press x to close
This photo shows a hiding site in Th'Ay Kee on December 4th 2007, following an attack by Tatmadaw MOC #4. Publicly-available information suggests that Myanmar Ambassador U Myint Naung may have commanded MOC #4 at the time of this attack. [Photo: KHRG]
If the South Africa government is satisfied that it has a full understanding of the Ambassador's service record, and that the Ambassador did not command units that may have perpetrated violations of IHL, it should issue a public statement to this effect, outlining the steps it has taken to make these conclusions. If, on the other hand, the South Africa government is not satisfied that the Ambassador did not command units that may have perpetrated violations of IHL, it should continue submitting inquiries to the Government of Myanmar, or consider declaring the Ambassador persona non grata and requesting his recall by Government of Myanmar. If additional information about the service history of Ambassador Myint Naung becomes available, for example regarding different command positions at different times, primary documentation collected by KHRG may be able to identify involvement in other abuses in violation of international norms.The South Africa government should seek to clarify Ambassador Myint Naung's service history and potential responsibility for individual, documented incidents of serious violations of international humanitarian law. KHRG wishes to emphasise that this is not a call to categorically denounce all Tatmadaw officers or Myanmar government officials or disregard basic obligations to treat foreign representatives with courtesy. Rather, in light of the information outlined in Sections II and III below indicating the Ambassador's potential involvement in grave violations of IHL, the South Africa government should request from the Myanmar government comprehensive information about the ambassador's service in the Tatmadaw, including the unit number, dates and deployment locations relating to all command positions previously held by Ambassador Myint Naung. The South Africa government should then examine abuses documented in connection with those units, and further investigate or inquire into specific incidents of concern until it has a full picture of the Ambassador's service history.
KHRG believes that an inquiry by the South Africa government is reasonable given questions and concerns that arise from the information detailed in this note; it is also within South Africa's rights under international law relevant to diplomatic relations,[3] and consistent with obligations under treaty and customary IHL that members of the international community ensure respect for international humanitarian law erga omnes.[4] It is not credible to assume that domestic legal or other accountability procedures within the Government of Myanmar, or specifically the Tatmadaw, have taken any steps to determine Brig-Gen. Myint Naung's involvement in violations of IHL documented by KHRG and others.[5]
Moreover, if an inquiry justifiably results in an adverse impact on the career prospects of a former Tatmadaw officer, KHRG believes that this could help to increase the perceived opportunity costs of utilising abusive practices for currently-serving Tatmadaw officers who will be in a position to order, or permit, violations of international humanitarian and human rights law in the future. It could also encourage the perception domestically that further measures for accountability and compliance with international norms are palatable, and necessary, insofar as they can help to avoid future similar international inquiries into past conduct by Tatmadaw officers. Ultimately, if an inquiry by the South Africa government can contribute to even an incremental reduction or change in abusive conduct by currently-serving Tatmadaw officers, this offers vital assistance to communities currently facing abuse in eastern Burma.
On March 14th 2011, the state-run New Light of Myanmar reported that an U Myint Naung had been appointed as the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar to the Republic of South Africa.[6]On July 12th 2011, U Myint Naung's credentials were presented to and accepted by the President of the Republic of South Africa, Jacob Zuma.[7] Publicly-available information, including articles published by Burma's state media, academic works by experts on the Tatmadaw, and exile news agencies indicates that Ambassador U Myint Naung and Brig-Gen. Myint Naung are the same person, and that the latter likely commanded Tatmadaw units during major combat operations in Karen State.
In August 2010, The Irrawaddy newspaper reported that a Tatmadaw Brigadier General Myint Naung had been transferred to the Myanmar Ministry of Foreign Affairs.[8] Public sources indicate that Brigadier General Myint Naung likely commanded Tatmadaw Military Operation Command (MOC) #4 at least between June 2007 and February 2008. It is possible that he commanded MOC #4 prior to June 2007 and subsequent to February 2008, however KHRG could not confirm a longer period of command via public sources. Some time after February 2008, and prior to September 2008, public information suggest Brig-Gen. Myint Naung was appointed as head of the Tatmadaw's Bayinnaung combat training school, a military institution that trains Tatmadaw personnel in counter-insurgency tactics, located in Toungoo District, or Thandaunggyi Township by government designations.
