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    Compiled by Free Burma Rangers, May 2007

    pg

    brutalityReport and Analysis o Burma Army Oensive Against the People oNorthern Karen State, Eastern Burma, February 2006-February 2007

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    2 A Campaign o Brutality

    Front cover: Naw Eh Ywa Paw, a 9-year-old Karen girl who was shot and wounded whileher ather and grandmother were shot to death by the Burma Army in March 2006

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    This report is dedicated to all those who havegiven their lives to the cause o reedom, justice

    and human dignity in Burma. It is not in vain.

    Thank you and God bless you,

    The Free Burma Rangers

    We are grateul to these people who inspire us and we are grateul or all the people and organizations that work indierent ways to alleviate suering now and support positive change or the uture. No one is doing this alone. Yourprayers, support and actions all give real hope and real help. Thank you and God bless you.

    Saw Lee Reh Saw Mu(Mr. Happy)

    Mya Win with hisdaughter beorehe died

    These are three o many who died during the making o thisreport. They were FBR team members.

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    People rom Hee Daw Kaw village in Toungoo District ee rom Burma Army attacks. September 06.

    A Campaign o Brutality

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    TABLE OF CONTENTS

    Iei Sa ................................................................................................................................ 7

    IIBakd ............................................................................................................................................ 11

    III

    Ba Saisis ...................................................................................................................................... 13

    Iv

    A Appiai Siai Dispad Pp

    Ka ad Kai Sas Ba

    Including a Brie Analysis o the Strategy and Tactics o the

    Burma Army and How the People Counter These. ............................................................................................................. 15

    v

    oi osi ..................................................................................................................... 27

    vI

    A capai Bai ......................................................................................................................... 41

    Report on the Burma Armys Attacks in Eastern Burma, 2006

    vII

    csi ............................................................................................................................................... 63

    10 reasons to be involved in Burma

    vIII

    Appdis ............................................................................................................................................. 67

    A. The Free Burma Rangers

    B. Maps and New Burma Army Camp Coordinates

    C. Order o Battle o Burmese Units

    D. Medical Statistics

    E. Civil disobedience, hope and one example o how the Karen people now under attack survive

    F. Resources

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    For over ty years, the dictators o Burmahave waged war against their own civilianpopulation. It is a war backed by a militaryo over 00,000 soldiers and is supportedby 0% o the nations budget. The BurmaArmys methodology is to conduct large-scale oensives like the one described in this

    report, ollowed by consolidation o territorygained and expansion o control and thenthe launching o new attacks.

    In spite o this oppression, the people oBurma have not given up. They need imme-diate protection, humanitarian assistance,and support or their pro-democracy organi-zations.

    6 A Campaign o Brutality

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    I . e x e c u t I v e S u m m A r y

    Mother holds dying baby girl in Mon Township. April 06.

    7

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    A Campaign o Brutality

    AttAcKS AnD cIvIl DISoBeDIence

    For over ty years, the dictators o Burma havewaged war against their own civilian population.It is a war backed by a military that has 00,000soldiers and is supported by 0% o the nationsbudget. The Burma Armys methodology is to con-duct large-scale oensives like the one describedin this report, ollowed by consolidation o terri-tory gained and expansion o control and then thelaunching o new attacks.

    During these oensives, the Burma Army attacksand burns villages, rapes, tortures, and kills people,destroys their sources o livelihood, and lays land-mines to prevent their return. The people supportpro-democracy groups that attempt to resist theattacks and control o the Burma Army. Even under

    this great oppression, the people have not givenup. While in hiding, they help each other set upschools, hold worship services, and organize tobest make use o the resources they have. Aterthe Burma Army leaves their village, they returnto salvage what they can. This reusal to give upconstitutes one o the greatest examples o civildisobedience o our time.

    This report outlines one oensive conducted bythe Burma Army against the Karen people in north-

    ern Karen State, eastern Burma. It also providesan insight into other means by which the dictatorsattempt to control and exploit the population inthe ethnic areas and provides an analysis o BurmaArmy strategy and tactics and how the ethnicresistance counters these. It describes the situationo the internally displaced people (IDPs) and makesrecommendations or action. Finally, it tells thestory o a people living on the edge o survival whohave not given up and need help.

    BurmA Army oFFenSIve: northern KArenStAte

    The Burma Armys most recent oensive in north-ern Karen State killed over 00 men, women andchildren and displaced over 2,000 people, most owhom are now in hiding, in a year o attacks thatbegan in February o 2006 and ran until February,2007. Over new Burma Army camps were builtin the areas o Papun, Nyaunglebin and Toungoodistricts.

    76 villagers have been killed, conrmed by FBR teammembers. Credible sources, including many ormer porters, report 26porters have also been killed by the Burma Army.

    The slow but unrelenting attacks and building onew camps seem to be driven by a plan to domi-nate, chase out or crush any people in these areas.This was the largest oensive in Karen State since997. It began in earnest in February 2006, withtroops rom over ty battalions attacking throughthe rainy season, and the construction o 7 newmain camps and 26 smaller support camps. TheBurma Army is now planning the construction otwo new roads that, when completed, will cut thenorthern Karen State into quarters.

    The disruption o their ood production, burning otheir homes and the shoot-on-sight orders o theBurma Army have made staying in their homelanduntenable or thousands o people. O the over2,000 displaced, over ,000 have already let theirhomes or the Thai border.

    Story: nAw eh y wA PAw

    The dictatorship o Burma has dehumanized theethnic peoples o Burma, killing, raping and terror-izing the population with impunity. The power othe oppressor is unrestrained.

    Naw Eh Ywa Paw (The Flower That Loves God) isa 9-year-old Karen girl who was shot during the o-ensive by the Burma Army in an attack that killed

    her ather and grandmother. This is her story.

    The attack itsel took place on 27 March, 2006, asthe people rom Ka Ba Hta village were eeing theadvancing Burma Army, which had been sweepingthe entire area. They had been hiding in a gully,but, thinking that it would be saer to climb higher,had begun to leave the gully and climb to the topo the ridge. They did not know the Burma Armywas waiting or them. Saw Maw Keh was carryinghis mother up the steep slope and was in the lead

    o the group. Behind him was his amily, includingNaw Eh Ywa Paw.

    From where the Burma Army was waiting there isa clearing (it is the villagers own rice eld) that isabout 0 yards wide and yards deep down tothe edge o the jungle above the gully. The BurmaArmy soldiers were waiting at the top o the ridgeand looking down into this clearing towards thegully.

    Saw Maw Keh carried his mother up the ridge outo the gully and into the clearing. The Burma Armysoldiers waited until he and his mother were in thecleared area, about 0- yards away rom their

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    position behind the logs, and then opened re.The shock o having a line o troops open re atpoint-blank range must have been tremendous.Saw Maw Keh dropped his mother (we are not surei she was shot o his back or ell). She cried out tohim saying, Dont leave me! As he turned to helpher they both were shot dead. The others scatteredand, as they tried to ee, Naw Eh Ywa Paw was shotthrough the back, with the bullet exiting near herstomach.

    We met them days later on our way to theirarea and treated the wounded girl. Fortunately,the bullet had passed rom her back out throughher side without hitting any organs. During theirescape, the girls wounds were treated by anotheramily and due to their care there was no inection.We prayed or the girl and her amily and they cried

    and cried or their ather (husband), and grand-mother.

    She eventually recovered and with her mother,brother and sisters, moved to a new hiding placenear their old village in Mon Township, KarenState. The Burma Army is now attacking the placewhere she and others are hiding, and so she is onthe run again.

    The Burma Army needs to be stopped, and she, her

    amily and the other Karen need to be able to gohome. This is an emergency situation and Naw EhYwa Paw and her people under attack need im-mediate protection, humanitarian assistance, andsupport or their pro-democracy organizations.

    God Bless You,A Relie Team Leader

    Naw Eh Ywa Paw recovering in late April 2006. InNovember 2006 she had to ee again.

    Naw Eh Ywa Paw receiving treatment rom FBR relieteam medics. 0 April, 2006.

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    We have a right to stay in our own homesand arms, as we always have. We dont needthe dictators army to control us. We want tobe ree.

    A Karenni grandmother whose village has been attacked our times in the last six

    years but who reuses to leave her land.

    0 A Campaign o Brutality

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    II. BAcKgrounD

    Children rom Po Mu Der village, Toungoo District. December 06

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    2 A Campaign o Brutality

    t i i Ba is as p as i is .

    With a military dictatorship in power, many in op-position are either imprisoned or killed. In most othe country there is a alse peace due to the dicta-tors ability to control dissent; however, in someethnic areas the regimes army is still attacking thepeople. There are over million internally displacedpeople, and over million reugees who have edthe country. There is continual environmental de-struction, an HIV/AIDS epidemic, the ongoing lay-ing o landmines, human trafcking and religiouspersecution. Because o the governments misman-agement and corruption, it is the worlds secondlargest opium producer and the main producer omethamphetamines in SE Asia. Daw Aung San SuuKyi, the Nobel Peace Prize recipient and leader othe democracy movement, continues to be underhouse arrest.

    The army extends their control over the ethnicminorities by building roads and camps in ethnichomelands, thereby orcing people to relocate oree into the jungle. There is documented orcedlabor. They lay landmines to keep villagers rom re-turning home and supporting the resistance. Theyaim to dominate the population, assimilate themand exploit them. They do this directly throughmilitary attacks, selective cease-re agreements,and the use o proxy ethnic orces allied with the

    regime.

    One devastating result is the internally displacedpeople, who are orced to ee their homes becauseo the armys ongoing attacks. Some are orciblyrelocated and now living under the governmentscontrol. Some are attacked by the regimes army

    but are able to return to their homes ater armyleaves. Others who are not able to return, live intemporary sites nearby. Many are on the run or inhiding now.

