Type of Incident

Landmine incident

Date of Incident(s)

March 12th 2025

Incident Location

(Village, Township and District)

Nk--- place, near Tk--- village, Sa Tein village tract[2], Ler K’Saw Township, Mergui-Tavoy District.

Victim Information

Name

Daw[3] T---

Age

51 years old

Gender

Woman

Ethnicity

Bamar[4]

Marital Status  

Divorced

Occupation

Labourer for the Yuzana Palm Oil Company

Religion

Buddhist

Position

[Labourer]

Village

Pn--- village, Sa Tein village tract. [Originally from Yangon.]

Perpetrator Information (Armed Actors)

Name(s)           

Rank

Unit

Base

Commander’s Name

Unknown

Unknown

 Infantry Battalion (IB)[5] #358, and Light Infantry Battalion (LIB)[6] #224 [under the State Administration Council (SAC)[7]]

A Twin Bout Pyin, located between Lay Nya and Chaung Mon Nga villages, Sa Tein village tract, Ler K’Saw Township.

Unknown

Unknown

Unknown

[SAC’s] Light Infantry Battalion (LIB) #559 and#560

Lay Nya village, Sa Tein village tract, Ler K’Saw Township.

Unknown

1. Explain in detail how this information was collected.

First, two villagers named Saw[8] J--- and Ko[9] Z--- from Tk--- village, Sa Tein village tract, Ler K’Saw Township, Mergui-Tavoy District, who witnessed the incident, informed a KHRG researcher about the information. Then, the KHRG researcher went to their [Saw J--- and Ko Z---’s] house to conduct documentation.

2. Explain how the source verified this information.

A KHRG researcher talked to two witnesses who helped the victim after she was injured by the landmine explosion. One witness, Saw J---, was present at the incident place to help the victims. Ko Z--- [the second witness] organised the transportation for the victims to the hospital. Ko Z--- also interviewed the victims about how the incident had happened to her. Then he provided information to the KHRG researcher, as the researcher could not reach the victim due to security concerns.

Describe the Incident(s) in complete detail.

On March 12th 2025, at 12 pm, a 51-year-old villager named Daw T--- from Pn--- village, Sa Tein village tract, Ler K’Saw Township, Mergui-Tavoy District, stepped on a landmine at Nk--- place, located near Tk--- village, Sa Tein village tract. She unexpectedly stepped on a landmine planted by Burma Army[10] combined forces from Battalion [IB] #358, LIB #224, LIB #559, and LIB #560 when she was working on a palm plantation at Nk--- place, near Tk--- village. Nk--- is the plantation area of the villagers [from Tk--- village]. It takes one hour on foot to travel from Nk--- place to Tk--- village.

Due to the landmine explosion, her left leg was injured. Her shin bone was shattered. The victim is a plantation worker for Yuzana Palm Oil Company. The company produces palm cooking oil, and they used to pay taxes to both the KNU [Karen National Union[11]] and the SAC. After the coup in 2021, they no longer need to pay tax to the KNU. Instead, they need to pay it to the armed group [Kaw Thoo Lei Army (KTLA)[12]] Light Infantry Division #1, under the control of Commander Saw S’Pi. They still have to pay tax to the SAC, however.

Daw T--- was severely injured and bleeding a lot as a result of the landmine explosion. Her shin bone was visible. After the injury, other villagers who were working with her phoned the plantation manager from the Yuzana Palm Oil Company. Then the manager phoned the People’s Defence Force (PDF)[13]. After that, the PDF brought her to their gate [checkpoint] run by the PDF Light Infantry Division #1. (PDF’s LID #1 was based in  Kaw Thaw District [an SAC-controlled area]). Currently, they are operating in KNU-controlled areas and are based in Zy--- Place, at St--- area [the plantation areas of villagers from Sa Tein village tract], near Tk--- village]. Afterwards, a medic from the PDF Light Infantry Division #1 provided treatment to her wound with the medicine they had available [They did not charge her for the treatment.]

She was then transferred to Nl--- public hospital located in Nl--- Town, Mergui-Tavoy District by ambulance, with the help of the PDF.

One of the soldiers operating locally [from an armed resistance force] said that State Administration Council [SAC] soldiers frequently patrol the place where the landmine exploded in the palm oil plantation owned by the Yuzana Palm Oil Company. They [the SAC] also planted landmines there. According to local villagers, the place where the landmine exploded is located next to a farm of a villager, which is 300 acres [1.2 km] large. There is a house on that farm where SAC soldiers often stay whenever they conduct military offensive operations in the area. So, they planted landmines around the farm to protect themselves from armed resistance groups.

As a result of this incident, many villagers became anxious about landmine contamination. Some villagers did not dare to even go to their plantation. Even though some villagers are afraid, they still need to go to their plantations to secure their livelihoods. Villagers from Sa Tein area would like to request [relevant stakeholders] to stop armed groups from planting landmines in villagers’ plantations and along roads/pathways that villagers use for traveling and transportation.

The Yuzana Palm Oil Company paid the medical fees of Daw T---. She has two children. She is divorced. Her two children have their own families [and are already married]. Daw T--- and her family members are daily wage workers at the Yuzana Palm Oil Company. They work for the company to secure their livelihood. They are originally from Yangon. Their work did not go well in Yangon after the coup in 2021 [They struggled to earn enough money]. So, they moved to Tanintharyi Region [Mergui-Tavoy District] and worked at the Yuzana Palm Oil Company [plantation] located in the vicinity of Tk--- village.

After the incident [as of March 2025], as these things happened to them [Daw T--- and her children], they faced difficulties while continuing to work [with the Yuzana Palm Oil Company, because they were afraid of landmines]. However, they continued to work with the Yuzana Palm Oil Company. Since her two children were already married, they also need to take care of their family and need to work to secure their own family’s livelihood. Because of this, they were not able to take care of their mom [at the time].

She [Daw T---] also requested that, if possible, someone please help her to secure her livelihood. [As of March 2025], during her hospitalisation, she secured her livelihood with the donations that she collected from each of the Yuzana Palm Oil workers. She also received donations from the local Funeral and Social Relief Association team.[14] Villagers do not know how much her treatment fee cost was and they are unsure how many donations she received. She was hospitalised for one month while she was being treated.

Presently [as of September 2025], Daw T--- cannot work as she only has one leg and needs to use crutches to walk. Since Daw T--- is not receiving any support from anyone or any organisation for her livelihood, her daughter takes care of her and is trying to secure her livelihood.

Did the victim(s) provide permission to use this information? Explain how that permission was provided.

A villager named Saw J--- from Tk--- village, Sa Tein village tract, Ler K’Saw Township, Mergui-Tavoy District, and the victim herself allowed us [KHRG] to use this information. Villagers [Saw J--- and the victim] also requested KHRG to use this information for publication.