Hundreds Of Ethnic Karen Flee Burma Amid Fighting

[Jai Dee]

Hundreds of ethnic Karen flee Burma amid fighting

Fresh outbreaks of fighting between Burma's ethnic rebels and armed forces loyal to the country's junta have led to more than 200 ethnic Karen fleeing to Thailand, Thai border officials said Sunday.

The fighting began Saturday between a pro-junta militia and the rebel Karen National Union (KNU), forcing the civilians to cross the border into the western Tak province, said Thawal Pattanacharoen, regional border police chief.

"The fighting went on all day long until early Sunday morning, and has forced more than 200 Karen to seek refuge in Thailand," Thawal said.

Most of the ethnic minority Karen civilians had now returned home, he added, with only 60 left in Thailand, most of whom were women and children.

He denied local media reports that up to 30 rebels from both sides had died in the fighting, which has pitted Burma's pro-government Democratic Karen Buddhist Army against the KNU.

The KNU is the largest rebel group fighting Burma's armed forces and one of the few remaining ethnic insurgent groups yet to sign a peace deal with the junta.

Burma, under military rule since 1962, has signed ceasefires with 17 other ethnic armed groups.

Up to 150,000 Karen refugees already live in camps along Thailand's border with Burma. Many of them have been there for more than 20 years.

Burma began a bloody offensive against the Karen a year ago. Human rights groups say the crackdown has forced thousands of civilians to abandon their villages and flee into the jungles.

Source: The Nation - 09 April 2007

[Jai Dee]

KNU Conflict Deepens

The disunity within Karen opposition forces near the border with Thailand deepened last week as a splinter group accused the Karen National Union of attacking its members and stealing its gold.

Pastor Timothy, a former KNU Central Committee member involved in the breakaway group KNU/KNLA Peace Council, claims in a report prepared by the group that KNU forces fired on a boat carrying Col Ler Moo of the Peace Council group and several children accompanying him near the village of Mae La in Thailand’s Tak province.

According to the report of the incident, the attack was ordered by KNU General Secretary Mahn Sha and 7th Brigade commander Col Johnny, who replaced Htain Maung after his split with the KNU.

Officials with the Karen rebel group deny any involvement in the attack. “The event happened in an area far from [Col] Johnny’s camp,” a top leader from the KNU told The Irrawaddy on Thursday. “If we had made the attack, nobody would have survived it.”

Ler Moo is said to be in hospital in Chiang Mai in northern Thailand.

Sources near the border, including members of the splinter group Democratic Karen Buddhist Army, which split from the KNU in 1995, say that many believe the story to have been fabricated by soldiers of Burma’s ruling State Peace and Development Council in order to create further conflicts with the opposition group.

The current conflicts between the KNU and its splinter groups began in late February after Battalion 201 of the Karen National Liberation Army—the military wing of the KNU—attacked a contingent of the DKBA.

Pastor Timothy and a fellow member of the Peace Council, known simply as Tennyson, are said to maintain close relations with the DKBA, with whom they brokered the peace deal between the Peace Council and the Burmese regime.

In his report, Pastor Timothy describes the circumstances of the Battalion 201 attack. He claims that two Karen civilian trucks were fired on near the village of Htee Tha Le by KNLA troops from Battalion 201.

One of the drivers, Law Plah—a soldier with the DKBA—was killed at the scene, while the second, Pastor Po Aye Pyin from Htee Tha Le village, was seriously injured and later died in a Mae Sot hospital. The trucks, which carried bars of gold, were stolen.

According to the report, Hnoke Khan Hmwe, the commander of DKBA Battalion 907, “demanded the return of the two vehicles, 2.5 million kyat (US $3,000) and the 12 bars of gold stolen from the dead driver.” He gave the KNU two weeks to satisfy the demands, but no actions have yet been taken.

Others dispute his version of events. Thaw Ka Rambo, a monk and former chairman of the KNU Sangha Committee with close ties to the DKBA, told The Irrawaddy on Thursday that three trucks owned by the DKBA were involved. One was destroyed in the attack and two others have since been returned.

The DKBA claims that Battalion 201 ambushed the trucks after arranging for the transport of some 30 Karen who reportedly wished to join the Peace Council splinter group.

According to Pastor Timothy’s report, the attack is alleged to have been planned by Mahn Sha.

Meanwhile, the fate of the money and gold taken from the trucks remains unknown. Pastor Timothy is said to have traveled to the site of the attack to document events and take photographs.

Hnoke Khan Hmwe and the wife of Law Plah said that Pastor Timothy offered to take responsibility for compensating for the loss of the money and gold in the attack on the DKBA trucks.

He is believed to be in possession of the compensation funds, but why he has offered to take responsibility for the theft remains unknown and has led some to suggest that his actions indicate that he knows more about the theft of cash and gold than he has admitted.