    All o these people lack security, ood, educationor their children, and suer increased health prob-lems.

    Yet the people o Burma have not given up. The in-ternally displaced peoples unwillingness to give uptheir homelands is one o the greatest examples ocivil disobedience to the dictators. The pro-democ-racy movement is still active. In the war zones theethnic resistance attempts to protect their people.They help villagers escape pending attacks, clearlandmines and help people cross army-controlledroads. There are also many non-governmental

    organizations and community-based organizationsthat work together to help provide basic services.

    We have a right to stay in our own homes andarms, as we always have. We dont need the dicta-tors army to control us. We want to be ree.A Karenni grandmother whose village has been attacked our

    times in the last six years but who reuses to leave her land.

    Naw Nay Kaw, one-legged son and husband shot andkilled by Burma Army

    !6-year-old shot by Burma Army. His brother and a-ther were shot and killed. His mother is in the pictureto the let. April 06

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    III. StAtIStIcS

    ga Saisis

    Reugees rom Burma _________________________________________________________________over ,000,000 peopleInternally Displaced People ____________________________________________________________ over ,000,000 peopleVillages destroyed or orcibly relocated ________________________________________________ ,000 in the last ten yearsPolitical prisoners ______________________________________________________________________________ over ,00

    nArcotIcS

    second largest producer o illegal opium a leading producer o methamphetamines in S.E

    Asia. 0 % o the countrys income is related to the drug

    trade

    heAlth

    90th out o 9 countries in World HealthOrganization(WHO)s assessment o health caresystems.

    in children die beore their th birthday inareas under attack (BPHWT, KHRG*)

    in 29 adults are living with HIV (JohnsHopkins).

    n Ka Sa osi, 2006

    Civilians killed _________________________________________________________________________________ 6Villagers displaced __________________________________________________________________ more than 2,000New Burma Army camps _________________________________________________________________________ Prisoner porters used _________________________________________________________________more than 2,0Porters killed _________________________________________________________________ over 26 reported deadVillages destroyed, abandoned or relocated ________________________________________________________ 27Forced labor _________________________________________________________________ more than 2,000 peoplePeople used as human shields and minesweepers ____________________________________ more than 00 people

    DISPlAcement By StAte In eAStern BurmA,

    2006

    (si 1997)

    Shan State: _______________________ over 00,000Karenni: ______________________________ 0,000Karen: ___________________________ over 00,000Mon: _____________________________ over ,000Tenasserim: ________________________over 0,000

    TOTAL (eastern Burma): _____________ over 600,000

    Karen child at the burned ruins o his home

    Girl in the ruins o her burned home. Mon Township.

    *BPHWT-Backpack Health Worker TeamsKHRG-Karen Human Rights Group

    Burma Army patrolling in Kaw They Der. 2007

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    The dictatorship o Burma attempts to con-trol all the peoples o Burma and, amongthese, ethnic peoples seem to be the mostdifcult to control. The dictators are in anongoing and brutal program o domination,

    assimilation and exploitation.

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    III. An APPrecIAtIon oF the

    SItuAtIon For DISPlAceD

    PeoPle oF KAren AnD

    KArennI StAteS oF BurmA

    A relie team member carries a child. April 06.

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    6 A Campaign o Brutality

    The ollowing was written by a relie team leader in January 2006, immediately beore the onset o the Burma

    Army oensive which this report describes. It is an analysis o the base-level o oppression and violence

    endured by the internally displaced people o eastern Burma, or over 50 years. It describes what lie is like in

    between the sporadic large-scale oensives conducted by the Burma Army; it represents the status quo o lieor millions o villagers in eastern Burma.

    27 Jaa, 2006

    I am writing this to try to give a picture o what thesituation is or people who are displaced by the at-tacks o the Burma Army. These people, technicallycalled Internally Displaced People, or IDPs, number

    over million in Burma and over 600,000 in theShan, Karenni and Karen States alone. The mostrecent major oensives o 997, 2000, 200-200and the smaller-scale attacks since then have onlyadded to the suering o the people.

    There are some places in the Karen and Karenniareas o displaced persons that have not been at-tacked in years and where lie looks almost normal.There are schools, clinics and churches, some evenmade o wood. Rice elds are in ull production and

    livestock abound.

    Sometimes you will not hear the sound o gunreor 2- months at a time. In these areas there are

    not even any landmines to worry about and youcould think there is no war in Burma. And then,oten only a hal days walk away, there is killing,burning o villages and direct oppression by theBurma Army. The Burma Army continues its expan-sion o roads and camps, making it more difcult

    and dangerous or people to move reely. Theseroads surround many o the peaceul areas, andthe people there eel it is only a matter o timebeore they are attacked. The growing road net-work allows greater control o the area as well asacting as a series o obstacles or villager and IDPtravel in many areas. These roads are garrisoned,patrolled and mined by the Burma Army. We havehad to cross these roads multiple times during thisrelie mission and it is always dangerous as well aslogistically challenging or the movement o relie

    supplies and sick or injured people.

    We are currently in the northern Karen State andhave just returned rom a humanitarian relie

    Karen State, Burma(relayed directly from a team leader in the field)

    Grandmother being carried by her son. April 06. IDPs rom Mon Township. Their ather was killed by theBurma Army. March 06.

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    mission to the northwestern Karen and southernKarenni areas and are moving with two Karenniamilies who are eeing the Burma Army. This isone appreciation o the situation and a ground-level view o what things are like or people inhiding rom the Burma Army. Every situation isdierent but the examples and stories below, whilenot inclusive o all situations, are representative owhat is happening right now in some o the ethnicareas o Burma.

    Much o what is happening is difcult to capturewith photos, video and reports. It is generally aslow and insidious strangulation o the populationrather than an all out eort to crush them. Whilethe campaign o control against the ethnic villagersand IDPs meets the UN denition o genocide, itis not the kind o genocide that occurred in Cam-

    bodia or Nazi Germany. There are rarely massacresnor are there attempts to annihilate the people.Many areas o Burma have large ethnic populationswho are not subject to direct military action orthe attempts to kill them. These areas are gener-ally where there is no organized resistance to thegovernment or areas where ethnic armies haveentered into some orm o ceasere with the BurmaArmy.

    The dictatorship o Burma attempts to control all

    the peoples o Burma and, among these, ethnicpeoples seem to be the most difcult to control.The dictators are in an ongoing and brutal programo domination, assimilation and exploitation.

    While they try to wipe out the resistance and ghtthem whenever they see them, there seems to bemore o an eort to dominate the population. Thisis done in order to cut o support or the resistanceas well as to expand the dictators control over thepeople.

    Under attack is a peoples way o lie and theirability to stay in their homes and arms. The BurmaArmy regularly, about once a month in the Karenand Karenni States, launches - battalion sizedsweeping operations in villages and areas whereIDPs are suspected to be hiding. These troopsharass civilians, loot homes, beat, rape and tortureindiscriminately and sometimes burn homes or en-tire villages. They also place landmines in areas thatthey want to deny to the people and the resistance.

    For example, in a typical area o 0- villages, inone month, the Burma Army may send 2 battalionsthat will patrol an area, steal rom homes, maybe

    burn a ew eld huts and rice barns (sometimes anentire village or villages), lay landmines on maintrails, threaten the population, then return to theirbase. During these sweeps the resistance will tryto protect the population and - skirmishes willtypically break out, resulting in 2- dead and -0wounded Burma Army soldiers and -2 woundedresistance ghters total. These are usually meetingengagements or ambushes o attacking Burma col-umns by the resistance. They usually last only a ewminutes but buy time or villagers and IDPs to es-cape into the jungle with some belongings beorethe Burma Army can arrive at their villages or hidesites. The pro-democratic resistance (in this area,the Karen National Union and Karenni National Pro-gressive Party), are made up o dedicated men andwomen who take great risks to deend their ami-lies and people and who run mobile clinics, schools

    and small-scale relie services. Most o their amiliesand relatives are IDPs or are already reugees. Whilethey cannot usually stop the Burma Army, they doprovide early warning o attacks and can oten de-lay these attacks. It is only through them that reliecan reach the peoples under attack by the BurmaArmy. They provide the inormation, communica-tion, transportation, logistical and security supportneeded or the provision o humanitarian relie.

    IDPs moving to the Salween River. April 06.

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    Family hiding in Toungoo District. May 06. IDP children nding shelter rom the rain. June 06.

    Family rom Toungoo District at temporary shelter onthe banks o Salween River. March 06.

    IDP amily arriving at the Salween River. March 06.

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    t a a kids IDPs. I is pssib

    s a dsipi

    s siais i i pp fd ss. t a dsibd b.

    I) IDPS s ias bd ad i

    i ss assib pas a ii

    ad ai a ba sbsis .

    We walked through the village o Maw Tu Der inToungoo District o northwestern Karen State,which was burned down by the Burma Army in200. The villagers hid in the jungle or months

    beore they moved to the present site. They havebuilt crude shelters hidden in the trees o o trailsthat have deliberately been kept small and difcultto travel on. The people have a kind o security inthese hiding places due to the difculty o accessand with the help (mostly early warning) o thelocal resistance orces. But there is a denite lossin ood production and available cash to purchaseclothes, blankets, cooking utensils and arm imple-ments. There is also a dramatic negative impact ontheir health because o decreased nutrition, greater

    exposure, and the close sharing o inadequatewater sources.

