring Archive

November 21, 2023/in Press Releases and Statements

Karenni officials: 200 university workers are safe after evacuation

November 21, 2023/in News

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Media release by Kachin Women’s Association Thailand, ND-Burma and Spring Archive

November 21, 2023/in Press Releases and Statements

On October 9^th, 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

Download Report (English Version)

Karenni officials: 200 university workers are safe after evacuation

November 21, 2023/in News

Myanmar’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.

ENG_BUR_KayahFighting_11212023.2.JPG — Karenni Nationalities Defense Force fighters stand at Loikaw University in Loikaw, Myanmar, in this still image taken from video released Nov. 16, 2023. Credit: Karenni Nationalities Defense Force/Handout via Reuters

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.

ENG_BUR_KayahFighting_11212023.3.JPG — Myanmar military soldiers who surrendered to the Karenni Nationalities Defense Force ride in the back of a vehicle in Loikaw, Myanmar, in this still image taken from video released Nov. 15, 2023. Credit: Karenni Nationalities Defense Force/Handout via Reuters

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

Spring Revolution

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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 […]
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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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