Incident Location (Village, Township and District)

KNLA Battalion #102, Company #3 Commander Saw D--- contacted a KHRG field researcher to inform him about this incident the morning after it occurred. The researcher interviewed the victim Saw Y--- on January 6th 2020. Since the victim was unable to identify the perpetrators (because they pointed guns at his head and prevented him from looking at them), the KHRG researcher talked to the local KNLA Battalion Commander to obtain information about the Tatmadaw battalion that was involved in the incident. The KHRG researcher also interviewed A---, the local village head, and Saw G---, who was in the village during the incident and who helped the victim. The Joint Monitoring Committee [JMC][6] staff person, Saw H---, helped the victim the day of the incident, and was also interviewed by phone.

The primary source, Saw Y---, experienced the incident first-hand. Saw H--- is the JMC staff member who was called to the village after the incident. He also provided assistance to the victim, including getting him released from detainment by the Tatmadaw. Saw G---, the village head, was in the village when the fighting broke out, and was the person who informed the JMC staff member that Saw Y--- had been beaten and tortured by Tatmadaw soldiers. Saw D--- is the KNLA Battalion Commander who was involved in the fighting with the Tatmadaw that broke out earlier in the day.

On January 2nd 2020 at 10:00 AM, fighting broke out between Tatmadaw LIB #408 and KNLA Battalion #102, Company #3 in A--- village, Lay Hpoh Hta village tract, Dwe Lo Township, Mu Traw District. The fighting originally broke out because LIB #408 troops trespassed more than 50 yards [45.72 metres] into an area controlled by the Karen National Union (KNU).[7] The villagers interviewed said that the Tatmadaw soldiers did not have any prior contact with the village head, even though they entered into KNU-restricted area with military ammunition. They said that the fighting broke out because this violated the NCA Code of Conduct.[8]  

Saw Y---, a local villager, fled to the end part of the village because he was afraid when he heard the sound of fighting. According to Saw Y---, Tatmadaw soldiers arrested him at 11:00 AM and punched him on his cheeks. Then, the soldiers laid him down on the ground and pointed guns at both sides of his head. He was then kicked with the soldiers’ boots twice and hit once with a gun. He was not allowed to call for the village head. He was not allowed to talk.

Saw Y--- was held by the soldiers for three hours. He was beaten repeatedly during those three hours whenever he tried to talk. The Tatmadaw soldiers beat him until he got dizzy and sustained injuries on his head, neck, and chest. Saw Y--- also recalled being held at gunpoint during that whole time: "When the two villagers were shot, they [the soldiers who were beating him] were called to carry artillery. One of the soldiers went to carry guns and one soldier stayed with me. He still pointed at me on the side of my face with his gun."

At 2:00 PM that afternoon, JMC Saw H--- came to A--- village to bring to the hospital two other villagers who had been shot and injured by Tatmadaw soldiers earlier that day.[9] At that time, local village head Saw G--- told Saw H--- that there was another person [Saw Y---] who had been beaten and tortured by Tatmadaw soldiers. Saw H--- then went to investigate and found Saw Y--- still being detained by the Tatmadaw. He then told the soldiers that Saw Y--- was an ordinary villager, so they released him.

Saw Y--- did not know who beat him. He only knew that it was Tatmadaw soldiers. He believed that [JMC staff] Saw H--- would know who beat him. KNLA Battalion #102, Company #3 Commander Saw D--- told a KHRG researcher that these soldiers were from LIB #408, which was based in the Maw Loh Kloh army camp that day. Naung Htun was the Deputy Battalion Commander responsible for A--- village [and for the actions of LIB #408 at the time of the incident].

At the time of the interview (which was four days following the incident), Saw Y---’s face was still swollen from the beating. He was unable to go to the hospital to have his injuries looked at because he did not have enough money.

Currently, there are no village agency strategies to help villagers protect themselves from this kind of incident. Village head Saw G--- said he was wondering whether to flee to other places or resign from his position because he was afraid (a similar situation took place in 2017). He also said that if the higher leaders cannot arrange anything to resolve this, he will no longer take the position of village head.