    In new Maw Tu Der, the people were dressed inrags and many were sick. We talked with a mother

    who had an inant who could not walk. It was notclear whether this was due to some disease or mal-nutrition. There is no nearby clinic and Burma Armypatrols make it difcult or medical teams to arrivehere with regularity. (Both the Karen Human RightsGroup and Backpack Health Workers have exten-sively documented this direct correlation betweenBurma Army oppression and the negative impacton health o the population.) The setting is bleak,dirty, crowded hovels in dark corners o the jungle.A redeeming eature is the people themselves, who

    are almost invariably cheerul and want to shareeven their last chicken with us. When we protestand say that i they really must give us a chickento eat with them then we must pay, they reply,Are you not our guest? We always take care o ourguest. It is our way, and it makes us happy.

    II) IDPs s ia as aakd, b pp

    a d sa si.

    We met a dierent but also representative situ-

    ation within two days walking rom these KarenIDPs. We crossed over the mountains that make upthe Karen/Karenni border and descended to theKarenni village o Gwe Ga Per, which is situated ina broad and beautiul valley. The elds are irrigatedand terraced and there are bualo in every eld.Most o the houses are made o wood and have tinroos.

    This was once an even more prosperous valley,but due to the attacks o the Burma Army therehas been little improvement in the past 0 years.Just last month (2 December, 200), the BurmaArmy along with a small contingent o Karenni(Karenni National Solidarity Organization (KNSO)- abreakaway Karenni action now loyal to the BurmaArmy), attacked Gwe Ga Per village. They rstshelled the village with 60mm mortars rom a near-by ridge and then they entered the village. Theylooted each home and then began to set re tothem. By this time the Karenni resistance was ableto respond and seven o them launched a counterattack against the over 00 Burma Army troops.

    The Burma Army orces immediately withdrew andthus were only able to burn down 2 houses beorethey ed. The villagers were then able to return to

    whAt IS It lIKe to Be An IDP?

    IDP child holds baby sibling in rain. April 06

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    20 A Campaign o Brutality

    the same village site.

    This eeing in the ace o small resistance is verycommon and has many possible reasons. TheBurma Army troops are not cowards and when mo-tivated are an aggressive adversary. They are toughand move well in the mountains using map andcompass and oten avoiding trails. They outnumberand out-gun the resistance in every area, so whythe requent retreats in the ace o the resistance?

    We believe there are many reasons and these areoutlined in the Brie analysis o the strategy andtactics o the Burma Army and how the peoplecounter these section o this document.

    III) IDPs , i idi, api

    p, is a siai

    fd a pp i.

    Flight usually happens immediately beore anattack, i the people get a warning, or ater theattack as the villagers or IDPs attempt to escape. In

    both these cases people ee with only what theycan carry and or most amilies this is their inantchildren, some utensils, a blanket or two or theentire amily, some plastic sheeting, and a ew dayssupply o rice.

    When we come ace to ace with these people it isa heart-rending scene o very obvious desperation.

    Last week three Karenni amilies who were eeingor their lives rom the Burma Army joined us as wewere on this relie mission.

    They had to ee with only what they could carryand, as many o the children were too small to

    walk, the athers and mothers had to carry thesechildren. The other children carried small bags andbaskets, their lies possessions. The amilies arrivedat dusk ater two days o hard walking. They wereexhausted rom being on the run and one o theathers, Saw Nu Nu, told us their story.

    The Burma Army and their helpers, the KNSO (Karenni

    National Solidarity Organizationa group loyal to

    the Burma Army), were on their way to kill me. They

    had already killed one o my riends and cut o his

    head last month, in December. At that time they

    captured me and three others rom our village o Pa

    Haw Ko as well as three rom other villages. We were

    gathered together rom ten surrounding villages

    or a prayer meeting when the Burma Army orces

    appeared and captured some o us. We were tied up,

    beaten, punched then we were given electric shocks

    to our body. They struck us with rife butts and oneo them used a pistol to beat us. One mans jaw was

    broken, one mans skull was broken and or me I was

    not able to endure the torture. They did this to us

    one by one. One o us was then orced to go with the

    soldiers and my riend Saw Gwe was killed. I may have

    been killed just as my riend was but I managed to

    escape. The Burma Army accused us o being in the

    resistance but we are not. They said inormers had

    given them this inormation. We are armers. It is true

    that years ago my riend who was killed served as a

    Karenni soldier, but he was retired, as he had to workhis arm to support his sick mother and his amily. I

    am just a armer. Our amily had to run now because

    we got word that the Burma Army and KNSO were

    on their way to capture me again and this time they

    would be sure to kill me. We now cannot stay here

    and so we will go to a reugee camp. I do not want

    to take revenge. I am just a villager, I will move away

    rom them.

    Two more amilies came in behind Saw Nu Nus

    amily and joined our relie team. The Karenni re-sistance who had helped them to escape escortedthem.

    The son o one o the amilies, Saw Naw Ku, hadbeen captured at the same time as Saw Nu Nuand six others. All were tortured and one mankilled and decapitated, but Saw Naw Ku managedto escape ater Saw Nu Nu escaped. This amilyo veSaw Naw Ku, his two young sisters andmother and atherwere very weak and sick. Themother was vomiting and collapsed as we walkedwith her. She cried and we could see she was not

    just physically sick but also very distraught to beleaving her home, arm and homeland. We gave

    IDP woman with children in hide site

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    her an IV, prayed with her and rigged a hammockstretcher and carried her over the mountains toa saer area. She is now resting at a mobile clinicand though she is seriously sick with malaria and arespiratory inection she is improving and smiledor the rst time yesterday. When she ully recovers,she and her amily will be moved on to a reugeecamp. The other two amilies are with us still andwe will escort them all the way out.

    Iv) Bi aasis sa ad ais

    Ba A ad pp

    s.

    The dictators o Burma have divided Burma intothree zones, whitethose areas under their totalcontrol; browncontested areas; and blackareas the resistance has control over. Black areas

    are designated ree-re zones and the BurmaArmy can kill any man, woman or child it nds inthese areas. The area described in this report is ablack zone.

    The Burma Armys strategy is to terrorize thepeople into submission and to stop all support orthe resistance. The Burma Army attacks the popu-lation and attempts to orce them into relocationsites in order to have total control over them. I thisstep ails the population is chased continuously

    until they run out o ood and submit or ee to adierent country. Those that reuse relocation orwho will not ee are killed by the Burma Army. TheBurma Army calls this strategy the Four Cuts: cuto all support or the resistance, cut o all commu-nications, cut o all ood and supplies, and cut oall new recruits.The Burma Army continues the expansion o mili-tary camps and roads, and attempts to orce thepopulation outside o the areas o total control into

    submission by random patrols and attacks. It usesthe tactics o patrols, ambushes and raids. Theyalso place landmines in areas (trails, villages, hidesites) that the population uses in order to orcethem to leave or comply. They usually operate incompany-sized elements. For larger operations -battalion- sized task orces are sent out o their or-ward camps to attack all villages that have resistedcontrol, as well as to nd and destroy IDP hide sites.These task orces move on oot and are supportedby mortars and light, crew-served weapons. Theyoperate or 2- weeks and then return to theircamps where they are re-supplied and then launchnew attacks.

    The Burma Army numbers over 00,000 and isrelentless in its attacks. In the Karen State, the resis-tance (Karen National Liberation Army, which is thearmy o the Karen National Union) and local militianumber approximately ,000. Villagers also try todeend themselves but have very ew weapons.The total number o those in the dierent ethnicpro-democracy groups still ghting the BurmaArmy is between 0,000 and ,000. The resis-tance is greatly outnumbered but still manages toprotect most o the people, provide early warning,help people escape and deny total control o thearea to the Burma Army.

    A group o porters tied to-gether and being guarded byBurma Army troops. NyaunglebinDistrict. April 07

    Burma Army bulldozer arrivingat Muthey village. NyaunglebinDistrict. April 07.

    Burma Army ofcer with troopsbringing travel passes into KawThay Der village. June 06.

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    22 A Campaign o Brutality

    1) The pro-democracy resistance (in this case Karenni)ghters are ghting or their own homes and amilies.The Burma Army orces are not. The resistance is willingto risk death to protect their loved ones and villages. TheBurma Army, as the aggressor, has no such motivation.

    2) The resistance is also ghting or the ideals o ethnicrights, autonomy and democracy. The Burma Army doesnot share these ideals nor do they seem to have any ide-als high enough to risk dying or.

    3) The resistance groups, while poorly armed andequipped, are ghting in their native land, which theyknow intimately. They are inured to the tough lie oliving in the mountains and can survive with very little.They are very quick, and, as many grow up hunting, theyare natural jungle ghters. They also enjoy a very sup-portive base among the local population and can ndood, shelter, inormation and assistance in almost everyvillage.

    4) Due to local support in some areas, the resistance hasa very well-developed and accurate inormation/intel-

    ligence network. The Karenni soldiers, or example, canmove between and around Burma Army camps andeven between moving troop columns without beingdetected while the resistance knows almost every moveo the Burma Army troops in advance. The undergroundnetworks in towns controlled by the Burma Army arevery good and thus the resistance is rarely surprised.

    5) The Burma Army is conducting what they call acounter-insurgency. More than anything it seems thatthe Burma Armys main interest is to establish controlover the population. They attack ethnic resistance orceswhen they can or on specic orders, but generally theyseem content to harass villagers and IDPs and attemptto put all the people o an area under their control. Itmay be that they believe that i the people are com-

    pletely submissive, then the resistance will have no sup-port and thus be easily deeated. And attacking civiliansis less risky and costly than trying to nd and attack theresistance.6) The Burma Army uses proxy orces. Just north o GweGa Per (the Karenni village previously described), is anarea under the control o another Karenni group loyalto the Burma Army, the Karenni Nationalities PeoplesLiberation Front (KNPLF). As long as the KNPLF re-mains loyal to the Burma Army and complies with theirdemands (or taxes, ree labor, attacks on the Karenniresistance when ordered, and support o all Burma Armypolicies), the people can live in a kind o peace. Thus insome areas under Burma Army or proxy control, therestill is no protection rom orced labor, rapes, extra-judi-

    cial killings and orced relocations.

