SHRF MONTHLY REPORT - JANUARY 2007

COMMENTARY
        This month’s issue carries reports on some of the various types of human rights violations often committed by the SPDC troops in Shan State during the second half of 2006.
        These reports are hard evidence of the fact that Burmese junta’s troops have still been abusing the people at will, and enjoying impunity in doing so.
        Although on various occasions the Burmese junta have promised the international community and other concerned parties that they will stop abusing their own people, in reality this has so far never been the case, especially for the non-Burman ethnic nationalities who the junta do not appear to regard as their “own people”.
        Some types of violations might during a certain period of time have reduced in frequency for some reasons, e.g., internal and external pressures or simply not in necessity. However, they have never completely stopped and almost always reoccurred when the need arose, sometimes disguised under different names and forms.
        For example, forced labour and extortion, which have been the most widespread and regular abuses,  have been over the years given different names and appearances by the junta to disguise them as something voluntary that the people themselves are willing to contribute. But, hopefully, the junta will one day learn that they cannot cheat all the people all the time.
        In conclusion, there has so far been little sign of willingness on the part of the military junta to stop any of the human rights violations perpetrated by their troops against civilian populations.

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ARREST, TORTURE, KILLING AND DISAPPEARANCE, IN KUN-HING
        In August-September 2006, among 5 villagers of Nam Khaam village in Wan Paang village tract, Kun-Hing township, that had been arrested, detained and tortured by the SPDC troops of IB246 based in Kun-Hing, one was killed and the 4 others disappeared.
        On 5 August 2006, a patrol of about 40 SPDC troops from IB246, led by commander Zaw Lwin, patrolled the area northeast of Kun-Hing town and arrived at Nam Khaam village in Wan Paang village tract at about 10 o’clock in late morning.
        The SPDC troops asked to see the headman of Nam Khaam village, but the headman had gone elsewhere and was not in the village at the time. The troops then arrested 5 other villagers and took them to the base of IB246.
        The 5 villagers were originally from Kaeng Kham village in Kaeng Kham village tract, Kun-Hing township, that had been forcibly relocated during the mass forced relocations in central Shan State carried out in 1996-1997 by the then SLORC (State Law and Order Restoration Council) troops.
        They were:
1. Lung Pan-Nya (m), aged 58
2. Lung Ta (m), aged 59
3. Lung Zit-Ta (m), aged 53
4. Lung Kaw-Wi (m), aged 62
5. Pi Saang Aw (m), 49
        The villagers were detained in a lockup in the military base and were taken out at night to be interrogated. Sometimes they were taken out one by one and sometimes in a group of 2 or 3, or all of them together, and interrogated by SPDC troops who were often drunk.
        The SPDC troops wanted to know about the Shan soldiers who, they said, were active in the area and also the villagers who were acting as their agents, and accused the detainees of being agents or knowing who those agents were.
        During interrogations, the villagers were tortured, beaten with sticks and even shocked with electricity, at times until they lost consciousness, by the SPDC troops. The interrogations went on continually until the end of August 2006.
        On 1 September 2006, one of the villagers, Lung Pan-Nya, aged 58, was accused of actually being an agent of Shan soldiers and taken to the Nam Pang river at night and beaten to death and dumped into the water, about 2 miles southeast of Kun-Hing town.
        Shortly after that, the 4 other villagers disappeared. Although they are believed to have been also killed by the SPDC troops, their bodies have not been found up until the time of this report.

SEXUAL ASSAULT AND IMPUNITY IN TA-KHI-LAEK
        In October 2006, a 13-year-old Akha girl was sexually assaulted and suffered attempted rape by an SPDC soldier of LIB331 at Pung Lo village in Hawng Lerk village tract, Ta-Khi-Laek township.
        Although the SPDC soldier was caught by the villagers and sent to the base of LIB331, he was immediately released by the commander in front of the villagers, without any actions taken against him on the ground that he was mentally unstable.
        On 6 October 2006, early in the morning, Ae-Mi (not her real name), an Akha girl of 13, of Paang Sali village in Hawng Lerk village tract, Ta-Khi-Laek township, went to the market at Waeng Keo village in the same village tract with some vegetables to sell.
        On the way, when she got to Pung Lo village, near the base of LIB331, an SPDC soldier suddenly came out of nowhere and sexually harassed her for some time and finally tried to rape her. When she realized the soldier was going to rape her, Ae-Mi screamed for help.
        Fortunately, many villagers heard her scream and quickly came to her help. The villagers together managed to seize the soldier and brought him to the LIB331 military base which was not far away.
        However, the commander not only did not take any action against the soldier but immediately released him right in front of the villagers, telling them not to pay attention to that soldier because he was not mentally stable.

