Photo:AFP(File)
Mizzima
Over the last week, the Human Rights Foundation of Monland (HURFOM) has recorded an escalation of attacks by the Myanmar junta against civilians in its target area of Southeast Myanmar.
It says that members or supporters of any opposition group deemed a threat by the military are increasingly being targeted.
A member of the National League for Democracy (NLD) from Han Kan Village, Ye Township, Mon State, was arrested on 16 May 2024. The arrested individual, 53-year-old Nai Tin Sein, was apprehended at home.
Local sources indicate that Nai Tin Sein was arrested for being in contact with the People’s Defense Forces. He was taken away for interrogation at the Ye Township Police Station. He is known to be a staunch NLD member and is close to the current Han Kan village administrator.
Indiscriminate violence is undermining civilian’s safety, especially women and children who are home in their villages, according to HURFOM.
A woman was killed, and another was seriously injured when the junta fired shells into Phayar Gyi Village in Kawkareik Township, Karen State, on 16 May. The 38-year-old woman died on the spot, while another woman suffered severe leg injuries.
A shell exploded in the Zee Kone area of Phayar Gyi Village, where migrant workers reside. During the attack, two houses were damaged, and the injured woman was taken to the hospital.
In a separate incident, on 16 – 17 May, the 9th Light Infantry Battalion launched artillery attacks on villages in the V Yaw Village Tract, in Thaton Township, Mon State. There was no fighting in the area at the time. According to a statement by the Thaton District Karen National Union (KNU), the attacks injured two villagers.
HURFOM has also received reports that in Thaton District, Mon State, where military tensions are high, six civilians were killed, and 22 were injured due to artillery attacks by the junta in the last three weeks.
Between 1 May and 21 May, junta troops fired artillery into Kyaik Hto, Bilin, and Thaton. According to the KNU, three people in Bilin Township and one resident in Kyaik Hto Township were killed by artillery fire. Two others were killed in Bilin.
Enforced disappearances also remain on the rise, according to HURFOM.
Junta troops abducted a husband and wife at Tha Yet Chaung market in Dawei District. The couple, identified as U Hla Sein and his wife from Kanet Thiri Village, had recently moved to Kyauk Myaung Village due to escalating violence in their home village. They were surrounded by five soldiers whilst they were shopping on 16 May. The soldiers covered the couple’s heads with black bags before taking them away for interrogation. The incident occurred amidst severe unrest in Tha Yet Chaung Township.
