English
ကညီကျိာ်
မြန်မာThis Incident Report describes incidents of rape in Kruh Tuh (Kyonedoe) Township, Dooplaya District. In April 2023, Saw D---, a 60-year-old man, raped two children from C--- village, Way Th’Lweh village tract, Kruh Tuh Township, Dooplaya District. After the incidents, the two children were taken care of by the Karen Women’s Organisation (KWO) in Kruh Tuh Township, who provided protection from the perpetrator, counselling and helped them prepare testimonial statements. The perpetrator was arrested by township authorities, held at a local Karen National Police Force (KNPF) police station, and as of November 2023, is facing trial by the Karen National Union (KNU) Dooplaya District judicial authorities.[1]
Part 1 – Incident Details
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Type of Incident |
A 60-year-old villager raped two children |
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Date of Incident(s) |
April 2023 |
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Incident Location (Village, Township and District) |
C--- village, Way Th’Lweh village tract[2], Kruh Tuh Township, Dooplaya District. |
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Victim Information |
||
|
Name |
Naw[3] A--- |
Naw B--- |
|
Age |
12 |
12 |
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Sex |
Female |
Female |
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Nationality |
Karen |
Karen |
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Family |
- |
- |
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Occupation |
Student |
Student |
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Religion |
Animist |
Animist |
|
Position |
- |
- |
|
Village |
C--- village, Way Th’Lweh village tract, Kruh Tuh Township, Dooplaya District |
C--- village, Way Th’Lweh village tract, Kruh Tuh Township, Dooplaya District |
|
Perpetrator Information (Civilians) |
||
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Name(s) |
Occupation |
Village position |
|
Saw[4] D--- |
Unknown |
Villager |
Part 2 - Information Quality
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1. Explain in detail how you collected this information. |
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The manager of the Karen Women’s Organisation (KWO)[5] in Kruh Tuh Township reported this incident to a KHRG field researcher. The KHRG field researcher interviewed both survivors and their mothers. |
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2. Explain how the source verified this information. |
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The information was provided by the survivors themselves and their family members. |
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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A 60-year-old man raped two children in C--- village, Way Th’Lweh village tract, Kruh Tuh Township, Dooplaya District. The survivors’ names are Naw A--- and Naw B---. Both children are 12 years old and grade three school students from C--- village. The perpetrator committed these attacks in April 2023 but the survivors could not remember the exact date. Saw D--- raped both girls twice, on separate occasions. The two survivors reported that in the first incident, they were raped one after the other at Saw D---’s house. Before he raped them, Saw D--- gave them water to drink. [After the children drank the water], they had a sore throat, felt dizzy, and had a headache, and they said [the water] smelled like drugs.
The second attacks were committed on separate occasions, on different dates in April 2023. A few days after the first incident, when Naw B--- was playing near a forest, Saw D--- saw her and called to her. She came closer to him, but as soon as she turned to run away from him, he dragged her and raped her.
In the school summer holiday, in April 2023, Naw A---’s father asked his daughter, his son and Saw D---, who was their neighbour, to put the cows out to graze on the pasture outside of their village. When they reached the pasture, their father asked Naw A--- and her brother to go and check if the stream had water or not. After they had checked, the little brother returned to his father to report the news. And as soon as Naw A--- ran to follow her brother, Saw D--- tightly grabbed one of her legs. Once her little brother went to swim in the stream, he raped her.
After the incidents were reported, Naw A--- and Naw B--- were assisted by the Karen Women Organization (KWO), at a location provided by KWO in Kruh Tuh Township. Whilst staying there, KWO provided the children with protection from the perpetrator and gave counselling. They also helped the survivors to prepare testimonial statements. As of November 2023, the children have returned home and are attending school. The perpetrator, Saw D---, was arrested and investigated by Kruh Tuh Township Karen National Police Force (KNPF)[6] police officers and detained at Kruh Tuh Township police station. The township leader was made aware of these incidents. Saw D--- is awaiting trial by Karen National Union (KNU)[7] Dooplaya District court authorities. |
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 survivors and family members gave permission for KHRG to use this information. |
Further background reading on sexual violence in Southeast Burma can be found in the following KHRG reports:
- “Mu Traw District Incident Report: An SAC sergeant sexually abused a 7-year-old child in an army camp, March 2023”, November 2023.
- “Dooplaya District Incident Report: A 60-year-old male villager raped two children in Kruh Tuh Township, April 2023.”, November 2023
- “Hpa-an District Interview: Lack of justice in a case of attempted child rape, February 2020”, June 2020.
- “Suffering in silence? Sexual violence against women in Southeast Myanmar”, December 2018.
Footnotes:
[1] The present document is based on information received in April 2023. 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] Naw is a S’Gaw Karen female honorific title used before a person’s name.
[4] Saw is a S’Gaw Karen male honorific title used before a person’s name.
[5] The Karen Women’s Organisation (KWO) is a Karen community-based organisation formed in 1949 to support women in its operational areas across Karen State and in refugee camps along the Thai-Burma border. KWO works to empower women, fights against all forms of oppression of women and children, and provides support for communities in their operational areas. The organisation promotes women’s leadership, gender sensitivity, and runs health and education programs.
[6] The Karen National Police Force is the law enforcement agency of the Karen National Union. It was established in 1991.
[7] The Karen National Union (KNU) is the main Karen political organisation. It was established in 1947 and has been in conflict with the government since 1949. The KNU wields power across large areas of Southeast Burma and has been calling for the creation of a democratic federal system since 1976. Although it signed the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement in 2015, relations with the government remain tense.
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