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Local community wants state government to investigate corruption committed by village administration

HURFOM: The local community in Htin-yuu village, Thanbyuzayat Township, Mon State, is pleading with the Mon State government to closely investigate the whereabouts and expenditure of millions of Kyat in taxes charged by Village Administration authorities since the previous government’s administration. Residents suspect the money from taxes is being misused, and seek to uncover any abuses and impose appropriate punishments on any guilty authorities.  Read more

First ever Women and Peace Workshop held in Mon State

HURFOM: On June 17, the first “Women and Peace Workshop”was organized by the Mon Women Network (MWN) at Nai Shwe Kyin’s library, in Moulmein, Mon State. The workshop was an important milestone for Mon women because it advocated for women’s participation in peace talks and created a space for women seeking to connect with Burma’s reforms to share with each other, learn key concepts, and strategize for the future. Read more

Insecurity continues to rise in Ye and Yebyu Townships

HURFOM reports that despite the transitions Burma is now pursuing, local residents in Southern Mon State and Northern Tenasserim still face instability including kidnapping, extortion, violations of rights, and torture. In response to the threat of violence and intimidation, villagers fear for their security, livelihoods, employment, and even their ability to travel outside their homes and communities. The presence of many different insurgent groups and security forces in the region, all seeking to exploit local people, compounds the risks. Read more

Extortion causes villagers hardships in northern Yebyu Township

HURFOM: Recent field assessments report that, in 2012, an unidentified Mon breakaway group has been increasingly demanding money from villagers living in northern Ye Phyu Township, despite Burmese security forces located around Kyauktalin village. Local residents face difficulties ensuring their safety and access to income because the group threatens them if they are unable to pay. Many villagers, especially the youth, relocated to other places in order to escape the ongoing risks. Read more

Extortion and restrictions still burden travellers on Ye – Tavoy highway

HURFOM: Travellers and merchants passing through Mon State and Tenasserim Region on the Ye to Tavoy highway dispute the regional government’s continued operation of security tollgates and checkpoints that regularly extort passengers and impose travel restrictions. According to tradespersons and travellers, government troop activities such as forcible inspection and demands for arbitrary fines severely impact people’s ability to travel and freely pursue their livelihoods. Read more

Lives for ransom: Consequences of kidnappings in southern Karen State

HURFOM: Recent kidnappings committed by unidentified armed groups have caused a sharp increase in uncertainty and fear experienced by residents living around Three Pagodas Sub-township, Kyainnseikyi Township in Karen State. In the face of eight cases of kidnapping since April and demands for exorbitant amounts of ransom, local authorities have yet to adequately address the threats, leaving residents to feel abandoned by local government and security forces. Read more

KWAT Demonstrates Persistent Abuses and Impunity in Kachin State

HURFOM: In this month, the Kachin Women’s Association Thailand (KWAT) released its report “Ongoing Impunity” documenting firsthand accounts of human rights abuses in areas affected by armed conflict in Kachin State. The publication presents updated information about atrocities committed over the past year by the Burmese Government Army against ethnic Kachin and other local inhabitants. According to the findings, the Naypyidaw Government and its Army continue to commit serious human rights abuses with total impunity. Read more

Analyzing the New Labor Organization Law

A new labor law known as the Pyidaungsu Hluttaw Labour Organization Law No.7/2011 was signed and put into effect by President Thein Sein on March 9, 2012. International labor groups cautiously welcomed this new law for its commitment to giving workers the right to strike and negotiate with employers. However, some community labor leaders and activists claim that the state must reinforce the document’s promises by putting the law into practice. Other labor advocates and law experts highlight that the new law formalizes severe limitations intended to keep the country’s labor unions as weak as possible. Read more

“Rehabilitation and Reintegration” for Victims, but Justice Remains Elusive

In the past, before U Thein Sein was in power and the government and armed ethnic groups reached ceasefire agreements, thousands of innocent ethnic people in several border regions suffered severely from gross human right violations.  Relatives were lost to violent conflict, women were plagued by sexual assaults, and villagers saw their lands and properties seized due to widespread land confiscation.   Read more

Locals plead: justice and accountability in torture case

HURFOM: The local community in Chaung Zone Township, Mon State, is asking the Mon State government to pursue fair judicial proceedings and accountability in the suspicious case of a young villager recently tortured after being accused of murder. Certain Mon community and religious leaders are emphasizing the government’s failure to clearly undertake an investigation or impose consequences for arbitrary torture committed by the police. Read more

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