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Print:This Incident Report describes events that occurred in Kaw T’Ree (Kawkareik) Township, Dooplaya District in October 2022. On October 20th 2022 a villager from A--- village, Maung Khee village tract, Kaw T’Ree Township, Dooplaya District, accidentally triggered a tripwire that was assumed to have been set by State Administration Council (SAC) troops based at Aung May K’Lar military camp. This incident occurred when the victim went to make charcoal beside the army camp. The victim sustained injuries to his left leg, his left ear lobe, as well as his back. Since treatment at the hospital, he has fully recovered.[1]
Part 1 – Incident Details
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Type of Incident |
Landmine explosion |
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Date of Incident(s) |
October 20th 2022 |
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Incident Location (Village, Township and District) |
A--- village, Maung Khee village tract[2], Kaw T’Ree (Kawkareik) Township, Dooplaya District
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Victim Information |
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Name |
B--- |
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Age |
46 years old |
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Sex |
Male |
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Ethnicity |
Karen and Burmese[3] |
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Family |
Single |
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Occupation |
Day labourer |
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Religion |
Buddhist |
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Position |
Villager |
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Village |
A--- village |
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Perpetrator Information (Armed Actors) |
||||
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Name(s) |
Rank |
Unit |
Base |
Commander’s Name |
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Unknown |
Unknown |
SAC troops from unknown unit |
Aung May K’Lar army camp |
Unknown |
Part 2 - Information Quality
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1. Explain in detail how you collected this information. |
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KHRG office staff conducted phone interviews with a local authority on October 26th 2022 and with the victim on November 3rd 2022. |
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2. Explain how the source verified this information. |
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The information was provided by a local authority who had knowledge of the tripwire incident and by the victim himself. |
Part 3 – Complete Description of the Incident
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Describe the Incident(s) in complete detail. For each incident, be sure to include 1) when the incident happened, 2) where it happened, 3) what happened, 4) how it happened, 5) who was involved, and 6) why it happened. Also describe any villager response(s) to the incident, the aftermath and the current living situation of the victims. Please use the space prepared below, and create an attachment if needed. |
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On October 20th 2022, B---, a villager from A--- village, Maung Khee village tract, Kaw T’Ree Township, Dooplaya District, [accidentally] triggered a tripwire landmine that was assumed [by villagers] to have been set by the State Administration Council (SAC)[4] military unit [unit number unknown] based at the Aung May K’Lar military camp [due to its proximity with the camp]. This incident occurred when the victim went to make charcoal beside the military camp [as he was returning to his kiln with wood he had collected in the forest close to the camp]. B--- said, “I worked as a person who produced charcoal. The incident happened after I returned from collecting wood close to the SAC military camp. At first, I thought that there was a fight [fighting had broken out]. I didn’t realize that I had been hit by shrapnel from a tripwire [landmine]. I ran back to the village after I was hit. I sustained injuries on my left calf, behind my [left] ear, and on my back. There were several injuries on my back”. B--- was unaccompanied when he stepped on the tripwire.
After he returned injured to his village, his neighbours brought him by car to Waw Lay Hospital, located in Waw Lay Town, Kaw T’Ree Township, Dooplaya District. This hospital is run by the Democratic Karen Benevolent Army (DKBA)[5] [and located approximately 15 minutes away from Aung May K’Lar village by motorbike]. He [the victim] stayed at the hospital for four days. He didn’t have to pay for treatment. He just had to pay for his food. B--- mentioned, "During my treatment, some of my friends gave me some money for food and snacks."
In the past, there were no landmine incidents in the area [near A--- village] and no Mine Risk Awareness trainings have taken place in the village. A dog stepped on a landmine in the past, but this was the first time that a human triggered one in this area. This tripwire [landmine] was assumed to have been set by the SAC military unit based at the Aung May K’Lar military camp because of its proximity to the army camp and the fact that other armed groups never went there. The victim does not have any relatives, so his neighbours and other villagers took care of him and supported him. No organisations have financially supported him yet [as of December 2022]. The victim was discharged from the hospital and has recovered from his injuries. |
Part 4 - Permission for Using the Details
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Did the victim(s) provide permission to use this information? Explain how that permission was provided. |
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The victim gave KHRG permission to document the information and publish it. |
Further background reading on the security and human rights situation in Dooplaya District in Southeast Burma can be found in the following KHRG reports:
- “Dooplaya District Interview: 16-year-old boy killed by mortar explosion following SAC shelling, March 2022”, November 2022.
- “Dooplaya District Incident Report: Killing of a civilian by unidentified assailant(s), May 2022”, August 2022.
- “Dooplaya District Incident Report: SAC shot at villagers, resulting in the death of two villagers in Kaw T’Ree Township, April 2022”, August 2022.
- “Dooplaya District Situation Update: Fighting, indiscriminate shelling, displacement, landmine injuries, travel restrictions and torture, December 2021 to February 2022”, June 2022.
- “Dooplaya District Situation Update: Killing, fighting, indiscriminate shelling, air strikes and displacement, March 2022”, May 2022.
The photos were taken on October 20th 2022 and show the injuries B---sustained from a tripwire landmine explosion in A--- village, Maung Khee village tract, Kaw T’Ree Township, Dooplaya District on the same day. The first two photos show the injuries to his left ear and left leg. The last two photos show the injuries he sustained on his back. [Photo: Local villager]
Footnotes:
[1] The present document is based on information received on October 2022. It was provided by a community member in Dooplaya District who has been trained by KHRG to monitor human rights conditions on the ground. The names of the victims, their photos and the exact locations are censored for security reasons. The parts in square brackets are explanations added by KHRG.
[2] A village tract is an administrative unit of between five and 20 villages in a local area, often centred on a large village.
[3] The majority ethnic group in Myanmar, also known as ethnic Burmese or Bamar.
[4] The State Administration Council (SAC) is the executive governing body created in the aftermath of the February 1st 2021 military coup. It was established by Senior General Min Aung Hlaing on February 2nd 2021, and is composed of eight military officers and eight civilians. The chairperson serves as the de facto head of government of Burma/Myanmar and leads the Military Cabinet of Myanmar, the executive branch of the government. Min Aung Hlaing assumed the role of SAC chairperson following the coup.
[5] In 1994, the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA) split from the KNLA over religious considerations. In 2010, the majority of DKBA troops transformed into BGFs, but one faction refused and changed its name to Democratic Karen Benevolent Army in 2012. Confusingly, there are currently two groups using the acronym DKBA: the main 'Benevolent' DKBA (Democratic Karen Benevolent Army) and the splinter faction 'Buddhist' DKBA (Democratic Karen Buddhist Army). The 'Benevolent' DKBA signed the 2015 Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement but the new 'Buddhist' DKBA splinter faction did not. The latter are still actively engaged in armed clashes with the Tatmadaw in multiple areas in Karen State.