Figure 1 below shows information which KHRG has gathered to date, listed in roughly chronological order. All information is from public sources unless otherwise indicated; where available, online versions of sources have been hyper-linked in related footnotes.
|
Date
|
Date
|
|
Information
|
Information
|
|
Date
|
July 17th 2005
|
|
Information
|
The New Light of Myanmar reports that "Colonel Myint Naung of Phugyi Station" attended a tree planting ceremony at Taikkyi Station on July 17th 2005.[9] The article does not mention a specific Tatmadaw unit in connection with Col. Myint Naung, however Phugyi, also transliterated 'Hpugyi' is the official headquarters of MOC #4,[10] and individual battalions under MOC #4 have been reported by the Network for Democracy and Development (NDD) to be headquartered in Phugyi and Taikkyi, as well as other proximate villages or towns in Yangon Region.[11]
|
|
Date
|
June 7th 2007
|
|
Information
|
An article in the New Light of Myanmar mentions "Phugyi Station Commander Brig-Gen. Myint Naung". The article does not mention a specific Tatmadaw unit, however Phugyi, also transliterated 'Hpugyi' is the headquarters of MOC #4.[12]
|
|
Date
|
February 2008
|
|
Information
|
An appendix in the book Building the Tatmadaw by Tatmadaw insider Maung Aung Myoe, cites Brig-Gen Myint Naung as Tatmadaw MOC #4 Commander, as of February 2008.[13]
|
|
Date
|
September 25th 2008
|
|
Information
|
A Burmese-language article published by the Yoma3 news agency attributes command responsibility for incidents perpetrated by battalions under MOC #4 in South Okalappa in Rangoon in September 2007 to "former MOC #4 Commander" Brig-Gen. Myint Naung. The article indicates that, by September 2008, Brig-Gen. Myint Naung is serving as the head of Bayinnaung combat training school in Thandaunggyi Township, Kayin State.[14]
|
|
Date
|
August 24th 2010
|
|
Information
|
A Burmese-language article published in the Irrawaddy indicates that Brig-Gen Myint Naung continued to serve as the head of Bayinnaung combat training school until his appointment to the ministry of foreign affairs in August 2010.[15]
|
|
Date
|
October 2011
|
|
Information
|
A non-public source informs KHRG that the wife of Tatmadaw officer Brig-Gen Myint Naung is named Swe Swe Thein. Documents dated September 14th 2011 available on the website of the South Africa Government's Department in International Relations & Cooperation also list Swe Swe Thein as the wife of the current ambassador U Myint Naung.[16]
|
|
Date
|
Information
|
|
July 17th 2005
|
The New Light of Myanmar reports that "Colonel Myint Naung of Phugyi Station" attended a tree planting ceremony at Taikkyi Station on July 17th 2005.[9] The article does not mention a specific Tatmadaw unit in connection with Col. Myint Naung, however Phugyi, also transliterated 'Hpugyi' is the official headquarters of MOC #4,[10] and individual battalions under MOC #4 have been reported by the Network for Democracy and Development (NDD) to be headquartered in Phugyi and Taikkyi, as well as other proximate villages or towns in Yangon Region.[11]
|
|
June 7th 2007
|
An article in the New Light of Myanmar mentions "Phugyi Station Commander Brig-Gen. Myint Naung". The article does not mention a specific Tatmadaw unit, however Phugyi, also transliterated 'Hpugyi' is the headquarters of MOC #4.[12]
|
|
February 2008
|
An appendix in the book Building the Tatmadaw by Tatmadaw insider Maung Aung Myoe, cites Brig-Gen Myint Naung as Tatmadaw MOC #4 Commander, as of February 2008.[13]
|
|
September 25th 2008
|
A Burmese-language article published by the Yoma3 news agency attributes command responsibility for incidents perpetrated by battalions under MOC #4 in South Okalappa in Rangoon in September 2007 to "former MOC #4 Commander" Brig-Gen. Myint Naung. The article indicates that, by September 2008, Brig-Gen. Myint Naung is serving as the head of Bayinnaung combat training school in Thandaunggyi Township, Kayin State.[14]
|
|
August 24th 2010
|