Source: The Irrawaddy - 9 April 2007

[sriracha john]

In this photo released by Free Burma Rangers, a Karen woman waits to be helped after she was injured by the mortar attack from Myanmar soldiers in an offensive at a village in Papun district of Karen state in Myannmar March 21, 2007. An offensive by Myanmar pro-junta forces against ethnic minority Karen separatist rebels drove about 250 Karen civilians to flee into neighboring Thailand, officials said.

Associated Press

[Sing_Sling]

In this photo released by Free Burma Rangers, a Karen woman waits to be helped after she was injured by the mortar attack from Myanmar soldiers in an offensive at a village in Papun district of Karen state in Myannmar March 21, 2007. An offensive by Myanmar pro-junta forces against ethnic minority Karen separatist rebels drove about 250 Karen civilians to flee into neighboring Thailand, officials said.

Associated Press

Where they will be treated well by local authorities . . .

[Jai Dee]

Karen people in Myanmar escape from civil war and stay at Thailand-Myanmar borders

Officials in Mae Ramad district of Tak province are are looking after the Burmese refugees who are escaping from the civil war in Myanmar. However, they will be sent back after the war is over.

Mae Rad District-Chief Officer Phumchai Tapankaew (ภูมิชัย ตะพานแก้ว) and the volunteer defense corps visited 215 Karen people taking refuge in Thailand as there are fights between the minority groups in Myanmar. The Karen group is camping at the Baan Lai Huay in Mar Ramad near Pha Pueng Operation Base, the 345 Border Patrol police.

Mae Ramad Deputy Chief Panthip Chanindong (พันทิพย์ ชาญอิ่นดง)says the situation in Myanmar is not yet peaceful, and therfore, the refugees will be staying in Thailand for the time being. The local administration will monitor the situation and once the war is over, they will be sent back to their homeland.

Source: Thai National News Bureau Public Relations Department - 10 April 2007

[Jai Dee]

Splinter Rebels Overrun KNU Battalion Headquarters

KNU Battalion 101 abandoned its headquarters Monday after three days of skirmishes with splinter rebel groups, which forced hundreds of villagers from Karen State in Burma to flee to Thailand, border sources said on Monday.

Fighting between rival armies took place Saturday, Sunday and Monday between Karen National Union troops and the junta-backed Democratic Karen Buddhist Army, which is allied with other splinter groups. The infighting drove hundreds villagers to Thailand, observers said.

The headquarter base was located opposite Mae Ramat District of Tak Province, Thailand. More than 200 Burmese villagers have arrived in Mae Ramat and an estimated 300 other villagers have left their homes, according to the KNU General-Secretary Mahn Sha.

Reuters reported that recent clashes killed at least 17 people and wounded 19 others, citing Thai military sources. Confirmation of causalities from both sides was not available on Monday. However, KNU battalion 101 soldiers on the front line told The Irrawaddy on Monday that their unit killed one soldier and four others were injured.

Border-based relief groups, including the Karen Refugee Committee and the Thailand-Burma Border Consortium, are providing assistance to newly arrived refugees.

Since Saturday, Karen ceasefire groups, including the KDBA and other Karen ceasefire groups, have engaged the KNU's 7th Brigade's Battalion 101 and Battalion 24.

A Burmese trader who arrived in Myawaddy from Kawkareik on Sunday said, “All of the trucks, passenger buses and cars have to stop along the road. Many army trucks are carrying wounded or dead soldiers.”

According to a DKBA source, in the KNU 6th Brigade area opposite Umphang District in Tak Province, fighting has not occurred, but villagers are moving toward the border because the DKBA has sent more troops into the 6th Brigade area. The DKBA broke away from the KNU in January, 1995.

The Free Burma Rangers, a relief group, reported on Saturday that in early April the Burmese Army lunched an attack on a Karen village in Kyauk Kyi Township, killing at least one villager. More than 900 people were displaced.

On Saturday night, traders in Three Pagodas Pass said a hand grenade exploded at a Burmese Army camp opposite Sangkhlaburi District in Kanchaburi Province, Thailand, injuring a civilian and a Burmese soldier.

Source: The Irrawaddy - 10 April 2007

[Laulen]

Terrible strife and hardship seem to visit those who can least help themselves. Outside Thailand these reports seem to be hardly reach headline status anywhere.

The film 'Beyond Rangoon' starring Patricia Arquette, made in 1994. The present situation seems to have not changed one iota!

Does anyone care?

[Rinrada]

Terrible strife and hardship seem to visit those who can least help themselves. Outside Thailand these reports seem to be hardly reach headline status anywhere.

The film 'Beyond Rangoon' starring Patricia Arquette, made in 1994. The present situation seems to have not changed one iota!

Does anyone care?

Lots of nastly (dirty) little household name companies care ..in case their profits dissappear........you might recognise one or 2 but..........can they wash the BLOOD off their hands ........

