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Administrator extorts 5,000 Kyat from Pu Law villagers for travel authorization

HURFOM: Since the beginning of December, 2022, the Administrator of Pu Law Township, Myeik District, Tenasserim Division has required all passengers or travelers to show their recommendation letter (travel authorization) at check-points.   Any one who has failed to show the letter will not be allowed to pass the gate and travel, report local sources.

Previously, villagers had to pay only 1,000 Kyat for a recommendation letter but after releasing the order, the Administrator is extorting 5,000 Kyat per recommendation letter.

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

Second Week of December 2022

HURFOM: The brutality and scaled-up attacks by the junta across the last week in Southeastern Burma are evidence of the regime’s devastatingly rampant impunity. On Human Rights Day, marked on 10 December, the Human Rights Foundation of Monland (HURFOM) issued a statement daring to ask how many more bullets would need to be fired before the international community awoke to the injustices being perpetrated daily against innocent civilians. HURFOM continues to condemn the ongoing attacks and emphasizes our calls for swift action and accountability. People’s lives are quite literally on the line.

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Statement: On Human Rights Day, HURFOM Condemns Ongoing Attacks by the Junta in Southeastern Burma

Blatant Disregard for Human Rights in Burma by the Junta Demands an Urgent,
and Coordinated Response by the International Community

On this International Human Rights Day, commemorated on 10 December, the Human Rights Foundation of Monland (HURFOM) calls for immediate support for victims of the Burma Army’s ongoing attacks. This year’s international theme for Human Rights Day is ‘freedom, justice and dignity.’ In Southeastern Burma, particularly in Mon State, Karen State and Tanintharyi region, HURFOM has documented the unlawful arrest and detainment of over 3000 people, at least 642 injured and 191 killed by the military junta since the attempted coup on 1 February 2021. They are being denied all meaningful pathways which would ensure their freedom and access to justice in a dignified manner. [Statement in PDF Format]
 
The people of Burma had continued to suffer immensely in the nearly two years since the leaders of the military made a deliberate, coordinated decision to pursue power rather than support the democratic process. The human rights situation across Burma is in decay. The rule of law no longer exists under reasonable means. Consequently, hundreds of political prisoners face unjust sentences, including executions. A lack of access to health or education and increased surveillance has only amplified resistance to the Burma Army. No one is safe under the guise of the military.
 
Despite overwhelming evidence of the widespread atrocities committed by the Burma Army, including those amounting to war crimes and crimes against humanity, the international community has been slow to respond. The Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar (IIMM) alone has collected more than three-million pieces of information from at least 200 sources since its inception, which began three years ago.
 
HURFOM is among the dozens of civil society organizations documenting the military junta’s widespread and systematic assaults. And yet, for so many, there remains a complete lack of reparations for the horrors perpetrated against them. Survival in the current reality in Burma has become a desolate, lonely, and profoundly traumatizing experience.
 
Theft, extortion, arbitrary arrest, and murder are among the human rights violations on the rise in Burma. Armed with weapons and orders of ‘shoot to kill,’ civilians are left with little choice when facing soldiers who are demanding their possessions. Fear of the certainty that their lives will end if confronted by Burma Army soldiers, thousands have fled their villages and dare not return. The humanitarian crisis in Burma is worsening daily as hundreds of thousands are left without access to food, medicine, water, and shelter. For the most vulnerable, their lives face unmatched perils.
 
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) acknowledges the inherent right to a dignified life that every citizen is granted without objection. And yet, in Burma, the rights enshrined in the UDHR are nowhere to be found. The backsliding of human rights is evident in the lack of protection and reliable justice pathways available.
 
HURFOM reinforces our calls for an arms embargo and aviation fuel sanctions to end the targeted air and ground strikes that intentionally seek to kill the civilian population. A referral of the Burma Army must urgently be made to the International Criminal Court. The junta has done nothing to warrant legitimacy, and as such, global actors must denounce their affiliations and work with the National Unity Government to help restore democracy in Burma. Further, the ​​Association of Southeast Asian Nations must hold a firm line with the junta and keep them to account.
 