A Burmese-language article published in the Irrawaddy indicates that Brig-Gen Myint Naung continued to serve as the head of Bayinnaung combat training school until his appointment to the ministry of foreign affairs in August 2010.[15]
|
|
October 2011
|
A non-public source informs KHRG that the wife of Tatmadaw officer Brig-Gen Myint Naung is named Swe Swe Thein. Documents dated September 14th 2011 available on the website of the South Africa Government's Department in International Relations & Cooperation also list Swe Swe Thein as the wife of the current ambassador U Myint Naung.[16]
|
Note that some public sources also name a Col. Tint Wai as a former MOC #4 Commander prior to May 2007.[17] Other public sources, meanwhile, including state media suggest that Col. Tint Wai has served as the Myanmar military attaché to China since at least June 2007, and possibly since late 2006.[18] Tatmadaw experts have also noted that it is unlikely that an officer holding the rank of Colonel would server as an MOC commander on anything other than a temporary basis without being promoted to the rank of Brigadier General, or replaced.[19] Due to conflicting sources about the identity of the MOC #4 commander prior to June 2007, however, Section III below only summarises incidents documented in connection to MOC #4 after June 2007, when the New Light of Myanmar described Brig-Gen. Myint Naung as "Phugyi Station Commander." If additional information about the service history of Ambassador Myint Naung becomes available, primary documentation collected by KHRG may be able to identify involvement in prohibited acts perpetrated at other times and related to other units.
The information listed in Section II of this briefing document suggests an approximate time frame for Brig-Gen. Myint Naung's tenure as MOC #4 Commander, beginning in June 2007 and lasting until at least February 2008; this period may extend beyond February 2008, depending on when he was appointed to Bayinnaung combat training school. In addition to September 2007 incidents documented by Human Rights Watch and Yoma3 related to the government crackdown on monk-led protests in Rangoon,[20] which KHRG did not document, evidence gathered by KHRG field researchers inside Burma indicates that battalions under MOC #4 committed serious human rights abuses, including grave violations of humanitarian law, during the same time period. KHRG's documentation indicates that these battalions attacked on civilian communities, destroyed villages and agriculture and killed villagers in Toungoo, Nyaunglebin, and Papun districts during the last months of a major Tatmadaw offensive, which spanned the years 2005 to 2008 and took place in northern Karen State and eastern Bago Region.
The repeated and large-scale targeting of civilians in violation of international humanitarian law (IHL) by Tatmadaw units involved in the 2005-2008 Offensive was condemned by both the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar and, in a rare public statement, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).[21] Covering the same period, based upon primary documentation by field researchers in the area, KHRG published 43 reports,[22] each detailing repeated grave violations of IHL by Tatmadaw units. While KHRG field researchers were not in all cases able to identify the specific units responsible for the violations, four reports highlighted abuses committed by soldiers under the command of MOC #4. Importantly, many of these reports can be triangulated by comparison to reporting by Amnesty International and a variety of local organisations active inside Burma, which all have published extensive documentation covering the period.[23]
Figure 2 below summarises documented incidents linked to MOC #4 during the period November 2007 and April 2008, when the unit may have been commanded by Myint Naung. Items are listed in roughly chronological order; all information is from KHRG primary documention and other published sources, and online versions of sources have been hyper-linked in related footnotes.
