KAREN REFUGEE COMMITTEE MONTHLY REPORT DECEMBER 1992
KAREN REFUGEE COMMITTEE MONTHLY REPORT DECEMBER 1992 Time passes swiftly and we have come to the end of December which also is the end of another calendar year. Almost nine years had elapsed since the first group of Karen civilians affected by the heavy fighting that broke out along the border in 1984, fled into Thailand in January to escape from the fighting. Fighting rages on along the border and inside Burma until today, and the future for these people and the thousands of other Karen civilians who subsequently followed them into Thailand is bleak and uncertain. The situation along the border has been relatively quiet during the month of December except for the on going fighting in Saw Hta area across from the district of Mae Sa Riang. This relative calm is apparently a lull before the storm. SLORC is still busy with sending more supplies, ammunition and troops to the various battle fronts and an all out offensive on Karen bases along the border is imminent. The attack could begin any time now. Civilians were rounded up in large numbers and used as porters to carry supplies and ammunition to the battle fronts. From time to time, some of these porters managed to break free and escape to the Karen side. They spoke of the hardship, starvation and the brutality they experienced as porters in the hand of the officers and soldiers of SLORC. Many porters did not live to tell their story. Women were also seen taken in military trucks to the battle fronts. After one battle in November at Maw Wah Shu opposite to the district of Mae Ra Mat, the bodies of three such women were found by the Karens. Inside Burma, life for Karen civilians in many places have become very perilous and miserable. The order for relocation had been issued by SLORC to villagers living in 55 villages in Pa-an and Pa Pun townships west of the Salween river. The dead line given for the relocation to be finished is December 31, 1992. People found in the area after the dead line will be shot and properties found will bo confiscated. The villagers have but 19 days to dismantle their houses and move everything including their food supply and live stock to the appointed places. Several thousands of villagers are affected by the order. Similar order had been given by SLORC to villagers in certain village tracts in Bilin and Kyaikto townships. Thousands of villagers there are also affected by this order. In both cases, the latest situation is still unknown, but it is believed that villagers will find it very very difficult to comply with the order. It is known that similar order had been given to civilians in other places as well, but no detailed reports are available. In Toungoo district, Karen civilians are also facing with great trouble and hardship. During a military operation along one section of the Toungoo-Mawchi road in early December, SLORC troops looted the villagers from 12 villages in the area of all their livestock, food supply and belongings. Cases of atrocity and rape were reported. In another related incident, 19 houses in Ho Mu Der village were burned down by SLORC troops on December 20, 1992. Further to the north east, Karen civilians in Leik-tho and Yar-doe areas are also seriously affected by SLORC military operation there. Three villagers, one of them a christian pastor, were killed recently by SLORC and not less than 12 village elders from 7 villages in the area were arrested and jailed. Another villager was shot dead and cases of atrocity and rape were also reported there. Some houses in several villages were burned down, and in Hla San. village, SLORC troops even burned down a buddhist monastery.
This kind of situation is faced by Karen civilians in other areas as well. For Karon civilians in the Tavoy and Mergui areas life is getting more and more difficult and so more and more have found their way now to the border. Hundreds of thousands of Karen civilians are desperately clinging to their homes and properties but when things get real difficult and unbearable, affected civilians will abandon their homes and properties and flee to the border to the refugee camps in Thailand. NUMBER OF PEOPLE IN THE CAMPS No. of Over 12 Yrs. 5-12 Yrs. Under 5 Yrs. TOTAL CAMP: families M F M F M F WANG KA 705 1040 1381 434 396 251 237 3739 DON PA KIANG 460 886 801 278 265 168 200 2598 MAE LA 1071 1247 1804 654 699 271 314 4989 KAMAY LAY KHO 672 1073 1134 338 296 206 319 3446 KLER KHO 460 884 856 298 276 164 177 2655 SHO KLO 1296 2058 2650 765 677 471 529 7150 MAE SA LIT 569 995 1150 369 385 135 152 3186 MAE TA WAW 641 1054 1213 518 512 314 327 3938 MAW KER 880 1796 1628 386 309 493 549 5161 KLER THAY LU 74 114 128 42 34 35 28 381 MAE PO HTA 177 353 359 101 90 27 22 952 MAE PAW MOO HTA 300 427 439 276 255 273 289 1959 KA HTEE HTA 263 394 454 200 200 90 112 1450 SOUTHERN CAMPS 7576 12321 13997 4659 4394 2978 3258 41604 PER KLER 745 1377 1288 389 405 263 302 4024 PANG SA NOK 420 654 630 220 259 148 164 2075 NAT IN DAUNG 271 374 412 123 133 93 90 1225 TOTAL: 9012 14726 16327 5391 5191 3482 3811. 48928 RICE RECEIVED FOR THE MONTH FROM:- -BURMESE BORDER CONSORTIUM (BBC) -CATHOLIC OFFICE FOR EMERGENCY RELIEF AMD REFUGEES (COERR) -INTERAID-THAILAND 4834 sacks 350 sacks 100 sacks 5284 sacks OTHER ITEMS RECEIVED FROM:- -BURMESE BORDER CONSORTIUM (BBC) -INTERAID - THAILAND Salt 372 bags Fish Paste... 1938 tins Fish Paste... 10 tins
DISTRIBUTION OF ITEMS RECEIVED CAMP: RICE SALT F. PASTE WANG KA DON PA KIANG MAE LA KAMAW LAY KHO KLER KHO SHO KLO MAE SA LIT MAE TA WAW MAW KER 543 374 712 496 376 1032 452 552 747 37 30 50 35 27 71 32 38 52 197 140 265 104 140 376 168 202 276 5204 372 1948 The Karen Refugee Committee sincerely expresses its gratitude to the authorities and to the people of the Kingdom of Thailand for their kindness in granting refuge to the Karens and other displaced people from Burma who are in trouble and need. This noble gesture of goodwill is sincerely appreciated and will always be remembered by the Karens of Burma. The Committee is also sincerely grateful to the individuals and agencies concerned for everything that they have done to help. The help and support provided has made it possible for these people in the camps to get by from day to day. Life for the Karens and other people of Burma continues to be difficult and perilous. This dry season is sure to be very violent and turbulent for the Karens. They need the help and support of every peace loving people around the world to go through this difficult time. We are greatly encouraged by the fact that the international community is following the Burma situation more closely now. It is high time now for the world to know what is basically wrong in Burma and strive together for a change in the situation before it is too late. We whole heartedly welcome steps taken by the international community to do this and we hope and pray that through the endeavour of every peace loving people around the world, peace and justice will come back to the land. It is our earnest wish and prayer that 1993 will be a year of peace, justice and prosperity for all mankind. Yours faithfully, Robert Htwe Chairman Karen Refugee Committee