Weekly Overview: Human Rights Situation in Mon State, Karen State and Tanintharyi Region

July 15, 2024

A weekly update by the Human Rights Foundation of Monland (HURFOM) on the situation on the ground. Summary data includes Mon State, Karen State and Tanintharyi region.

As the military junta in Burma continues to commit widespread human rights violations, civilians are constantly fleeing to seek shelter and protection. Worryingly, the Burma Army has also intensified its surveillance tactics and is adding checkpoints to critical routes and then extorting those trying to pass. This comes amid rising inflation, including rice prices, which have left families struggling to survive.

At least thirteen villagers have been arrested, with some killed and others missing. Over the past week, junta troops entered Yebyu Township, capturing and killing several villagers while leaving others unaccounted for. Residents from the Zar Dee village tract, located in the Kan Bauk area and Dawei Special Economic Zone, reported the abductions and subsequent killings. Locals discovered the bodies of the captured and killed villagers.

On the morning of July 1st, junta troops abducted eight villagers, including three family members from Zar Dee and Khaung Pyan villages. They took them to the Dawei Special Economic Zone. By July 3rd, the body of U Naing Naing from Khaung Pyan village was found in the Khaung Pyan stream. On July 4th, the bodies of U Aung Zaw Win and U Kyaw Sein from Khaung Pyan village and Ko Tha Tha from Zar Dee village were discovered in a nearby creek.

Although the three family members were released upon reaching the Dawei Special Economic Zone, five men remain missing:

“The villagers who found the bodies buried them. But, the junta troops are still in the village,” said a resident of Zar Dee. As of July 7th, the five men remain unaccounted for.

“There are more than five people arrested by the junta troops. We don’t know if they are dead or alive,” another resident of Zar Dee reported. In addition to civilian killings, over ten houses near the cemetery in the area were burned.

Within the Dawei Special Economic Zone, arrests and killings have occurred, and civilians have sustained injuries from gunfire. On July 1st, a young man, around 20 years old, from Kha Maung Chaung village was arrested by the junta. As of July 7th, he was not released and was seen in a military uniform following the junta column, according to locals.

“People were arrested and forced to wear military uniforms. There are more than five villagers. They are following the troops. Now they are at Pa Kaw Zun with the junta troops,” said a resident.

On July 5th, junta troops also abducted six men from Mu Du village. Their whereabouts are still being investigated. As of July 7th, junta forces were reported to be in Zar Dee, Pa Ya, Pa Kaw Zun, and Nyaung Pin Seik villages, moving throughout Yebyu Township and the Dawei Special Economic Zone.

These abductions reinforce the ongoing fears of many men and women who dare not return to their villages for fear of their lives if confronted by the junta. According to HURFOM documentation, those who are abducted by the junta are often forced to guide Burma Army soldiers through unfamiliar areas and then are either shot or tortured to death. The crimes committed by the terrorist regime demand international attention and action.