Karen Human Rights Group

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Saw R--- from Klay Kee village in eastern Toungoo district stands in front of the temporary hut in the rice field where he was living in August 2006 to evade the SPDC Light Infantry Division #66 troops trying to establish control over the area. [Photo: KHRG]

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Naw M--- and her children heading south in August 2006 after leaving their home in Than Daung township of northeastern Toungoo district to escape SPDC Light Infantry Division #66 attacks against villages in their area. Naw M--- said they would try to reach the Thai border and a refugee camp. [Photo: KHRG]

Saw P---, 35 (right), and Naw H---, 28 (below), were among a group of people in Toungoo town who were tricked into joining an SPDC 'development' scheme in mid-2006. They were told that a new village was being established in the hills to the east on the outskirts of the large village of Kler Lah (Bawgali Gyi), that families settling there would receive 20,000 Kyat per month and rations from the Army to help build this new village, plus they would have the opportunity to earn added income in the nearby durian and mangosteen plantations.

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But they were not taken to Kler Lah or to any 'new village'. Instead, on July 18th they were transported to Kler Lah and the next day to Maung Daing Gyi SPDC Army camp, near Naw Soh village on the Kler Lah - Bu Sah Kee road, where they were put to work cutting bamboo and building perimeter fences around the army camp. SPDC troops at this camp have been destroying villages in the surrounding hills since late 2005. They were given no money nor any place to build a house, and only received two milk-tins of rice per person per day (only enough for one meal), plus cooking oil and yellow beans. When they asked to be taken back to Toungoo town they were told to shut up and stop talking about it.

Several people tried to escape twice but were captured and brought back both times to the Army camp. After over a month doing forced labour at the Army camp these two families (totalling nine people, all visible in the photo to the right) escaped on their third attempt into the surrounding hills, where they joined villagers in hiding from SPDC forces. These photos were taken shortly after their escape in late August 2006, when they were hiding together with the villagers of Hsaw Wah Der village. They told KHRG there were still 15 people from Toungoo being held at the army camp. [Photos: KHRG]

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On September 1st 2006, SPDC troops based at Twih Mee Kyoh camp, on a hilltop just east of the upper Yunzalin River in northern Papun district, began shelling villages in the upper Yunzalin River valley. Villages shelled with mortars included Thay Thu Kee (shelled on September 1st), B'Na Ku Bplaw (September 3rd), Nah Yoh Htah, and Ker Mee Htah. These photos show some of the people of those villages after they fled into the forest and built shelters. The woman and children above are from B'Na Ku Bplaw village, the father and child (left) from Thay Thu Kee; the young girl shown was very ill but received treatment from KNLA medics and recovered. [Photos: KHRG]

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In September 2006, a line of villagers in Ler Mu Bplaw village tract of Papun district heads into the forest yet again with everything they can carry. [Photo: KHRG]

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A 'jungle market' in the forest of Mone township, northern Nyaunglebin district, in September 2006. Since 2005 the SPDC has destroyed many of the villages in eastern Mone township and forced many of those in the west of the township into guarded relocation sites, leading many people in both areas to shift to a mobile life in the forests of the eastern half of the township. To trade their produce for dry goods from the SPDC-controlled areas they periodically arrange these covert 'jungle markets'. People sneak out of the SPDC-controlled villages with goods such as rice, salt, chillies, cooking oil and canned goods, and meet the forest people at a pre-arranged site to trade for produce like cardamom and forest fruits. For those who have chosen to live in the forest to evade repressive SPDC control, these markets are an important lifeline which make it possible to obtain needed supplies without having to venture into SPDC-controlled territory.

In photo B-95 above, a group of villagers with access to the plains arrives at the site with sacks of rice to sell. Photo B-96 shows the trading in full swing, while photos B-97 and B-98 below show villagers living outside SPDC control on their way to the jungle market with heavy loads of durian fruit. A few hours later the market will vanish as quickly as it appeared. [Photo: KHRG]

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These photos follow a group of villagers from Kho Kee area in eastern Toungoo district during the last four days - September 19th to 23rd - of their journey through Papun district to the border with Thailand. This journey occurred in the later part of rainy season, and photos B-99 and B-100 above show the horrendous sucking clay mud that villagers on the move have to wade and scramble through along many sections of the path, sometimes having to climb slopes on hands and knees and descend on their backsides, all the time picking up dozens of leeches on their legs.

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Even without the mud, much of the journey occurs in mist under an unending drizzle punctuated by downpours, with dampness soaking into everything (photos B-103 through B-105). Rest stops (photo B-106) are a chance to scrape off some of the sticky mud and knock off a few leeches using tobacco, salt or just fingers.

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The march often continues into the dusk (photos B-107 and B-108) in the hope of reaching a hut or somewhere to sleep off the ground, though this is not always possible.