VILLAGER SEVERELY BEATEN, FORCED TO WALK AROUND IN A VILLAGE WITH A BELL TIED TO HIS NECK, IN KAE-SEE
        In August 2006, a villager of Kung Mong village in Murng Khun village tract, Kae-See township, was forced to walk along the streets with a bell tied to his neck like a cow and beaten, by SPDC troops from IB131.
        On 6 August 2006, a patrol of SPDC troops from IB131 came to Kung Mong village in Murng Khun village tract, Kae-See township. The SPDC troops stopped a man, Ai Thun (not his real name), aged 20, and asked him about the movements of Shan soldiers in the area.
        When Ai Thun said he knew nothing about Shan soldiers, the SPDC troops went into a barn of a nearby house and brought out a bell and a stick, used for controlling cattle, tied the bell around his neck and forced him to walk along the streets, beating him with the stick and asking him questions.
        There was no one in the village to come and plead for him because all the adult male villagers had fled to hide outside the village as soon as they saw the SPDC soldiers coming towards their village.
        According to local villagers, no men dared to remain in their villages in the area because the SPDC troops, especially patrols from IB131, always did something cruel to them whenever they came. Unfortunately, Ai Thun did not notice the approaching SPDC troops this time.
        The SPDC troops forced Ai Thun to walk around in the village for about half an hour, interrogating him and beating him all the while. When Ai Thun could hardly walk because of the pains and injuries from the beating, the troops left him on the street and went away.
        Only then did villagers who had been hiding and watching from afar dare to come out and take him to his house and treat his wounds, which were blue bruises and sprains all over his body.

ARREST, DETENTION AND EXTORTION, IN TA-KHI-LAEK
        In August 2006, a man was sentenced to 10 years in jail for not paying tax for his motorcycle, which was confiscated, by the SPDC authorities in Ta-Khi-Laek, but was released and put on probation after community leaders paid 200,000 baht (Thai money) to the authorities and guaranteed that he would behave in the future.
        On 13 August 2006, Zaai Yawd (m), aged 42, of Huay Lin Lam village in Murng Phong village tract, Ta-Khi-Laek township, went to Ta-Khi-Laek town on his motorcycle to buy some commodities and ran into a group of police who had set up a checkpoint near the entrance of the town.
        The police asked to see his driving licence and a tax voucher for his motorcycle. Zaai Yawd had a driving licence but did not have a tax voucher, so the police fined him 3000 baht and said they would also confiscate his motorcycle.
        Although Zaai Yawd agreed to pay the fine, he argued with the police not to confiscate his motorcycle because it was not that he did not want to pay tax, but he did not even know where to pay the tax.
        The police then accused him of defying authority and arrested Zaai Yawd, and later he was sentenced to 10 years imprisonment by a certain court. The community leaders managed to secure his release after paying 200,000 baht to the authorities, but he was still given 10 years’ probation.
        It was learned that during the month of August, many motorcycles that did not have tax vouchers were confiscated and their owners fined 3000 baht each by the SPDC police in Ta-Khi-Laek township, even though there were no clearly defined places where the taxes had to be paid.

DESTRUCTION OF CROPS AND FORCED LABOUR FOR RICE-GROWING COMPETITION, IN KAENG-TUNG
        In August 2006, 3 acres of villagers’ rice paddy full of “pregnant” rice plants were destroyed in order to organize a rice-growing competition, in which forced labour of the people was used from beginning to end, by the SPDC authorities in Kaeng-Tung township.
        Acting on the order of the SPDC commander of the Special Triangle Regional Military Command, SPDC authorities in Kaeng-Tung township chose a plot of rice field in Kaad Tao village tract to organize a rice-growing competition.
        The place chosen was a 3-acre rice field belonging to the villagers of Yaang Hok in Kaad Tao village tract. It was chosen because it was near the main road and easy to access and thus the most appropriate, said the authorities.
        The rice field was, however, already full of paddy plants which were about to produce rice ears, or heavily “pregnant” as the farmers would say. The owners, with the help of the community leaders, tried to plead with the authorities not to choose their rice paddy, but to no avail. The authorities said they dared not defy the order of the Regional Commander.
        A meeting of all the community leaders of 24 villages in Kaad Tao village tract was held and they were told by the SPDC authorities to join the competition which was to be held on 14 August 2006. They were also told to clear the place of the rice plants and prepare it 3-4 days before the competition started.
        On the day of the competition, the forced competitors had to be at the field and get ready at 7 o’clock in the morning, but the authorities, including the Regional Commander and many officials and community leaders, came a bit later and opened the competition.
        There were about 800-1000 people at the competition with several groups playing traditional musical instruments while members of the SPDC took pictures with still and video cameras. The competition was completed at 7 o’clock in the evening.
        In addition to having to provide forced labour for the rice-growing competition, the people in Kaad Tao village tract were also required by the SPDC authorities to compensate for the loss of the owners of rice paddy used for the competition.