PROFITS...PROFITS....Luvly Money -Dosh-Faluse...and we dont care where it comes from..........yeah

Abercrombie & Kent (A&K) is an American holiday company and the Burmese democracy movement have asked tourists not to visit Burma because it helps fund the regime and gives it legitimacy. Forced and child labour was used to develop many tourist facilities.

Alcatel is a French multinational specialising in communication technology. Alcatel is working closely with the regime in Burma

Bales Worldwide is a travel company that organises tours to Burma.

Ben Line Agencies is a Scottish shipping line with offices in Burma

CHC Helicopter Corporation, a Canadian company, is the world’s largest provider of helicopter services

Chevron

Since its 2005 takeover of Unocal, US oil giant Chevron has been one of the joint venture partners developing the Yadana offshore gas field in Burma, which earns the military regime millions of dollars. Chevron also owns Texaco.

Diethelm Keller Group is a private Swiss company with a wide range of investments, including Diethelm Travel, which operates holiday tours to Burma.

The Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT) Public Limited Company is a subsidiary of Thailand’s state run power utility, EGAT, formed to increase private sector involvement in electricity supply. EGAT Plc signed a Memorandum of Understanding in late 2005, with the Burmese military junta

Hapag-Lloyd is a German container shipping line and holiday cruise operator. Its container division has an office in Burma as part of its operation to export Burmese products.

Helicopters New Zealand (NZ) are a New Zealand helicopter hire company that specialises in helicopter hire for difficult environments, including the oil and gas industry.

Lonely Planet is an Australian multinational publishing company specialising in travel guides. Lonely Planet publishes a guide to Burma which encourages tourists to visit the country. Lonely Planet also vigorously defends tourism to Burma, attempting to undermine calls by Aung San Suu Kyi and Burma’s democracy movement for tourists to stay away.

Mitsui is a Japanese conglomerate with interests ranging from metals and mining to electronic goods, insurance, clothes and chemicals.

Mitsui is in a joint venture with the Burmese regime

Orient Express has its registered office in Bermuda, is managed from London,

J

James B. Sherwood---hard luck Jimmy......JUST LOST THEIR GNER RAIL FRANCHISE..GOOD

Chairman

Orient-Express Hotels Ltd

Sea Containers House

20 Upper Ground

London SE1 9PF

Rolls-Royce is a British company that makes and services engines for civil and military aircraft,

Siemens are a German engineering and technology company operating all over the world. Siemens are supplying gas turbines to Total for a new platform in the Yadana gas field.

and the BIGGEST of them ALL.....

Total Oil

Total is in a joint venture with the military regime developing an offshore gas field in the Andaman sea. The gas is exported to Thailand through a pipeline that travels 65 kilometres through Burma.

Total is one of the biggest foreign investors in Burma. and Basicall they RUN the Show......

Total has been taken to court by six Burmese people who were used as forced labour in the preparation of Total’s pipeline in Burma.

....BUT as Rhett once said.............WE DONT GIVE A DAMM...in French.......

for the full list ....and u gotta look on the bright side of life ...Oui oui....

http://www.burmacampaign.org.uk/dirty_list...st_details.html

[Jai Dee]

Refugees Fear Attacks on Camps in Thailand

Increased security measures have been initiated at refugee camps near the Thailand-Burma border as tensions within rival Karen rebel groups continues to mount, according to sources along the border.

Officials at the Mae La refugee camp in Thailand’s Tak Province have ordered residents to keep their lights out after dark and to stay alert following skirmishes between the Karen National Union and two splinter Karen groups, the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army and a second group that calls itself the KNU/KNLA Peace Council. Both splinter groups are allied with the Burmese army.

“We have to shut down all the lights at 8 p.m., including all electric generators and even candle lights,” said one Mae La resident.

The order came after reports that the splinter Karen groups were planning an attack on the refugee camp, one of the largest in Thailand with an estimated population of more than 40,000. Relatives of many KNU members live in Mae La camp.

The potential threat to camp refugees has caught the attention of international rights groups. “These civilians face grave threats as the Burmese-government-backed ethnic Karen militias appear to be positioning artillery and heavy machine guns overlooking the Mae La refugee camp,” a statement issued by New York-based Human Rights Watch said.

Burmese communities in the nearby city of Mae Sot have also been alerted to stay indoors after dark for security reasons, border sources said.

Clashes between the opposing groups have increased since the DKBA and its allies launched attacks on KNLA bases near the Thai-Burmese border. At least three of their camps, including the headquarters of the KNLA Battalion 101, located opposite the Thai village of Mae Ramat, have been captured by the splinter Karen rebels.

The threat to the Mae La camp is “real,” KNU General Secretary Mahn Sha told The Irrawaddy on Friday, adding that the rival groups have turned against civilians who did not support their break from the KNU.

Despite elevated security concerns, no clashes were reported on Friday, according to Mahn Sha.

Source: The Irrawaddy - 21 April 2007