    However, no villages have been burned in the KNPLFarea mentioned above since 2000 and that is not thecase in the areas where the resistance still operates. Inresistance areas, almost every village has been attackedat least once since 2000. In spite o these attacks there isa reservoir o empathy or the resistance in some areasunder proxy or Burma Army control. As was reportedrom an area that is under control by the Burma Armyand their proxy the KNPLF, I or no other reason thanhistory, we sympathize with the resistance. The resis-

    tance has always stood or our right to live ree andhas tried to help us, and share our aspirations to live inour own homeland in our ways. So even i we do notagree with all o them, or some o the things they do,we sympathize with them. Even i we can not help themwe want them to continue. In spite o these positiveviews in some areas under proxy control, this usuallydoes not result in direct support or the pro-democracyresistance.

    7) IDPs support the resistance. In our own eld experi-ence most IDPs support the resistance indirectly ordirectly. A typical response rom an IDP living in an areaully supporting the resistance was by a Karenni grand-mother we interviewed. Her home has been burned times since 2000. Question: What do you think about

    h a s a sa p pp i siifa sid iia spp

    kp dias a i? S ass a b:

    ANALYSIS

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    the resistance and some peoples claims that they bringon the attacks o the Burma Army? She replied, Those(the resistance) are all my sons. We have a right to stay inour own homes and arms as we always have. We havea right to have our sons to deend us and our reedoms.We dont need the Burma Army to control us. We wantto be ree. And as one pastor asked, Why do the Bur-

    mese soldiers come to burn our villages? We do not goto burn theirs. Why do they want to come and botherus? We only want to have our arms, do our work andlive in peace. Our lie in the mountains is already veryhard, why do they want to make it harder?

    Even in areas under the control o the Burma Armyand in areas where they exert indirect control throughtheir proxies like the KNSO and KNPLF, the people wantsel-determination. They do not want to live under therule o the dictatorship with the restriction o reedomand human rights abuses that occur there. But manydo support the proxies as they eel there is no alterna-

    tive and that this is the best and most realistic courseo action. Some support the proxies or personal gain,some because o real and perceived injustices by theresistance and many because their amily members arewith the proxy orces. Most support the proxies becausetheir amilies live in the areas o proxy control and theyare loyal to their amilies.

    8) A mitigating actor is economic interests and corrup-tion. In many areas the Burma Army has corrupted itselthrough the desire or economic gain and oten leavescertain areas o resistance alone as long as they can tax

    products going through the area. The Burma Army otensells its own supplies and makes alse reports o attacksagainst resistance orces. In some areas the Burma Armyavoids contact with the resistance and makes its prior-ity the development o local business benecial to thearmy. It is a combination o corruption, inefciency, lowmorale and lack o logistical support that makes this warlook like a ty-percent war. One day everything is neand a villager or IDP can go to a Burma Army-controlledmarket and trade, the resistance can help arm elds,rest and visit their amilies. Then the very next day, theBurma Army is on patrol, a village is burned, one or twopeople shot, and one or two people step on landmineslaid by the retreating troops. Then a ew days later, theBurma Army returns to its base and the people try to goback to their elds and go to the market again.

    9) Another constant actor in this is the slow expansionand addition o Burma Army camps and thus the expan-sion o control o the surrounding area. They tell thevillagers, Dont let the resistance ght us in this area,i they do we will hold you responsible and burn yourhomes and kill you. This puts the resistance in a verydifcult situation and makes it very difcult to stop theadvances o the Burma Army.

    With or without resistance activity, the Burma Army willoppress civilian populations. This is our experience ater0 years providing relie in the eld and is well docu-

    mented by the Karen Human Rights Group, the Com-mittee or Internally Displaced Karen People, as well asmany other human rights and relie organizations.

    In the ace o this, some amilies who have been at-tacked are too terried to stay and they will movedeeper into the jungle in what is usually less arable

    land or move out o their homeland to reugee campsin neighboring countries. The result is the expansiono control by the Burma Army and the loss o the localpopulation as people ee to reugee camps, or hidingplaces deeper in the jungle. The original population isurther reduced by the orced relocation o people andvillages to areas controlled by the Burma Army.

    csi:

    I hope this report gives a useul i very limited on-the-ground perspective to the IDP issue. The dictators areintent on complete domination o all the peoples o

    Burma and the Burma Army continues its slow, corruptbut relentless attacks on the people. In the ace o this,we, as anyone who has been with these IDPs and villag-ers can testiy, nd hope. This hope is in the spirit o thepeople who help each other in the ace o attacks, carrythose who have stepped on landmines, share ood withthose in hiding, organize relie, run schools, try to pro-tect their people and never give up hope or a ree lie intheir own homes and villages.

    In a Karenni village we visited recently, the Burma Armyburned 2 o the villagers homes to the ground. But the

    church is still standing and the people gather to singand pray every Sunday. There were ve services and asthe villagers walked back rom each one, they were stillsinging hymns in groups o three and our. The cheerul-ness and generosity o these villagers is typical o ev-erywhere our team has gone and is a testimony to theirculture and aith. They told us they expected anotherattack, but they would hide and then come back and re-build again. This is our homeland and is a git rom Godor us to take care o, one woman told us.

    The very act o civilians deying Burma Army attemptsto orce them to move to relocation sites or comply withorders is one o the greatest acts o resistance to thedictators in Burma. This takes tremendous courage andhope. They do have hope and it is rooted in the dignityo the human spirit and a love o the highest gits o lie.

    We are grateul to these people who inspire us andtogether we are working, even i we can only do this invery small ways, or something better in Burma. Thereare tremendous obstacles but we are grateul or all thepeople and dierent organizations inside and outsidethis country that work in dierent ways to alleviate su-ering now and support positive change or the uture.

    No one here or anywhere in Burma or other countries isdoing this alone. Your prayers, support and actions allgive real hope and real help.

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    Naw Bee Ko, mother o 9-year-old Naw Eh Ywa Paw (shown on ront cover) who was shot on 27 March, 2006 andwidow o Saw Maw Keh who was shot and killed on the same day.

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    Woman exhausted ater walking or more than a weektowards the Thailand border. November 2006.

    IDP boy and others at the Salween River. March 2006.

    Villagers rom Saw Wah Der eeing Burma Army at-tacks. Toungoo District, June 2006.

    IDPs worshipping one week ater being attacked bythe Burma Army. January 2007.

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    While the scale o displacement and destruc-tion is large, people die individually, eachdeath an irreplaceable loss.

    26 A Campaign o Brutality

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    Iv. overvIew oF the

    oFFenSIveFBR REPORT: Burma Army Attacks Against the Karen People in Northern Karen State, Eastern Burma

    Ka Ser Doh villagers eeing attacks in Toungoo District. December 06.

    27

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    2 A Campaign o Brutality

    Note: This overview o the oensive was initiallysent rom the eld by the Free Burma Rangers dur-ing the attack o the Burma Army. The Free BurmaRangers were providing humanitarian relie to thepeople under attack.

    Report sent directly rom areas under attack, Karen

    State, Burma, 12 December, 2006

    I tis rp

    Over 76 men, women and children have beenkilled, 2,000 displaced, people are being used ashuman shields, over new Burma Army campshave been built and the Burma Army is planningtwo new roads.

    The ollowing is an update on the ongoing oen-

    sive in northern Karen State, eastern Burma. We aresending this report directly rom the areas underattack. For detailed reports, photos and maps sentrom the eld please see: www.reeburmarangers.org.

    ) Introduction2) Character o the attacks) Patterns) Nyaunglebin District (Kler Lwe Htu)) Papun District (Muthraw)

    6) Toungoo District (Taw Oo)7) Conclusion) Appendix A; Burma Army units involved in thisoensive

    1) IntroDuctIon

    The Burma Armys oensive in the northern threedistricts o the Karen State has killed over 76 men,women and children and displaced over 2,000peoplemost o whom are now in hiding. Over

    new Burma Army camps have been built in thisarea o Papun, Nyaunglebin and Toungoo districts.The slow but unrelenting attacks and building onew camps seem to be driven by a plan to domi-nate, chase out or crush any Karen people in theseareas. This is the largest oensive against the Karenpeople since 997. This oensive began in earnestin February this year, with troops rom over 0battalions attacking right through the rainy sea-son, the construction o 7 new main camps and 26smaller support camps. The Burma Army is nowplanning the construction o two new roads thatwhen complete will cut the northern Karen Stateinto quarters.

    While the scale o displacement and destructionis large, people die individually, each death an ir-replaceable loss. On the rst o November a athero six, Saw They Shur, was burned alive by BurmaArmy soldiers in his home at Play Hta village, nearHoki, Toungoo District. He was 7 years old andmarried with 6 children. His wie and children arenow in hiding with the others who escaped the vil-lage while it was burned to the ground. And earlierin April, a 9-year-old girl was shot and her atherand 0-year-old grandmother killed as her am-ily ed the attacking Burma Army. The disruptiono their ood production, burning o their homesand the shoot-on-sight orders o the Burma Army,have made staying in their homeland untenable orthousands more.

    O the over 2,000 displaced, over ,000 people

    have already let their homes or the Thai border.The people here need immediate protection andthe reedom to return to their homes. Because othese attacks they also need ood, medicine, shelterand help to rebuild their homes, schools and lives.