STEALING OF POSSESSIONS AND EXTORTION, IN MURNG-TON
        In 2006, there have been many cases of theft in several parts of Shan State in which SPDC troops claimed to have found the stolen possessions, including TV sets, motorcycles and bicycles, etc., and extorted money from the owners who wanted to get back their possessions. In fact, those possessions were stolen and hidden by the SPDC troops themselves in order to extort money from the owners.
        But if there were convenient ways, the SPDC troops would just stealthily took those possessions away to be sold somewhere else, or sold to those who could take them away, e.g. passing military convoys or military vehicles that brought rations to them.
        The following are just two of such incidents that took place in Murng-Ton:

EXTORTION FROM OWNER OF STOLEN MOTORCYCLE, IN MURNG-TON
        Sometime in July-August 2006, money was extorted from the owner of a stolen motorcycle by the SPDC troops from IB277 who claimed to have found the motorcycle, which they themselves had stolen and hidden in a ravine, near Wan Mai Son Khaan village in Mae Ken village tract, Murng-Ton township.
        One night, a dispatch of about 20 SPDC troops from IB277 that were temporarily stationed at a pavilion in the compound of a Buddhist temple at Mae Ken village, went on a patrol in the area of Wan Mai Son Khaan village.
        The SPDC troops came into Wan Mai Son Khaan village and stealthily pushed away a villager’s motorcycle, without starting the engine. As the troops were pushing the motorcycle out of the village, some villagers who were returning from night fishing saw them and quickly hid themselves for fear of the troops.
        The next morning, the owner saw his motorcycle was missing and went to Mae Ken village and reported it to the village tract leader who in turn reported it to the SPDC troops at the temple. A patrol of SPDC troops then set out to find the motorcycle.
        After a while, the SPDC troops found the motorcycle in a ravine about 1 km north of Wan Mai Son Khaan village and brought it to the house of the village tract leader and told him to call the owner to come and take back his motorcycle.
        It was a China-made one and worth about 600,000 kyat in the area at the time. When the owner arrived, the SPDC troops told him to give them 100,000 kyat for their efforts. Were it not for them, the motorcycle would not have been found, so the owner owed them a lot of gratitude, they said.
        Although the owner, as well as other villagers, knew very well what had transpired, he had no choice but to give the SPDC troops what they demanded or he risked losing his motorcycle if something went wrong.

MOTORCYCLES STOLEN, IN MURNG-TON
        In September 2006, 3 motorcycles belonging to villagers of Pung Pa Khem village in Murng-Ton township were stolen by SPDC troops of IB65 and trucked away by a convoy of military trucks that had brought military supplies to the troops.
        On 9 September 2006, a convoy of 4 6-wheel military trucks came to Pung Pa Khem village carrying military supplies for the SPDC troops stationed at the village, from Company No. 3 of IB65 based in Murng-Ton.
        During the night, 3 motorcycles of Pung Pa Khem villagers were stolen by the SPDC troops stationed there and loaded on some of the said 4 trucks which left Pung Pa Khem very early the next morning, on 10 September 2006.
        Although the owners only knew their motorcycles were missing in the morning because they were asleep at the time they were stolen, on inquiry they immediately knew that they had been taken away by the military trucks.
        Local villagers said that it was not difficult to know because there were villagers who saw when the motorcycles were being loaded on to the trucks during the night, and they could not be mistaken. The problem was, they said, the impact on the lives of the villagers who had no ways and means to claim back their lost property.
        The motorcycles were all China-made and had been legally bought by the villagers at the rate of 700,000 kyat each, including customs duties, not affordable by most villagers. Only those who really needed them in their daily life and could afford them had bought them with their hard-earned savings.

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FORCED RELOCATIONS IN LARNG-KHUR
        Forced relocation of whole villages by the Burmese junta’s troops and their cohorts and stooges are still occasionally taking place at one place or another in Shan State during 2006.
        Forced relocations often have to be completed within a few days’ time, or sometimes even immediately on the same day as the issuance of the order, often coupled with threats and intimidation.
        The following incidents are 2 examples of how forced relocations are usually carried out:

VILLAGERS FORCED TO MOVE WITHIN 3 DAYS IN LARNG-KHUR
        In November 2006, villagers of Paang Mai Kut village in Paang Tawi village tract, Larng-Khur township, were forced to relocate within 3 days by the SPDC troops from LIB525.
        On 3 November 2006, a patrol of SPDC troops from LIB525 came to Paang Mai Kut village in Paang Tawi village tract and forced all the villagers to relocate to Huay Hur village in Nawng Long village tract, Larng-Khur township, within 3 days.
        The villagers were required to move all their belongings, including all their crops and livestock, in 3 days. Whatever remained in Paang Mai Kut village, which comprised more than 20 houses, after 3 days would be burned to ashes, said the order.
        The reasons for the relocation were the accusations made by the SPDC troops against the villagers of harbouring Shan soldiers, because the village was quite far from the town, and providing rice for the Shan soldiers.
        Although displaced villagers who had relatives at Huay Hur village were able to stay with their relatives, those who did not have any relatives had nowhere to stay and had to sell their belongings cheaply and flee to other places, including Thailand.