|
Date
|
Date
|
|
Information
|
Information
|
|
Date
|
November 2007 to April 2008
|
|
Information
|
KHRG and The Irrawaddy report the deployment of seven battalions (LIBs #701, 702, 703, 704, 705, 706, 707, and 710) under MOC #4 to southern Toungoo District and adjacent areas of northern Nyaunglebin and Papun districts in November 2007, as reinforcements for the Tatmadaw offensive initiated in the area during 2005.[24] The Free Burma Rangers (FBR) also report the deployment of seven battalions under MOC #4 as part of the offensive, with four battalions in Papun and three in Toungoo; in May 2008 FBR reported that three battalions under Tactical Operations Command (TOC) #2 of MOC #4 operated out of several camps between southern Toungoo and northern Papun districts until April 1st 2008, when they rotated with TOC #1 of MOC #4.[25]
|
|
Date
|
November 30th to December 10th 2007
|
|
Information
|
KHRG reports that soldiers under MOC #4 carry out multiple attacks on displaced villagers and settlements in Th'Ay Kee area of Toungoo District in December 2007.[26] Documentation by KHRG includes photos and video of a civilian hiding site burned at Th'ay Kee, and details on attacks and destruction of homes in at least four hiding sites. KHRG also releases a video showing children displaced during the attack on Th'Ay Kee, which included the destruction of the school.[27] These attacks are also reported by the Free Burma Rangers (FBR).[28]
|
|
Date
|
January 1st 2008
|
|
Information
|
FBR reports that soldiers in LIB #704 under MOC #4 shoot and kill one villager and wound another in an attack on civilians in Yaw Kee village, located between Mone Township in northern Nyaunglebin District and Tantabin Township in southern Toungoo District.[29] The report notes that Yaw Kee has been attacked multiple times during previous months, including being mortared and burned down in October 2007, prior to the arrival of MOC #4 in the area.
|
|
Date
|
March 4th and 5th 2008
|
|
Information
|
KHRG reports that MOC #4 troops attack Lay Poh Der and Gheh Yuh Der villages in the Lay Kee area of Kay Bpoo village tract in northern Papun District, adjacent to southern Toungoo District.[30] The attacks include the destruction of at least nine homes and three hillside rice fields. The incident is also documented by FBR, which notes that 80 residents of Gheh Yuh Der, and approximately 400 civilians from nearby communities, fled the attacks.[31]
|
|
Date
|
April 19th 2008
|
|
Information
|
KHRG reports that two columns from LIB #706 under MOC #4 returned to Buh Kee village in Tantabin Township in southern Toungoo District which had already been attacked and burned by MOC #4 troops on December 5th 2007. Civilians in hiding in the area flee the incoming patrol, abandoning essential property including rice, salt, clothes, blankets, and cooking equipment, which is subsequently looted by MOC #4 soldiers.[32]
|
|
Date
|
Information
|
|
November 2007 to April 2008
|
KHRG and The Irrawaddy report the deployment of seven battalions (LIBs #701, 702, 703, 704, 705, 706, 707, and 710) under MOC #4 to southern Toungoo District and adjacent areas of northern Nyaunglebin and Papun districts in November 2007, as reinforcements for the Tatmadaw offensive initiated in the area during 2005.[24] The Free Burma Rangers (FBR) also report the deployment of seven battalions under MOC #4 as part of the offensive, with four battalions in Papun and three in Toungoo; in May 2008 FBR reported that three battalions under Tactical Operations Command (TOC) #2 of MOC #4 operated out of several camps between southern Toungoo and northern Papun districts until April 1st 2008, when they rotated with TOC #1 of MOC #4.[25]
|
|
November 30th to December 10th 2007
|
KHRG reports that soldiers under MOC #4 carry out multiple attacks on displaced villagers and settlements in Th'Ay Kee area of Toungoo District in December 2007.[26] Documentation by KHRG includes photos and video of a civilian hiding site burned at Th'ay Kee, and details on attacks and destruction of homes in at least four hiding sites. KHRG also releases a video showing children displaced during the attack on Th'Ay Kee, which included the destruction of the school.[27] These attacks are also reported by the Free Burma Rangers (FBR).[28]
|
|
January 1st 2008
|
FBR reports that soldiers in LIB #704 under MOC #4 shoot and kill one villager and wound another in an attack on civilians in Yaw Kee village, located between Mone Township in northern Nyaunglebin District and Tantabin Township in southern Toungoo District.[29] The report notes that Yaw Kee has been attacked multiple times during previous months, including being mortared and burned down in October 2007, prior to the arrival of MOC #4 in the area.