    2) chArActer oF the AttAcKS

    During this oensive the Burma Army has deployedover 0 battalions into the northern districts. These

    battalions have been attacking in 2- week cyclesthroughout the rainy season. 2- battalion-sizedtask orces with limited objectives conduct mostoperations. Once these objectives are met, theunits return to a base to re-supply and then re-de-ploy on another series o attacks. The time betweenattacks is usually 2- weeks. Attacks are usuallytwo-pronged sweeps with the task orce split intotwo columns, moving in parallel on separate terraineatures and linking up at an intermediate objec-tive. One column o -2 battalions will attack along

    an axis o advance, destroying villages and chasingthe displaced. The other column o -2 battalionsconducts a parallel movement to contact and thenboth units meet at the limit o their advance thenreturn to their base o origin or move together to adierent support base.

    When the Burma Army arrives near a village, theyoten mortar and machine-gun the village rst andthen enter the deserted village to loot and some-times destroy the homes. Landmines are then laidin the village and on the routes that villagers usein and out o the village. I a villager is seen, he orshe is shot on sight. Due to the slow progress o theBurma Army and the security provided by the KNU

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    resistance, most people can escape. However, over76 men, women and children have been killed with2 o these in Mon Township, Nyaunglebin Districtalone.

    When the Burma Army launches these attacks,

    people in the path o the advance ee into thejungleusually to prepared hiding places i pos-sible. Once the Burma Armys initial objectiveorexample, the patrolling o a given area, the de-struction o villages and chasing out o the popula-tion, or the building o new campsis completedand troops return to their camps, the villagers tryto return to or near their elds and villages. Duringthis oensive there were many Burma Army unitsattacking on dierent ronts. As one resistanceleader told us, The last ew months the Burma

    Army has attacked so much that many o the hid-ing places were overrun and we could not directall the peoplemany were scattered in the jungle.Now it is a little better as the Burma Army is busybuilding up their new camps. But when they arenished with the new camps they will come again.This is a very bad oensive or us all and we do notknow how we will manage it. But we must try andwe will not leave our homes.

    The resistance, Karen National Union (KNU), is try-ing to protect the people and provide early warn-ing. The villagers try to sustain themselves andtheir communities by gathering ood, even underthe guns o the Burma Army. The numbers dis-

    placed at any given time vary depending on the ac-

    tivities o the Burma Army. When the Burma Armytroops are out on operations, the people ee. Whenthe troops go back to their camps the people try tocome back.

    The past ew months the Burma

    Army has attacked so much that

    many o the hiding places were

    overrun and we could not direct

    all the peoplemany were scat-tered in the jungle. Now it is a

    little better as the Burma Army

    is busy building up their new

    camps. But when they are n-

    ished with the new camps they

    will come again. This is a very

    bad oensive or us all and we

    do not know how we will man-age it. But we must try and we

    will not leave our homes.

    Villagers hiding in Toungoo District. December 0

    IDPs eeing rom Toungoo District. April 06

    Children hiding. 2006.

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    0 A Campaign o Brutality

    3) PAtternS:

    Some patterns are clear and constant:

    a) Displacement o the Karen people and willing-ness to kill civilians:

    The displacement o the Karen people in this areahas not relented and o the over 2,000 displaced,many will not be able to go back to their homeseven i the oensive slows. This is because o theover new Burma Army camps that dominatethe area. The Burma Army has killed over 76 men,women and children during these attacks. TheBurma Army seems more ocused on driving outthe villagers o these areas than engaging theresistance directly. Direct results o these attacksare people being killed or displaced, villages, arms

    and ood supplies being destroyed and trails mined.

    b). Food shortage and increased rates o sicknessamong IDPs:

    Indirect results o these attacks have been increas-ing malnutrition and a higher rate o sickness. Foodsupplies are very low and without outside helpit will be very difcult or the people in hiding tosurvive. There are many sick people here due to

    the attacks. Along with increased rates o sicknessand mortality, the people here are now much moresusceptible to all types o disease, especially dys-entery, skin diseases and malaria. This is a result oliving on the run, lack o shelter and clean clothes,poor nutrition and sometimes crowded hide sites.(The Backpack Health Worker Teams and KarenHuman Rights Group have published reports thatshow the correlation o human rights abuses andthe resultant drop o health in the areas under op-pression.)Note: Due to an unusually high patient load, insome areas the FBR relie teams are now goingthrough one medical unit (standardized medicalunit or FBR and Backpack Health Worker Teams)

    in one week. This unit can serve over ,000 peopleand usualy lasts - weeks.

    c) New Burma Army Camps:(please see the complete list o coordinates orthese camps in Appendix B o this A Campaign oBrutality report.) new Burma Army Camps in 2006. These campsare mostly placed along road lines and the plannednew road lines.

    I. Nyaunglebin District: 7 new camps ( main, small camps).II. Papun District: 7 new camps (2 main, small)

    III. Toungoo District: 9 new camps (2 main, 7 small)Total new camps: 7 new main camps and 26smaller camps.

    Once the Burma Army establishes a new camp, itshells surrounding rice elds, patrols, and shootsanyone it sees on sight. In spite o the new campsand ongoing operations the people here havenot given up and daily try to get to their eldsto harvest the remaining rice. For example, on December, ater going through two abandoned

    villages and elds where the Burma Army tried toshoot villagers, we met a group o our women onthe trail. We asked them, Where are you going?They said they would try to go to their old elds asthere was still rice there and they needed to get itor their amilies. The Karen resistance and thosevillage men with weapons try to provide security.This security is limited, however, and cannot stopthe mortaring rom the camps. The villagers worktogether to help each other. One villager told us,No matter what they do I will not run away, thisis my home, I will die here. We told him, Dont diehere, your people need youstay but live. He thensaid, Some have the duty o deense when theBurma Army attack us and some are leaders, but

    Body and belong-ings o Saw Maw Kehwho was killed by theBurma Army on 27March, 2006

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    someone has to carry the rice or everyone. I am astrong man and that is what I do, I carry rice or all.So it is not a duty o a great man but it is my dutyand I will try my best.

    Still the Burma Army continues to build newcamps, and as o this report three more are underconstruction.

    d) Use o villagers as human shields and humanminesweepers to improve and expand old roads

    Division 66 is orcing villagers to clear landminesand act as human shields on the Toungoo-MawchiRoad. Villagers rom 2 villages surrounding BawGa Lyi Gyi (on the Toungoo-Mawchi Road) havebeen orced to act as human shields around a bull-dozer and to go ahead o the construction unit to

    clear the roadway o potential landmines. One ex-ample is the villagers rom Maung Pah Der village.There are households in Maung Pah Der villageand the Burma Army orced person rom eachhousehold to take security or the bulldozer with men walking on the let side, men on the rightside, men on the bulldozer itsel and the rest inront o and behind the bulldozer. This ollows theorcing o 0 villagers to carry supplies or theBurma Army and to act as human minesweepers inMay and June along the same road.

    e) Forced labor: The ollowing are some o themany examples o orced labor in this area:

    On 0 November LIB 90 ordered 20 villagers and6 ox carts rom Mae Ta Taw, Myaw Oo, Paw Pi Der,Aung Chan Tha and Htee To Lo villages to carryood supplies to their camp. The villagers mustmove all supplies rom Ye Oh Sin to the Htee LaBaw Hta Burma Army camp. On 6 November, IB9 and battalion commander Zaw Tun in Shazibo

    camp, demanded 2 ox carts rom area villagersto help the Burma Army move their rations.On December, 2006 Division 66 commanderMaung Maung Aye ordered LIB 6 Battalion com-mander Aung Soe Win, Kaw Thay Der to send people rom Kaw Thay Der village to carry armysupplies rom Kaw Thay Der to Naw Soe. Peoplewere also ordered to carry supplies rom Naw Soecamp back to Baw Ga Lyi Gyi camp. On the sameday General Maung Maung Aye ordered villagersrom Wa Thee Ko to cut 00 pieces o bamboo andtake them to Wa Thee Ko or the building up o thecamp there.

    Villagers being orced to clear a road in ToungooDistrict. April 06

    Some o more than 0 villagers orced to porter orthe Burma Army in Toungoo District. May 06

    Boy cries in the rain as he ees the Burma Army. MonTownship. April 06

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    ) Roads:

    The Burma Army is using orced labor, humanshields and human minesweepers to improvetheir existing road network in the mountains easto Toungoo. Along with these existing roads, theBurma Army is now planning two new roads. TheBurma Army is now surveying a proposed newroad rom Ler Mu Plaw in Papun District to Busakeein Toungoo District. When completed, this road willcut the northern Karen State into quarters.The Burma Army MOC 0 and one TOC o MOC are advancing on the high ground west othe Yunzalin River along this planned new roadrom Ler Mu Plaw to Busakee. There are six newsmall camps on this route now. Villagers attempt-ing to go back near their elds to harvest theirrice are shot on sight. (We heard them shoot at

    villagers near Thaw Ku Mu Der on 2 November there were no casualties.) A second road is beingplanned that will connect Mon Township in Nyaun-glebin District to Toungoo District at Busakee.

    g) Forced Relocation:

    In this area three new orced relocation sites werenewly established starting in April 2006.

    1) Tha Byin Nyu relocation site: More than ,000

    people rom Yu Lo and Ka Mu Lo villages.2) Maw Kae Tha Per Ko relocation site (Kanazobyin):Between 70-00 people rom Maw Kae Tha Per Ko,Au Ywa, Tha Kewy La Ko villages.3) Maladaw, Mon Township: 900 people to a relo-cation site, Mon Township, Nyaunglebin District,Karen State.

    900 people rom three villages, located nearMaladaw Burma Army camp have now been orcedto move to the relocation site. This orced reloca-

    tion site is located around a cemetery the villagersused in the past. Maw Kae Tha Per Ko, Maladawvillage, and Tho Kway Lay Ko villagers were orcedto leave their villages and move to a relocation sitewest o Maladaw camp. The Burma Army has takenover the villages and is now cutting down the treesto build bunkers and ortications around Maladawcamp. The soldiers have stripped the villagerscashew and durian orchards.