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The next day in photo B-109, a stream brings another rest stop, but the march soon continues - this time with a rare bit of sunlight through the clouds (photos B-110 and B-111).

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When they finally arrived at a village by the Salween river - the border - everyone collapsed (photos B-113 and B-114). Later it was time to crowd onto boats for the final leg of the journey to Ee Thu Htah IDP camp (photos B-115 through B-117). [Photos: KHRG]

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Semi-conscious and crying out, a teenage girl in rural Pa'an district suffers from cerebral malaria in October 2006. SPDC authorities provide no medical facilities in this region because it is not firmly under military control. The only medical assistance comes from KNLA medics and mobile medical teams crossing from Thailand, but these are underfunded and short on resources because most foreign governments and international aid agencies refuse to provide humanitarian aid to areas not firmly controlled by the SPDC military. Representatives of the British government and its aid agency DFID, for example, have funnelled tens of millions of pounds to the SPDC for humanitarian aid but until 2007 refused to finance any cross-border medical or humanitarian aid on the argument that it is 'divisive'; in other words, that this girl deserves no help if she is unwilling to live under SPDC control. In 2007 the agency finally announced that a small amount of funding would go to cross-border aid, though this is tiny compared to the amount of aid it channels to Rangoon. [Photo: KHRG]

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Children and the elderly move into the forest on October 13th 2006 as an SPDC column approaches their village at Htee Si Kee in the upper Yunzalin River valley of northern Papun district. People throughout the area headed into the forest.

A few days later on October 16th, photos B-138 and B-139 show people from Kler Kee heading back from their hiding sites to retrieve rice and other supplies from their hidden food storage barns. On October 17th, some villagers from Kler Kee went to harvest some of their rice crop (photo B-140). These activities are extremely dangerous, because SPDC troops often mine the villages, food storage barns and rice fields or set up positions nearby to snipe at villagers or fire mortar shells at them. [Photos: KHRG; ignore the incorrect dates burned on the photos]

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Saw H--- (age 59, left) is from Si Kheh Der village in Toungoo district. He was living in the forest to evade SPDC control, but in October 2006 (shortly before harvest) an SPDC Light Infantry Division #66 patrol went through his rice field and pulled up most of his paddy plants by the roots, leaving him with nothing to harvest, so he left and headed for the Thai border. This photo was taken along his way, in Papun district. He was with several others from his village whose crops had also been uprooted or destroyed.

Naw S--- (right) is a 20 year old woman from Saw Mu Der village in Toungoo district. In early September 2006, troops from SPDC Infantry Battalion #2, Military Operations Command #16, came through her area and laid landmines along paths used by the displaced villagers and in front of any rice storage barns they found. Naw S--- returned to fetch rice from her paddy storage barn and stepped on the mine they had laid in front of it.

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Her right lower leg was blown off (it was one of the SPDC's new small mines, modelled on the American M14, because the SPDC's larger mines would have done more damage). Her leg was amputated without anaesthetic by a mobile medic, and a group of villagers leaving for the Thai border carried her all the way across the mountains in a nylon hammock slung from a bamboo pole, a march of two weeks. Photo B-142 was taken when the group was taking a brief rest at a hut in Papun district in mid-October. In photo B-143 (right), the group continues its journey. [Photos: KHRG]

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A family from Si Daw Koh in Toungoo district picks their way down a stream and across a river while fleeing across Papun district on their way to the Thai border in mid-October 2006. [Photos: KHRG]

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Photo B-146 taken in October 2006 shows one of the many rice fields which people in Kay Pu village tract of the upper Yunzalin valley, Papun district, had to abandon after sowing their crop because the fields were too close to the new SPDC posts at Twih Mee Kyoh and Shoh Kyoh. When SPDC troops began patrolling the area and shelling villages many people moved into the forest with few belongings. On October 17th, the men in photo B-147 (right) were heading back to retrieve some food and belongings from P--- village and their rice barns near the SPDC post.

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The village head of S--- (left) took a carbine rifle with him for protection, and is shown here scouting for any SPDC presence before going any further.

On arriving at their various field huts, the villagers found some of their belongings had been looted by SPDC troops, but others had not been found; in photo B-149, they retrieve a metal storage trunk which the soldiers had not found.

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Having posted lookouts, the KNLA group accompanying them for security took a break to eat (left).

Along the way they also found an unexploded 60mm mortar shell (right) which the SPDC troops had fired into one of their rice fields.