|
|
March 4th and 5th 2008
|
KHRG reports that MOC #4 troops attack Lay Poh Der and Gheh Yuh Der villages in the Lay Kee area of Kay Bpoo village tract in northern Papun District, adjacent to southern Toungoo District.[30] The attacks include the destruction of at least nine homes and three hillside rice fields. The incident is also documented by FBR, which notes that 80 residents of Gheh Yuh Der, and approximately 400 civilians from nearby communities, fled the attacks.[31]
|
|
April 19th 2008
|
KHRG reports that two columns from LIB #706 under MOC #4 returned to Buh Kee village in Tantabin Township in southern Toungoo District which had already been attacked and burned by MOC #4 troops on December 5th 2007. Civilians in hiding in the area flee the incoming patrol, abandoning essential property including rice, salt, clothes, blankets, and cooking equipment, which is subsequently looted by MOC #4 soldiers.[32]
|
, 
The photo at left, taken on January 21st 2008, shows a mother and child at a temporary hiding site constructed by villagers who fled the Th'Ay Kee area following attacks by Tatmadaw MOC #4 soldiers in the first week of December 2007. The photo at right shows Buh Kee village in the Th'Ay Kee area on March 14th 2008; the village was still abandoned and its residents in hiding nearby more than three months after Buh Kee was attacked by MOC #4 in December 2007. On April 19th 2008, a patrol of MOC #4 re-entered the Buh Kee area, forcing civilians to flee hiding sites, and looted essential civilian property including rice, salt, clothes, blankets, and cooking equipment. [Photos: KHRG]
If the South Africa government is satisfied that it has a full understanding of the Ambassador's service record, and that the Ambassador did not command units that may have perpetrated violations of IHL, it should issue a public statement to this effect, outlining the steps it has taken to make these conclusions. If, on the other hand, the South Africa government is not satisfied that the Ambassador did not command units that may have perpetrated violations of IHL, it should continue submitting inquiries to the Government of Myanmar, or consider declaring the Ambassador persona non grata and requesting his recall by Government of Myanmar. If additional information about the service history of Ambassador Myint Naung becomes available, for example regarding different command positions at different times, primary documentation collected by KHRG may be able to identify involvement in other abuses in violation of international norms.The South Africa government should seek to clarify Ambassador Myint Naung's service history and potential responsibility for individual, documented incidents of serious violations of international humanitarian law. KHRG wishes to emphasise that this is not a call to categorically denounce all Tatmadaw officers or Myanmar government officials or disregard basic obligations to treat foreign representatives with courtesy. Rather, in light of the information outlined in Sections II and III below indicating the Ambassador's potential involvement in grave violations of IHL, the South Africa government should request from the Myanmar government comprehensive information about the ambassador's service in the Tatmadaw, including the unit number, dates and deployment locations relating to all command positions previously held by Ambassador Myint Naung. The South Africa government should then examine abuses documented in connection with those units, and further investigate or inquire into specific incidents of concern until it has a full picture of the Ambassador's service history.
KHRG believes that an inquiry by the South Africa government is reasonable given questions and concerns that arise from the information detailed in this note; it is also within South Africa's rights under international law relevant to diplomatic relations,[3] and consistent with obligations under treaty and customary IHL that members of the international community ensure respect for international humanitarian law erga omnes.[4] It is not credible to assume that domestic legal or other accountability procedures within the Government of Myanmar, or specifically the Tatmadaw, have taken any steps to determine Brig-Gen. Myint Naung's involvement in violations of IHL documented by KHRG and others.[5]
Moreover, if an inquiry justifiably results in an adverse impact on the career prospects of a former Tatmadaw officer, KHRG believes that this could help to increase the perceived opportunity costs of utilising abusive practices for currently-serving Tatmadaw officers who will be in a position to order, or permit, violations of international humanitarian and human rights law in the future. It could also encourage the perception domestically that further measures for accountability and compliance with international norms are palatable, and necessary, insofar as they can help to avoid future similar international inquiries into past conduct by Tatmadaw officers. Ultimately, if an inquiry by the South Africa government can contribute to even an incremental reduction or change in abusive conduct by currently-serving Tatmadaw officers, this offers vital assistance to communities currently facing abuse in eastern Burma.
On March 14th 2011, the state-run New Light of Myanmar reported that an U Myint Naung had been appointed as the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar to the Republic of South Africa.[6]On July 12th 2011, U Myint Naung's credentials were presented to and accepted by the President of the Republic of South Africa, Jacob Zuma.[7] Publicly-available information, including articles published by Burma's state media, academic works by experts on the Tatmadaw, and exile news agencies indicates that Ambassador U Myint Naung and Brig-Gen. Myint Naung are the same person, and that the latter likely commanded Tatmadaw units during major combat operations in Karen State.