    All villagers who live in the relocation site havebeen orced to build their homes close togetherin rows. Daily worship is orbidden and worship isonly allowed once a week. There is a daily curewand the villagers are not allowed to leave the area

    without permission. They can go to the market onTuesday and Saturday only. They can go to theirelds with only ood or the day and must return tothe relocation site by p.m.. The Burma Army haswarned the villagers that they have placed land-mines around the relocation site to ensure compli-ance. The villagers must pay a 0,000 kyat tax or anew home in the relocation site. People are orcedto improve roads and provide labor on demandor the Burma Army. The relocation o these 900people began in May 2006 and was completed inNovember 2006.

    h) Prisoner Porters: ,700 porters, 26 reporteddead.

    The Burma Army has used over ,700 porters in thisoensive and over 26 have been reported dead,

    many o whom were executed. Among the portersin Papun Distict alone, there are over 20 child por-ters (boys under 6 years old rom Insein Prison).The Burma Army is now using the term transport-erWoon Htan instead o prisoner porter todescribe the people they orce to carry their loads.The ollowing inormation is rom escaped porters,Burma Army deserters and villagers who have seenthe bodies o dead porters. Porters are beaten andpoorly ed. I they cannot carry loads they are otenbeaten to death or shot. Some who become sick

    are given an injection o an unknown drug andthese porters reportedly die within a ew hours.

    Porters who were killed by the Burma Army or whodied rom sickness as they carried loads:

    nabi Disi: O the over 00 portersused in this area, over 20 have died.Pap Disi: O the over 700 porters used in thisarea, 0 porters died- by torture, by execution and

    by sickness (dysentery is the most oten cited).

    t Disi: O the over 600 prisoner por-ters (not counted are the over 0 villagers usedto carry loads or the Burma Army), 9 were killed.Some were reportedly killed by having their throatscut, others starved to death.

    ta*: 1,700 ps, 265 dad.

    (*Totals as o December 2006)

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    i) Landmines:

    The Burma Army is making extensive use olandmines in villages, homes and trails in orderto make the area unlivable or the population.The Burma Army copy o the M- anti-personnelmine is becoming very common with nine o theselandmines recovered in one village area alone. TheBurma Army also uses larger mines and Impro-vised Explosive Devices (IEDs) as described in oneexample below.

    Burma Army landmine/IED kills three and woundseight in Mon Township, Nyaunglebin District, KarenState, eastern Burma on 2 December, 2006. Aterchasing the villagers away rom the Baw Kwey Day(Ti Ko) area o Mon Township, the Burma Armyentered the village and placed this landmine under

    a replace with the triggering device/pressureplate buried in the ground close to the replace.A group o resistance soldiers (KNU) who wereproviding security or the displaced people in thisarea triggered this landmine/IED. Three died andeight more were injured, our o them seriously.The landmine/IED was not the normal type usedby the Burma Army. The hole dug or the mine wasover one and a hal meters deep and centime-ters wide. The hole seemed to be dug by an augeror posthole digger. The device was triggered by a

    blasting cap and what seems to be a piece o deto-nation cord that was placed on a stump and randown to the mine. When the men gathered aroundthe re they stepped on a pressure plate that redthe blasting cap and ignited the detonation cordthat set o the mine. There was a delay o threeseconds rom the time the men heard the ignitionand the explosion. It is possible that the mine alsobounced up one meter beore it exploded or thiswas an anti-vehicle shape-charge that directed theexplosion straight up. One man suered massive

    head trauma and died instantly, one man lost bothlegs and died instantly and one man died while be-ing carried to a mobile clinic. The survivors are nowbeing treated and when stabilized, some will needto be evacuated or more extensive medical care.

    Porter killed by Burma Army near Baw Kwaw.Nyaunglebin District, Dec 06.

    Porter killed by Burma Army. July 06

    The Burma Army hasused over ,700 portersin this oensive andover 26 have been re-

    ported dead, many owhom were executed.Among the porters inPapun Distict alone,there are over 20 childporters (boys under 6years old rom Insein

    Prison).

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    A Campaign o Brutality

    4) nyAungleBIn DIStrIct (K l h)

    Over 33 men, women (including a pregnant woman)

    and children have been killed by the Burma Army.

    11,000 displaced in all three townships. This number

    varies rom 5,000-11,000 depending on Burma Army

    activities.

    Shweygyn AnD KyAuK KyI townShIPS:

    villagers killed and 2,000-6,000 displaced de-pending on Burma Army activities. Recent attackson 2 November in Shweygyn Township and pa-trolling in Kyauk Kyi Township. Military OperationCommand (MOC) 2 is operating in Kyauk Kyi andShweygyn townships, Nyaunglebin District. IB 7,IB 6, IB 22, IB 27, IB 276, LIB 20, LIB 7, LIB ,LIB 60, LIB 602

    mon townShIP2 civilians have been killed and over ,000 peopledisplaced in Mon Township.Now in Mon Township: over ,000 displaced (over,00 IDPs north o the Mon River, over ,600 IDPssouth o the Mon River) ,000 in other districts.Over ,000 to reugee camps or IDP sae sites out othe district.

    MOC 6: Brigadier General They Oocommandero LIB 07 at Paungziet-Maldaw-Ka Pa Ta, patrol-

    ling against the civilians hiding in the jungle northo the Mon River, in Mon Township, NyaunglebinDistrict, Karen State. *units attacking in Mon Town-shipother MOC 6 units are operating in Toun-goo District.

    *LIB 22 at Maladaw camp*LIB 67 at The Byn Yu-Maladaw- Te La Baw Hta*LIB 6 at Play Sa Lo-Ye Ta Gone*LIB 2 at Paunziet; building a new camp andpatrolling against the civilians hiding in the jungle

    in the area north o the Mon River.*IB 20 at Po Ro Soea new camp west o thePada Chaung River.*IB 2 Ka Mu Loe Mon/Tantabin border area buthave been ordered back to rest and ret at ShanState-Thien De camp in Shan State.*IB 22 at Play Hsa Lo*IB 6 in Toungoo Districtexact location un-known.*IB 69 at Te Wa Bwey Kee, a new camp near KyaukPia. Under Southern Command:(also o Southern CommandLIB 90 and LIB 99are patrolling the Kyauk Kyi - Hsaw Hta Road in thearea east o Muthey camp).

    Porter orced to carry gasoline or the Burma Army.2006

    Man killed by Burma Army landmine. Mon Township,Dec 06

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    nb ias kid ad dd i m

    tsip a b Ba A si Fb

    a 2006:

    25 ias kid, 4 dd

    2 by gunshot, by landmine men wounded and child (9-yr-old girl).

    Villages and number killed:Saw Ka Der: villagers killed ( woman, man,

    child)Ler Kla: villagers killed ( men)Tee La Baw Hta: villager killed ( child)Kwee De Kaw: villagers killed ( men)Kyauk Pia: villagers killed (2 men 0 yr old

    woman)They Baw Der: 2 villagers killed (2 men)Saw Wah Der: 2 villagers killed (2 men)

    Kyauk Kyi Pauk: 2 villagers killed (2 men)Paw Pe Der: villager killed ( man)Maladaw: villagers killed ( men)

    Mon Township village tracts most under attack:

    ) Saw Ka Der: 00 people, villages2) Tee La Baw Ta: villages) Ler Kla: villages) Kwee De Kaw: 9 villages) Kyauk Pia: villages

    6) They Baw Der: villages7) Yaw Kee: village) Keaw Pu Der: village9) Saw Ti Der: village

    Total: villages

    Miscellaneous Numbers:

    KNU soldiers killed by landmines:

    Villager killed by landmines:

    KNU soldiers injured by thier own mines:

    Burma Army killed and wounded in Mon Townshipsince February: over 00

    Villages destroyed or abandoned:

    Villages burned: (this does not include the manyeld houses and rice barns burned throughoutMon Township. Landmines were then placed ontrails and in the remains o the villages themselves.)

    Names o burned villages in Mon Township:

    Tee La Baw Hta village tract: Nwa Hta and TheyKwey Lu villages burned

    Kwee De Kaw village tract: Tha Po Hta Vil-lage burned and police station nearby burned

    Saw Ka Der village tract: Ti Say Day villageburned.

    * 7 Village Tracts o 2 villages completely aban-doned. In the remaining 7 village tracts somevillages still have some o their population whilesome have lost over hal the village as people edattacks and did not come back.

    Abandoned village tracts:

    Tee La Baw Hta

    Kwee De Kaw Kyauk Pia Saw The Der Kwey Pa Der Yaw Kee Ler Kla

    Villages that have less than hal their usual popula-tion:

    Saw Ka Der

    Klaw Kee They Nwey Kee Saw Kee Ti Ko Tha Wa Po They Baw Der Play Pa Play Kee KSer Kaw Hti Saw Wah Der

    Roads now being planned in Mon Township: ThaByin Nyu-Maladaw-Chipyaung-cross the Paly orYaukthawa River-Yaw Kee-Busakee .

    5) PAPun DIStrIct (muthrAw)

    In June and July over 7,000 people were displaced.Over 20 convict porters were reported killed andtwo villagers were killed and seven wounded bythe Burma Army. When the Burma Army shited itsocus to the new road project rom Ler Mu Plaw toBusakee many people were able to return to theirvillages. However, as o this report, there are stillover ,000 displaced. The projected new road iscalled the Naypidaw Road, named ater the newcapitol o Burma.