On their return to their hidden forest shelters, they carried food, cookpots, a household cat and several ancient bronze drums, which are prized possessions of each village (photos below and below right). [Photos: KHRG]

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In October 2006, this 75 year old man in Htee Si Kee village in the upper Yunzalin River valley of Papun district told KHRG he has had to spend most of his time since the beginning of 2006 fleeing and hiding in the forest to evade the SPDC, that he is sick and tired of it and just wants to stay in his village without being disturbed. Regardless, his family keeps these baskets (above right) packed and ready to go so they can head into the forest again at a moment's notice. [Photos: KHRG]

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These SPDC-made landmines were among over ten mines unearthed and defused by KNLA troops (left) along pathways and in rice fields surrounding Sho Per Koh village in northern Papun district, clearly targeted at the displaced villagers in the area. The mine on the left in both photos is an SPDC-made MM2, while that on the right is a mine the regime seems to have only begun manufacturing recently, copied from the American M14 mine. It is one of these tiny mines that blew off the lower leg of 20 year old Naw S--- (photo B-142). [Photos: KHRG]

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Thay Muh Der village in northern Papun district. When this photo was taken in October 2006, it lay abandoned because SPDC troops had set up a post nearby at Twih Mee Kyoh. [Photo: KHRG]

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Villagers from Dtaw Koo Muh Der, near Kay Pu in northern Papun district, head into the forest on October 18th 2006 after SPDC troops set up a post on the hill overlooking their village. [Photo: KHRG]

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A group of villagers from Shah See Bo, Yeh Loh, Htee Loh, K'Hser Doh and Shee Daw Koh villages in southwestern Toungoo district on their trip toward the border with Thailand in late October 2006. They told KHRG their villages had been burned by SPDC Light Infantry Battalions #71, #349 and #440 and forced to move to two SPDC relocation sites outside Shah See Bo and Yay Shah villages, some in May and some in August 2006. At the relocation site they were used for forced labour, their movements were tightly restricted and they ran out of food, so they escaped in early October and headed back into the hills.

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Unable to stay near their home villages for fear of being shot on sight by the SPDC patrols now killing any villagers they see there, they decided to head east and south to try to reach the Thai border. These photos were taken as they were crossing northern Papun district en route for the border in late October.

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When they reached the Kyauk Kyi - Pwa Ghaw - Saw Htah road they found it heavily patrolled by SPDC troops and were unable to cross to the south, so on October 26th they had to retreat some distance and wait (photos B-170 and B-171) while their KNLA escort watched for an opportunity to cross the road and continue their journey.

The nights were damp and cold (photos B-172 and B-173) while they waited for the signal for the next attempt to cross the road. They were able to cross the next day and arrived in eastern Papun district, from where they headed on to the Thai border. [Photos: KHRG]

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In eastern Papun district, villagers from the plains far to the west in Nyaunglebin district of Pegu division take a rest on October 26th 2006 after crossing the SPDC-patrolled Kyauk Kyi - Saw Htah vehicle road on their way to the border with Thailand. After several weeks, they were now close to the border but their future once there remained uncertain. Their villages were destroyed and they were forced to move into SPDC-controlled relocation sites earlier in the year, but later fled these sites because of forced labour and lack of food. Unable to return to their home villages for fear of being shot on sight by SPDC forces, they began the journey toward the border. [Photos: KHRG]

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Displaced villagers from Toungoo district head southward through Papun district on their way to the Thai border in late October 2006. They had stayed in the forests surrounding their destroyed villages for months after their destruction by SPDC troops, but ran out of food and had little option but to head for the border.

In photo B-185 (right) they wait on the path while KNLA soldiers up ahead check whether it is safe to cross the SPDC-patrolled vehicle road from Pwa Ghaw to Saw Htah. During their entire long trip across northern Papun district, they face a constant risk of stepping on landmines and will be shot if sighted by SPDC troops. [Photos: KHRG; disregard the incorrect dates burned on the photos]

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On November 1st 2006, Column 1 of SPDC Infantry Battalion #35, part of Light Infantry Division #66, came to K'Lay Htah village of Tantabin township, Toungoo district, led by column commander Soe Htun.

They fired into the undefended village with assault rifles, belt-fed machine guns, and M79 grenade launchers while the villagers fled into the forest with whatever they could carry. Then they entered the village and set most of the houses on fire.

These photos were taken the following day when some of the villagers returned to find the burned ruins of their houses.

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They also found the charred remains of Saw Teh Kler, a 47 year old villager who was too ill to flee so he was burned alive in his house by Soe Htun's men (photos B-198 and B-199, above and above right).

The troops also shot livestock and left it to die (right), and slashed and destroyed some of the villagers' baskets, sleeping mats and other belongings before discarding them along the pathway in a clear attempt to undermine the villagers' survival (photo B-201 below).

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The unexploded M79 grenade shown in photo B-202 (above) was found in the middle of the village, while photo B-203 (left) shows some of the spent cartridges of bullets and M79 grenades found at a position just outside the village from where the soldiers had fired into the village.

There were no KNLA soldiers in the village at the time, only civilians.