The resistance on the ground is admirable. Women and men of all ages have responded to the junta’s brutality with fierce opposition and determination. But the bullets fired from the Burma Army’s guns do not discriminate. A weapon has only one objective; to kill. How many more innocent lives lost will it take before the world responds to the human rights situation in Burma?

Media Contact
Nai Aue Mon, HURFOM Program Director
Email: auemon@gmail.com 
Signal: +66 86 167 9741

HURFOM was founded by exiled pro-democracy students from the 1988 uprisings, recent activists and Mon community leaders and youth. Its primary objective is the restoration of democracy, human rights and genuine peace in Burma. HURFOM is a non-profit organization, and all its members are volunteers with a shared vision for peace in the country. 

Frequent armed clashes worry Ye residents

HURFOM: Most villages in Northern Ye Township, Mon State experience the sound of  gunshots nearly every night, creating stress and worry for residents.

“At the moment, we’ve routinely hear gunshots near our village. Villagers are afraid. The local People’s Defense Forces (PDF) announced they would accelerate their attacks on the military junta. So the villagers are worried about an armed clash. We have to be cautious with our daily activities and work,” said a villager from Northern Ye Township.

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Villagers flee as military tension grows in Kyarinnseikyi

HURFOM: The  Burmese military is reinforcing and mobilizing their troops to launch an attack on an area controlled by Brigade #6 of the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA) located in Kyarinnseikyi Township, Karen State.

Villagers are worried about the potential for an armed clash and are fleeing their homes, report local residents.

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

First Week of December 2022

HURFOM:

By the end of November 2022, the number of those arrested, detained, killed, and injured only continued to increase. Since the Human Rights Foundation of Monland (HURFOM) began documenting the atrocities being perpetrated by the junta following the attempted coup, thousands have faced unjust sentences and civilian life under the regime has only deteriorated further. Safety and security concerns are rising across Southeastern Burma, where the Burma Army has used excessive force to strip communities of their homes, livelihoods, and possessions. Their endless pursuit of power comes at the cost of humanity as over one million people are displaced throughout the country.

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Rumors of another attack on police station cause worry

HURFOM: A week after the Taung Kalay Police Station, Kyaikmayaw Township, Mon State was attacked, occupied and destroyed by the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA) and the People’s Defense Force (PDF), a rumor is now circulating that another attack may occur. This time the target  could be the Kyaikmayaw Township Police Station.

“We’ve started hearing the rumor on November 23. After that, we dare not go to our plantation. The rubber plantation workers witnessed aircraft flying in the sky. We don’t even go outside after 8 pm,” said a villager from Mya Gone village which is located near the Kyaikmayaw Township Police Station.

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Monthly Overview:
Human Rights Situation in Mon State, Karen State, and Tanintharyi Region | November 2022

Destruction of Property Rampant in Southeastern Burma, Ongoing Offensives Undermine Civilian Safety and Security

With 2022 coming to an end, Burma’s human rights landscape remains fractured due to the Burma Army’s constant attacks. The targeting of the civilian population has been deliberate. Patterns of their systematic and widespread atrocities are evident through airstrikes and ground attacks intentionally deployed in areas without active conflict. Their acts are part of a broader strategy by the junta to replace the support of the opposition movement with fear.

However, even nearly two years after the attempted coup, the power of the people remains unstoppable. Protests are ongoing and calls for the immediate dismantling and delegitimizing of the junta have not slowed. The bravery of human rights defenders persists even amidst moments of great uncertainty. Decades of military rule and economic turmoil have left Burma in shambles as a new generation refuses to allow a new generation to inherit the junta’s devastating policies and failure to adhere to basic human rights norms and principles.

Throughout November, the Human Rights Foundation of Monland (HURFOM) observed an increase in the number of homes the Burma Army deliberately destroyed. Extortion of local possessions and houses is being done systematically across the country. Junta forces threatened to burn villagers’ homes and launch airstrikes following any attack that injured or killed their soldiers. The junta routinely attacks villages near mix-controlled areas in Thanbyuzayat Township, Mon State. These villages are controlled by the Karen National Union (KNU) and the junta.

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