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    6 A Campaign o Brutality

    Along the proposed route o this road villagesand over 2,00 people have been displaced:

    Ti Si Ki: 9 F, 7 M, total (7 amilies) Thy Thoo Ki: total ( amilies) So Pa Ko: 67 F, M, total (ami

    lies) Thaw Ku Mu Der: 29 F, 2 M, 2 total (7

    amilies) The Ne Ko: F, 0 M, 60 total (0 ami

    lies) Kay Pu * Not run: 0 total (69 amilies) Haw Thay Kee: 20 total Plo Ki: 200 ran and now are back, but ready

    to ee again Naw Baw Law Paly: 0 total Ka Baw Kee: 79 amiliesed and returned Thay Bo Paw, Klo Klaw Hta, Tee Mu Kee,

    Thay Wa Jo: 00 people total (0 amilies)

    6) toungoo DIStrIct (ta o)

    men, women and children have been killed bythe Burma Army. In November, two children, a ve-year-old girl and two-year-old boy, were capturedby the Burma Army and have not been released.Their condition is not known. An escaped porterreported seeing 9 convict porters executed dur-ing this oensive in Toungoo Distict. There are over

    6,000 people displaced in Toungoo District now.Division 66 and MOC are attacking villagers andtrying to push a new road rom Busakee to Ler MuPlaw in Papun District. Five new camps have beenbuilt this year. The Burma Army continues to burnvillages, build up the ve new camps it has builtthere and is orcing villagers to clear landminesand act as human shields on the Toungoo- MawchiRoad. Villagers rom 2 villages surrounding BawGa Lyi Gyi (on the Toungoo-Mawchi Road), havebeen orced to act as human shields around a bull-

    dozer and to go ahead o the construction unit toclear the roadway o potential landmines.

    The 2 villages are:

    Baw Ga Lyi Gyi Ye To Gyi Yee Tho Gale Si Si Thaung Kyaw Ponge Baw Ga Lyi Ley Ga Mu Der Der Doh Mae Kyaw Sa Ba Gyi, Kubyaung Pyaungtho

    The village o Ber Ka Lay Ko was attacked andburned by IB and IB on November, 2006.On 6 November, IB and IB then burned They

    Gi La village. On the same day these two units alsoburned Htee Hsa Ber village. MOC 6 troops are try-ing to block all travel rom the plains to the moun-tains. The area east o the villages o Htee Nyah BelLo, Htee Co Lo, Play Hser Lo, Bo Moe Dee, Shan ZeeBo, Tantabin, Swa Lo, and Da Pyin Noint is being pa-trolled and all travel stopped. No rice or any goodsare allowed to go rom the plains to the mountains.

    vias ad IDP sis ad:

    On 22 November, 2006 at 2: 00 hrs, BattalionIB 6, columns and 2 attacked the Saw Wah Derarea with mortars attempting to destroy the IDPshiding there. At p.m. they red more mortarrounds into the Sho Ta IDP area. On 6 December,Battalion IB rom Pa Na So army camp and LIB 6rom Kaw Thay Der mortared Saw Wah Der villagewith 60 mm mortars. They red mortars through-out the day and ceased ring at 6:0 p.m..cid capd:

    On 22 November, 2006, Burma Army Division 66,TOC 662 attacked Klay War Moh Taung village andcaptured a group o villagers on their way to KlerLer village. All the villagers but two children werereleased. A -year-old girl and -year-old boy arestill captive. Naw P Lay Way is ve years old andSaw Taw K Loh Mu is three years old. They are romTee Hser Bur village and are the children o SawHser Hla Lar.

    Ads apd:

    On 2 December, 2006, two men, Saw May Htoo, 7yrs and his son Saw Thaw Thi Htoo, 7 years old,Villagers return to retrieve belongings rom hid-

    ing places. Mon Township, April 06

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    7

    rom Taw Ku village, Tan Ta Bin Township, were cap-tured by the Burma Army and taken to Taw Ku BAIB camp. They have not been released yet. Theamily has been orced to move to Taw Ku village.

    had capd:

    On December, 2006, three headmen were cap-tured and taken to IB camp at Taw Ku.The headman rom Jee Pyu Kon village, U BaSein, 0 yrs old has not been not released yet.Theheadman rom Taw Ku village, U Shwe Moung, 0years old, has not released yet. The headman romYe Shan village was captured and now has beenreleased.

    Kid ad capd vias:

    North o the ToungooMawchi Road the BurmaArmy continues patrolling since it burned downBer Ka Lay Ko and Oo Per villages, on November.Troops rom Division 66 killed three villagers andcaptured over 0 men, women and children: theirstatus is unknown. The Burma Army has a plan toimprove the road to Mawchi.

    hips:

    The Burma Army used helicopters on 6 and 7

    December to move troops and supplies to Busa-kee Camp, Toungoo District, Karen State, easternBurma. Busakee is located at the terminus o theToungoo- Baw Ga Lyi Gyi- Busakee Road and is oneo the launch points or the Burma Army or thisoensive that has displaced over 2,000 peoplethis year. MOC , commanded by General AungNyeing, is headquartered at this base. Busakee islocated at: latitude N 00, longitude E 96 60 (British inch, :6,60 maps: map sheet 9B/, 7 70).

    On 6 December, two helicopters each made sixround trips rom Pyinmana to Busakee camp, drop-ping o 6 troops and one load o ammunition andrations. Arrival times: Between 0:0 a.m. and :0p.m. (all times local Burma time).

    On 7 December, two helicopters made three roundtrips each to drop o ammunition and rationsand then one helicopter made a nal ight anddropped o a load o men wearing white shirtsand longyis. The rst ight arrived at Busakee campat :0 a.m. (All times are local Burma time). Sec-ond ight arrived at :0 a.m. and the third ightarrived at :0 p.m. and the ourth ight o one

    helicopter arrived 2:0 p.m.. All helicopters havenow returned to Pyinmana.

    (Note: The use o helicopters by the Burma Army tomove troops at the ront line is unusual.)

    7) concluSIon:

    The Burma Army is attempting to destroy the KNUin the northern districts and completely dominatethe Karen people. This is the largest oensive since997 and the over 2,000 displaced people are in adangerous situation. The international communityneeds to take action now to stop the Burma Armyand provide immediate relie or the people underattack.

    APPenDIx A: BurmA Army unItS InvolveD In

    Burma Army MI- helicopter

    Helipad at Busakee Army Camp

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    A Campaign o Brutality

    thIS oFFenSIve:

    Note on casualties: Although the Burma Army hascommitted one division (0 battalions), our MOC(7-0 battalions in the eld per MOC) and troopsrom Southern Command, they have not beenable to chase out all o the Karen nor have theybeen able to decisively deeat the Karen resistance(KNU).Total estimated Burma Army casualties or thisoensive in 2006 is over ,0, while total KNUcasualties are 9 dead and 6 wounded.

    Nyaunglebin: 97 Burma Army KIA/WIA. 9 KNUKilled in Action (KIA) KIA/ Wounded in Action(WIA).Papun: Over 60 Burma Army KIA/WIA. KNU KIA/ WIA

    Toungoo: Over 00 Burma Army KIA/WIA. KNUKIA/ 0 WIA.

    Please see our report on the website: An apprecia-tion o the Situation, January 2006, or an analysiso how the Burma Army ghts and why the resis-tance can still continue.

    The Burma Army has deployed troops rom South-ern Command, Division 66 and our Military Op-erations Commands: MOC 0, MOC , MOC 6,

    and MOC 2. MOC , MOC 6, and MOC 2 arereported to be under the Operational Commando the Southern (Regional) Command Headquar-ters at Toungoo. Division 66 is leading the attackin Toungoo District and MOC 0 is operating asthe security orce or the Kyauk Kyi-Hsaw Hta Roadand is supporting MOC s attacks and buildingo camps along the line o the projected new roadthat will divide Papun and Toungoo Districts. Theunits involved in this oensive are listed below:Southern Command - HQ at Toungoo; Maj Gen Ko

    Ko in command.

    Now operating in Toungoo and northern Nyaun-glebin District: IB 0, IB 9, IB , IB , IB 7, IB 60,IB 7, IB 7, IB 2, IB 26, LIB 9, LIB 0, LIB ,LIB 9, LIB 0, LIB 9, LIB 90, LIB 99.Military Operation Command ( MOC 0) - HQat Kalay, Sagaing Division (rom the NorthwestCommand) operating on the Kyauk Kyi- Hsaw Htaroad and supporting MOC operations in PapunDistrict: LIB 6, LIB 62, LIB 6, LIB 6, LIB 6,LIB 66, LIB 67, LIB 6, LIB 69, LIB 70, (Note: Onthe rst week o December, the units belongingto MOC (One TOC o MOC had the new roadmission), were replaced by one TOC o MOC 0. The

    MOC units then went back to the Ler Mu Plawarea to take the place o the MOC 0 units. Thereasons or this change are yet unknown.)Military Operation Command (MOC) - HQat Buthidaung, Arakan State (rom the WesternCommand): Split into two TOCs o three lines andone HQ battalion. One TOC in Toungoo Districtis advancing south into Papun District rom thevicinity o Baw Ga Lyi Gyi and Busakee; one TOC isadvancing north rom Papun District into ToungooDistrict. These two orces are opening up a routeor a new road that when complete will connectthe PwaGawa-Ler Mu Plaw Road to the Busakee-Baw Ga Lyi Gyi- Toungoo Road. This road will dividethe northern Karen State into quarters and splitthe Papun and Toungoo Districts. Brigadier GeneralAung Nye is the MOC commander at Busakee.TOC (LIB 2 and LIB ) are at Busakee. LIB 2

    and LIB at Plo Mu Der Piang Ma Tho)7 mileswest o Busakee. And one TOC, TOC 2, (LIB , LIB6, LIB 6) in the Kay Pu area o northwest Papun(Muthraw) District. This unit is building camps andsurveying the planned new road rom Ler Mu Plawto Busakee. Units: LIB , LIB 2, LIB , LIB ,LIB 6, LIB 7, LIB , LIB 2, LIB 6, LIB 6.