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A 54 year old woman from the village told KHRG, "On November 1st 2006 the Burmese soldiers came to burn our village again. On this occasion we had no time to bring our materials or food or anything with us because we heard the gun shots and we ran away. Everything which we left was burned with all the houses."

Many people were in the midst of bringing in their rice harvest, but had to abandon it quickly; the half-threshed paddy in photo B-204 above was left as shown, though its owners probably returned for it later by cover of night.

The villagers headed into the forest before the column arrived, set up camp in the forest (photos B-205 through B-208) and continued to evade the SPDC troops.

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People from nearby Th'Aye Kee village also fled in the forest in expectation that their village would be burned (photos B-209 and B-210).

As night fell, people laid bamboo or whatever they had on the ground for sleeping (photo B-211 below).

See also further photos below and the KHRG report Bullets and Bulldozers: The SPDC offensive continues in Toungoo district (February 19th 2007). [Photos: KHRG]

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While Column 1 of SPDC Infantry Battalion #35 was burning villages in Tantabin township of Toungoo district (see above), Column 2 of the same battalion, under the command of Zaw Nay Myo, was patrolling the rice fields to shoot any villagers seen attempting to harvest their crop.

On November 3rd 2006 they shot and killed 19 year old Saw P'Ree Sein (photo B-212, above left) and 45 year old Saw John (photo B-213, above right), both farmers of Hsaw Wah Der village, while they were harvesting and left their bodies as shown in the middle of their hillside rice field. Two others harvesting with them, Naw Muh Htoo (female, 44) and Saw B'Hla Gyi (male, 25) were wounded in the shooting but managed to escape.

The soldiers then burned several nearby farm field huts and 150 big tins of paddy belonging to Saw John (shown in photos B-214 through B-217).

These photos were taken on November 6th, when the paddy was still smouldering. Burned paddy often smoulders for up to a week as the fire spreads slowly through the grain pile.

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A group of villagers dug graves at the edge of the ricefield for the two men killed, while Saw John's daughter looked on in tears (photo B-218 below). [Photos: KHRG]

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Villagers from Dtru Kee head across northern Papun district in November 2006 after SPDC forces set up a camp at Sweh Kyo, very near their village.

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The irrigated rice fields shown to the left are theirs and are almost ready for harvest, but the villagers had to leave them because the SPDC camp at Sweh Kyo is too close. [Photos: KHRG; ignore the incorrect dates burned on the photos]

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A villager heads back into the forest in November 2006 after retrieving some of his goats from Htee See Kee village in Kay Pu village tract, northern Papun district. He said some of the village goats had already been killed by SPDC soldiers who have set up a camp just 15 minutes' walk from the village. [Photo: KHRG; ignore the incorrect date burned on the photo]

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On November 14th 2006 at about 3 p.m., SPDC troops from Bp'Leh Koh camp in northern Papun district saw 45 year old Saw Thoo (a.k.a. Kyaw Thoo) outside his farming hut and shot him dead on sight. Saw Thoo was a farmer from Htee Baw Kee but had been displaced to W--- in Saw Mu Bplaw village tract. His eldest son and daughter heard the gunshots that killed him and saw their father fall before running into the forest in different directions.

In photo B-223 above, Saw Thoo's father looks over his dead son. Saw Thoo left a wife and five children shown in photo B-225 (right). His wife Naw C--- said she had been ill ever since delivering their last child while displaced in the rain in mid-2006; this baby died at age five months, shortly before Saw Thoo was shot. After his death, other people from her village helped her to move her family to another displacement site and carried enough food there for them to live on for the time being. [Photos: KHRG; ignore the incorrect dates burned on the photos]

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A group of villagers who fled SPDC attacks on their hill villages in Toungoo district heading for Ee Thu Htah, a site on the bank of the Salween River which now hosts close to 3,000 internally displaced people like them, in mid-November 2006.

Photos B-226 through B-237 show them during the leg of their journey through eastern Papun district en route to the Salween River. At this point they had already been on the march for several weeks from their home areas far to the north in Toungoo district.

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Though most people were still keeping their spirits up, the strain and physical exhaustion of the journey through the mountains carrying small children, rice, cookpots, clothing and whatever else they could salvage from their homes is visible in photos B-228, B-231 and others.

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Periodic rest stops provided a chance to eat (above and above left), and to fetch and boil water for drinking and cooking (left and below left).

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When they finally reached the Salween riverbank (photos B-238 through B-241), they had to wait for the KNU to organise a cattle-boat to take them downriver to Ee Thu Htah.

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Though Thailand is just the other side of the river, Ee Thu Htah is still in Karen State and is protected against SPDC attack only by the landmines and Karen troops guarding its perimeter. Photo B-242 below shows part of Ee Thu Htah camp, which is constantly expanding as new people arrive. By March 2007, close to 3,000 people were staying here. [Photos: KHRG]

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