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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 […]

Skyfall: Myanmar’s junta targets IDP camp without warning

November 16, 2023/in Briefing Papers, ND-Burma's Reports

On 1 February 2021, the Burmese military attempted a coup, resulting in the rise of a national resistance movement on an unprecedented scale. Following a brutal crackdown and a national uprising on an unprecedented scale, 4,160 people, including pro-democracy activists and civilians have been killed by the junta and pro-military groups, 25,353 people have been […]

Karenni officials: 200 university workers are safe after evacuation

November 21, 2023/in News

Skyfall: Myanmar’s junta targets IDP camp without warning

November 16, 2023/in Briefing Papers, ND-Burma's Reports

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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

Skyfall: Myanmar’s junta targets IDP camp without warning

November 16, 2023/in Briefing Papers, ND-Burma's Reports

Resistance to the junta took many forms, including establishment of the Committee Representing the Pyidaungsu Hluttaw (CRPH), National Unity Government (NUG), National Unity Consultative Council (NUCC) and the National Unity Government (NUG). The People’s Defense Force (PDF) was established in May 2021 by the NUG, to serve as the armed wing of the resistence movement. Since then, the PDF in various forms has operated nationwide, both under and outside of NUG authority, including in the areas that were historically non-conflict, such as Sagaing and Magway Region and in areas controlled by Ethnic Revolution Organizations (EROs).

Chin State, Karen State, Karenni (Kayah) State, Kachin State, Sagaing and Magway regions are among those targeted with routine air and ground strikes by Military Junta. According to UNHCR, the number of estimated of IDPs displaced within Myanmar at the beginning of the coup was 306, 200 and IDPs increased in post-coup as of 23^rd October 2023 is 1,659,600, which means displacement has increased by 441% since February 2021. Since the coup, the junta has failed to take control of the country, and the Special Advisory Council for Myanmar (SAC-M)’s own report released in 2022 stated that the junta can only control of around 20 percent of the country’s townships. The rest areas were either controlled or heavily contested by ethnic resistance organizations (EROs) and local PDFs.

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Spring Revolution

Civil Society Position Paper on ASEAN’s Goal of a Myanmar-Owned and -Led SolutionDecember 18, 2024 - 12:11 pm
Recommendations to ASEAN and Its Member States (1) Move beyond the 5PC to achieve a Myanmar people-led and people-centered solution to the crisis in Myanmar. ASEAN’s “Myanmar-owned and -led” approach must be backed by genuine political will that aligns with and supports the collective aspirations of the people of Myanmar. (2) Cease all pressure on […]
The Airstrikes after the journey to the China of the Junta Military LeaderDecember 10, 2024 - 1:28 pm
Operation 1027 was a coordinated military attack against the junta on October 27th, 2023. It was carried out by the Northern Brotherhood, which includes the Arakan Army, Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army, and the Ta’ang National Liberation Army. Several months later, the Three Brotherhood Alliance held three meetings to negotiate with China on January 11 […]
Human Rights Situation weekly update (September 15 to 21, 2024)September 27, 2024 - 8:26 am
Human Rights Violations took place in States and Regions from Sep 15 to 21, 2024 Military Junta Troop launched airstrikes and dropped bombs in Sagaing Region, Mandalay Region, Shan State, Chin State, Rakhine State, and Kachin State from September 15th to 21st. The Military Junta committed arresting, occupying the properties, threatening by using power, and […]

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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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