    Military Operation Command (MOC) 6 - HQ atThein Ni, Shan State (rom Northeast Command),Col Zay Oo, commander. MOC 6 is operating both

    in southern Tantabin Township, Toungoo District,and Mon Township, Nyaunglebin District: IB 6, IB69, IB 20, IB 2, IB 22, LIB 2, LIB 07,LIB 22,LIB 67, LIB 6.Military Operation Command (MOC) 2 - HQ atMoe Mait, Kachin State (Northern Command) - ColAye Hlaing. MOC 2 is operating in Kyauk Kyi andShweygyn Township, Nyaunglebin District: IB 7, IB6, IB 22, IB 27, IB 276, LIB 20, LIB 7,LIB ,LIB 60,LIB 602Light Inantry Division - HQ at Thaton, Mon State

    - Brig Gen Hla Myint Swe. Now in the Sittang Rivervalleynot yet directly involved in this operationbut in support: IB 2, IB , LIB , LIB 2, LIB , LIB 9, LIB02, LIB 0, LIB , LIB 207.Light Inantry Division 66 - HQ at Pyi, Pegu Divisionis attacking in the Than Daung and Tantabin Town-ships Toungoo District: IB , IB , IB , IB , IB 0,IB , LIB , LIB 6, LIB 0, LIB 0.Light Inantry Division 0 - HQ at Pakkoku, MagweDivision is not directly involved in this oensive- lo-cal patrolling): LIB 2, LIB 22,LIB 2, LIB 2, LIB2, LIB 29.

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    Burma Army ofcer overseeing orced labor in Toun-goo District, May 06

    Burma Army orced relocation regulation. ToungooDistrict, May 06

    0 villagers orced to porter or the Burma Army.Toungoo District, May 06

    Some o 0 villagers orced to porter. Toungoo Dis-trict, May 06

    Mother carrying 2 babies while eeing rom the BurmaArmy. 27 April, 2006

    9

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    Government actors are liable to twotypes o international law: qua treaty lawand customary international law. Quatreaty law obligates state actors to adhereto the standards established in internationaltreaties the state has ratied. Customaryinternational law governs all state actors,regardless o the states afliation to anytreaty.

    InternationalLaw.WexCornellLawSchool,June5,

    2006.http://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/index.php/International_law.

    0 A Campaign o Brutality

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    v. A cAmPAIgn oF

    BrutAlIty:

    rePort on the BurmA

    ArmyS AttAcKS In

    eAStern BurmA,FeBruAry June 2006

    Families ee across a road controlled by the Burma Army. December 06.

    Report by Austin Anderson, Ohio State University Law School

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    2 A Campaign o Brutality

    The ollowing is a synopsis o FBR team reports rom February through June 2006. While it uses only a sample

    o the reports on the entire oensive, it demonstrates conclusively the violations o international humanitarian

    law perpetrated by the Burma Army on its own people. It also tells the story o a people who are living on the

    edge o survival but who are willing to give everything in their struggle or reedom rom a predatory army. It

    provides evidence that demands a response.

    A Campaign of Brutality:

    Report on the Burma Armys Attacks in Eastern Burma, 2006

    I. Introduction

    Saw Maw Keh was a armer in Mon Township, Nyaunglebin District, Karen State. He lived therewith his wie, Naw Bee Ko, and their our children, ages eight months to nine years old. Ater his brotherwas murdered by the Burma Army, Saw Maw Keh dutiully married his late brothers wie. Saw Maw Kehworked hard on his arm to provide or his wie, mother, three adopted daughters and his natural son,Saw Htoo Ka Paw Doh.2

    On March 27, 2006, as part o a larger military campaign to uproot and displace the civilianpopulation inNyaunglebin District, Karen State, the Burma Army targeted Saw Maw Kehs village. Upon

    learning o the Armys approach, Saw Mah Kehs amily and the rest o the villagers ed their homes andsought temporary cover in a gully near the village. Shortly thereater, the villagers let the gully or aridge overlooking the village. Saw Maw Keh put his mother on his back, because at the age o 0 shecould not make the climb, and proceeded to lead the group up to the ridge.

    Unbeknownst to Saw Maw Keh and the villagers, Burma Army soldiers had already positionedthemselves behind some logs on the top o the ridge. When the unarmed villagers came within yardso the soldiers position, the soldiers began ring their weapons at them. The soldiers gave no warningprior to ring their guns.

    When the gunre started, all the villagers ran and Saw Maw Kehs mother ell rom his back.Hearing her cries, Saw Maw Keh ran back to help her. The soldiers continued to re, striking Saw Maw Kehin the chest and his mother in the neck, killing them both. The soldiers also shot Saw Maw Kehs 9-year-

    old daughter, Naw Eh Ywa Paw, as she ran rom the attack with the rest o the group. Naw Eh Ywa Pawsurvived her gunshot wounds and ater walking several days in the jungle eventually made it to relativesaety with her mother and siblings.

    The murder o Saw Maw Keh and his mother is just one o the many documented accounts o theBurma Armys practice o displacing and terrorizing the ethnic minorities throughout Burma. This reportdetails human rights violations committed by the Burma Army in Karen State and documented by FreeBurma Ranger relie teams in 2006. The crimes documented here are by no means an exhaustive recordo the atrocities that the Burma military has committed against civilian populations. Rather, this reportprovides only a ew snapshots o the countless abuses that the Burma Army continues to commit in itsongoing campaign against the civilian populations in Karen State, Burma.

    NineYearOldGirlShotbyBurmaArmy9April2006.April0,2006.http://www.

    freeburmarangers.org/Reports/2006040_girl_shot.htm.

    2 ReliefTeamFindsBodiesofMurderedIDPs.April9,2006.http://www.freeburmarang-

    ers.org/Reports/2006049.html. Id.

    4 Id.

    5 Id.

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    II. Facts Evidencing Oppression by the Military Junta in Burma

    A. The Governments Policy of Attacking and Displacing Villagers

    1. General Information

    Ethnic minorities make up 2% o the population o Burma with the remainder ethnic Burmans.6For over 0 years the the ethnic minority groups o Burma have ought to preserve their reedom romthe oppressive military junta. The primary resistance group in Karen State, Burma, is the Karen NationalUnion (KNU) and their armed deense organization, the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA). Severalother ethnic minority groups (such as the Shan, Karenni, etc.) have active resistance elements as well. TheBurma Army habitually terrorizes, harasses and attacks the ethnic minority villagers in order to undercutthe resistance groups. These attacks have displaced up to a million villagers,7 and the requency andmagnitude o human rights violations committed in the course o this displacement is equally substantial.

    Burma has been under dictator rule since 962, when General Ne Win overthrew the acting primeminister and proceeded to rule the country or the next twenty-six years. Ne Win instituted the Four CutsProgram to ght the ethnic minority resistance to his illegitimate reign. The programs aim was to cuto intelligence, ood, unds and recruits to these resistance groups. To eectuate this policy the militarysystematically targeted the civilian population, attempting to make the villagers condition so unbearable

    that supporting army resistance would become uneasible.Ne Wins reign came to an end in August 9, one month ater slaughtering thousands o

    students, monks and other pro-democracy protesters in the streets o Burma. Despite the populacesdiscontent with Ne Win, he was able to choose General Than Shwe and the leaders o the junta thatwould rule Burma ollowing his demise. In 990, the junta, initially known as the State Law & OrderRestoration Council (SLORC) and later renamed the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC),briey bowed to internal pressure and allowed ree elections to take place.9 The National League orDemocracy, the primary opposition o the military regime led by Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, won over 0% othe parliamentary seats while the militarys party won 2% o the seats.0 Despite the complete rejectiono the SPDC, the military junta summarily set these results aside and continued to increase its tyrannicalcontrol over the people o Burma. The regime maintains its control through armed strength and an

    aggressive implementation o the Four Cuts Program.2

    The Karen National Union has reused to acknowledge the juntas rule over the people o KarenState. The KNU resists the Burmese military regime in hopes o orm[ing] a genuine Federal Unioncomprised o all the states o the nationalities in Burma, including a Burman state, on the basis o Liberty,Equality, Sel-Determination and Social Progress. Seeking to crush all opposition, the Burma Armydirects its attacks against local villagers in an attempt to cut o support to the KNLA. Although theseattacks have seriously impaired the ability o the villagers to aid the KNU in its eorts protect them romBurma Army oppression, the villagers still provide the KNU enough support to maintain some socialwelare programs and deensive operations.

    2. Life in Karen State Under Military Rule

    6 BackgroundNote:Burma.U.S.DepartmentofState,August2005.http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/590.htm.

    Cohen,Roberta.StatementBeforetheAsiaSocietyonInternalDisplacementin

    Burma.TheBrookingsInstitution,November6,2004.http://www.brookings.edu/fp/projects/

    idp/20046_rcohen.htm.

    BackgroundonBurma.KarenHumanRightsGroup,2000.http://www.khrg.org/back-

    ground_on_burma.html.

    9 BackgroundNote:Burma.Supra.

    0 CIATheWorldFactbookBurma.CentralIntelligenceAgency,July20,2006.https://

    www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/bm.html .

    BackgroundNote:Burma.Supra.2 BackgroundonBurma.Supra.

    Aims,PolicyandProgrammeoftheKNU.KarenNationalUnion.http://www.karen.

    org/knu/knuaim.htm.

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    A Campaign o Brutality

    In May 2006 Saw Ba Ni, a -year-old armer living in Karen State, described his mobile villagesexperience eeing the Burma Army or the past ten years. Maw They Dur village consists o 2 amiliesand approximately 00 civilians. All the villagers are civilians and they have no means to resist the BurmaArmy when attacked. When the Burma Army troops attack, the villagers are orced to run or their livesand abandon their homes, crops and anyone unabl