In August 2010, The Irrawaddy newspaper reported that a Tatmadaw Brigadier General Myint Naung had been transferred to the Myanmar Ministry of Foreign Affairs.[8] Public sources indicate that Brigadier General Myint Naung likely commanded Tatmadaw Military Operation Command (MOC) #4 at least between June 2007 and February 2008. It is possible that he commanded MOC #4 prior to June 2007 and subsequent to February 2008, however KHRG could not confirm a longer period of command via public sources. Some time after February 2008, and prior to September 2008, public information suggest Brig-Gen. Myint Naung was appointed as head of the Tatmadaw's Bayinnaung combat training school, a military institution that trains Tatmadaw personnel in counter-insurgency tactics, located in Toungoo District, or Thandaunggyi Township by government designations.
Figure 1 below shows information which KHRG has gathered to date, listed in roughly chronological order. All information is from public sources unless otherwise indicated; where available, online versions of sources have been hyper-linked in related footnotes.
|
Date
|
Date
|
|
Information
|
Information
|
|
Date
|
July 17th 2005
|
|
Information
|
The New Light of Myanmar reports that "Colonel Myint Naung of Phugyi Station" attended a tree planting ceremony at Taikkyi Station on July 17th 2005.[9] The article does not mention a specific Tatmadaw unit in connection with Col. Myint Naung, however Phugyi, also transliterated 'Hpugyi' is the official headquarters of MOC #4,[10] and individual battalions under MOC #4 have been reported by the Network for Democracy and Development (NDD) to be headquartered in Phugyi and Taikkyi, as well as other proximate villages or towns in Yangon Region.[11]
|
|
Date
|
June 7th 2007
|
|
Information
|
An article in the New Light of Myanmar mentions "Phugyi Station Commander Brig-Gen. Myint Naung". The article does not mention a specific Tatmadaw unit, however Phugyi, also transliterated 'Hpugyi' is the headquarters of MOC #4.[12]
|
|
Date
|
February 2008
|
|
Information
|
An appendix in the book Building the Tatmadaw by Tatmadaw insider Maung Aung Myoe, cites Brig-Gen Myint Naung as Tatmadaw MOC #4 Commander, as of February 2008.[13]
|
|
Date
|
September 25th 2008
|
|
Information
|
A Burmese-language article published by the Yoma3 news agency attributes command responsibility for incidents perpetrated by battalions under MOC #4 in South Okalappa in Rangoon in September 2007 to "former MOC #4 Commander" Brig-Gen. Myint Naung. The article indicates that, by September 2008, Brig-Gen. Myint Naung is serving as the head of Bayinnaung combat training school in Thandaunggyi Township, Kayin State.[14]
|
|
Date
|
August 24th 2010
|
|
Information
|
A Burmese-language article published in the Irrawaddy indicates that Brig-Gen Myint Naung continued to serve as the head of Bayinnaung combat training school until his appointment to the ministry of foreign affairs in August 2010.[15]
|
|
Date
|
October 2011
|
|
Information
|
A non-public source informs KHRG that the wife of Tatmadaw officer Brig-Gen Myint Naung is named Swe Swe Thein. Documents dated September 14th 2011 available on the website of the South Africa Government's Department in International Relations & Cooperation also list Swe Swe Thein as the wife of the current ambassador U Myint Naung.[16]
|
|
Date
|
Information
|
|
July 17th 2005
|
The New Light of Myanmar reports that "Colonel Myint Naung of Phugyi Station" attended a tree planting ceremony at Taikkyi Station on July 17th 2005.[9] The article does not mention a specific Tatmadaw unit in connection with Col. Myint Naung, however Phugyi, also transliterated 'Hpugyi' is the official headquarters of MOC #4,[10] and individual battalions under MOC #4 have been reported by the Network for Democracy and Development (NDD) to be headquartered in Phugyi and Taikkyi, as well as other proximate villages or towns in Yangon Region.[11]
|
|
June 7th 2007
|
An article in the New Light of Myanmar mentions "Phugyi Station Commander Brig-Gen. Myint Naung". The article does not mention a specific Tatmadaw unit, however Phugyi, also transliterated 'Hpugyi' is the headquarters of MOC #4.[12]
|
|
February 2008
|
An appendix in the book Building the Tatmadaw by Tatmadaw insider Maung Aung Myoe, cites Brig-Gen Myint Naung as Tatmadaw MOC #4 Commander, as of February 2008.[13]
|
|
September 25th 2008
|