VILLAGERS FORCED TO MOVE IN A SINGLE DAY IN LARNG-KHUR
        In early 2006, another forced relocation had already taken place in the same area, carried out by a patrol of people’s militia under the command of LIB525, in which Nyawng Paang village in Wan Haad village tract was forced to move to Paang Tawi village, in Larng-Khur township, in a single day.
        Sometime in February 2006, at about 9 o’clock in the morning, a patrol of people’s militia led by a man named Gan-Da-Ma, working on the order of LIB525, came to Nyawng Paang village and ordered all the villagers, about 52 households, to move to Paang Tawi village immediately.
        The movements were required to be completed on the same day. Villagers’ possessions that still remained in the village on the next day would be burned to ashes, said the militia.
        While the villagers were busy moving their belongings, members of the militia went around the village shooting and catching chickens and pigs from the houses, creating a chaotic situation, said eyewitnesses.

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LAND CONFISCATION IN SEN-WI (HSENWI)
        In August 2006, more than 100 acres of villagers’ land were confiscated by the SPDC authorities to make way for rubber plantations, south of Nawng On village in Teng Yet village tract, Sen-Wi township.
        On 6 August 2006, members of the SPDC authorities in Sen-Wi township and their civilian business partners came to Teng Yet village tract and put a stake on a stretch of land saying that from then on it would be used for rubber plantations.
        The land was more than 100 acres in area and situated east of Nam Pang stream and south of Nawng On village in Teng Yet village tract, comprising mostly villagers’ farm lands and wood lands which had been providing them with firewood and building materials for generations.
        The headman of Teng Yet village tract was called by the SPDC authorities and told to inform those who claimed to be the owners that their lands had been taken by the Burmese Military, who was the real owner of all land, and they had no right to do anything with them anymore.

BURGLARY IN NAM-ZARNG
        In rural areas in Shan State, patrolling SPDC troops have often broken into houses and stolen villagers’ possessions when there was no one at home, saying the houses belonged to the Shan soldiers.
        When villagers happened to find them stealing and try to stop them, the SPDC troops would simply ignore them and take their possessions away in front of them anyway.
        In August 2006, a patrol of SPDC troops from Murng-Nai-based IB248 broke into a villager’s house at Haai Oi village in Wan Nawng village tract, Nam-Zarng township, and took away the following possessions:
1. One big tin of cooking oil
2. Half a basket of husked rice
3. Two blankets
4. Ten chickens
        As the SPDC troops were searching the house after breaking into it, some villagers saw them and tried to stop them from taking the possessions by explaining that the house belonged to an ordinary village couple who had nothing to do with the Shan soldiers.
        But the troops did not listen to them, saying that they believed the house belonged to the Shan soldiers and, sharing the possessions among themselves, took them away right in front of the villagers. When the owners of the house learned about it, they dared not do anything about it.

EXTORTION OF LIVESTOCK AND RICE IN KUN-HING
        Sometime in mid 2006, SPDC troops from LIB524 accused the villagers of Ho Ha village in Naa Poi village tract, Kun-Hing township, of supporting Shan soldiers and extorted a pig, chicken and rice from them as punishment.
        On the day of the incident, a patrol of about 35 SPDC troops, led by Lt. Myint Swe, from LIB524 came to Ho Ha village and told the villagers to give them 1 pig and 6 viss (1 viss = 1.6 kg) of chicken as a punishment for letting Shan soldiers often camp near their village and supporting them with basic necessities.
        The villagers explained that they had not seen any Shan soldiers in their village area for quite a long time. “When the Shan soldiers sometimes passed through our village a long time ago, we only had to give them packets of cooked rice, and that was only when they asked for it”, said the villagers.
        The SPDC troops then said, “Now, we Burmese soldiers have not yet asked for rice like the Shan soldiers have done. Actually you should include some rice in your punishment”, and ordered the villagers to also give them half a basket of husked rice.
        The villagers could not refuse, but had to give the SPDC troops not only the previously demanded pig and chickens but also the demanded amount of rice for trying to explain about the real situation.