A Burmese-language article published by the Yoma3 news agency attributes command responsibility for incidents perpetrated by battalions under MOC #4 in South Okalappa in Rangoon in September 2007 to "former MOC #4 Commander" Brig-Gen. Myint Naung. The article indicates that, by September 2008, Brig-Gen. Myint Naung is serving as the head of Bayinnaung combat training school in Thandaunggyi Township, Kayin State.[14]
|
|
August 24th 2010
|
A Burmese-language article published in the Irrawaddy indicates that Brig-Gen Myint Naung continued to serve as the head of Bayinnaung combat training school until his appointment to the ministry of foreign affairs in August 2010.[15]
|
|
October 2011
|
A non-public source informs KHRG that the wife of Tatmadaw officer Brig-Gen Myint Naung is named Swe Swe Thein. Documents dated September 14th 2011 available on the website of the South Africa Government's Department in International Relations & Cooperation also list Swe Swe Thein as the wife of the current ambassador U Myint Naung.[16]
|
Note that some public sources also name a Col. Tint Wai as a former MOC #4 Commander prior to May 2007.[17] Other public sources, meanwhile, including state media suggest that Col. Tint Wai has served as the Myanmar military attaché to China since at least June 2007, and possibly since late 2006.[18] Tatmadaw experts have also noted that it is unlikely that an officer holding the rank of Colonel would server as an MOC commander on anything other than a temporary basis without being promoted to the rank of Brigadier General, or replaced.[19] Due to conflicting sources about the identity of the MOC #4 commander prior to June 2007, however, Section III below only summarises incidents documented in connection to MOC #4 after June 2007, when the New Light of Myanmar described Brig-Gen. Myint Naung as "Phugyi Station Commander." If additional information about the service history of Ambassador Myint Naung becomes available, primary documentation collected by KHRG may be able to identify involvement in prohibited acts perpetrated at other times and related to other units.
The information listed in Section II of this briefing document suggests an approximate time frame for Brig-Gen. Myint Naung's tenure as MOC #4 Commander, beginning in June 2007 and lasting until at least February 2008; this period may extend beyond February 2008, depending on when he was appointed to Bayinnaung combat training school. In addition to September 2007 incidents documented by Human Rights Watch and Yoma3 related to the government crackdown on monk-led protests in Rangoon,[20] which KHRG did not document, evidence gathered by KHRG field researchers inside Burma indicates that battalions under MOC #4 committed serious human rights abuses, including grave violations of humanitarian law, during the same time period. KHRG's documentation indicates that these battalions attacked on civilian communities, destroyed villages and agriculture and killed villagers in Toungoo, Nyaunglebin, and Papun districts during the last months of a major Tatmadaw offensive, which spanned the years 2005 to 2008 and took place in northern Karen State and eastern Bago Region.
The repeated and large-scale targeting of civilians in violation of international humanitarian law (IHL) by Tatmadaw units involved in the 2005-2008 Offensive was condemned by both the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar and, in a rare public statement, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).[21] Covering the same period, based upon primary documentation by field researchers in the area, KHRG published 43 reports,[22] each detailing repeated grave violations of IHL by Tatmadaw units. While KHRG field researchers were not in all cases able to identify the specific units responsible for the violations, four reports highlighted abuses committed by soldiers under the command of MOC #4. Importantly, many of these reports can be triangulated by comparison to reporting by Amnesty International and a variety of local organisations active inside Burma, which all have published extensive documentation covering the period.[23]
Figure 2 below summarises documented incidents linked to MOC #4 during the period November 2007 and April 2008, when the unit may have been commanded by Myint Naung. Items are listed in roughly chronological order; all information is from KHRG primary documention and other published sources, and online versions of sources have been hyper-linked in related footnotes.
|
Date
|
Date
|
|
Information
|
Information
|
|
Date
|
November 2007 to April 2008
|
|
Information
|
KHRG and The Irrawaddy report the deployment of seven battalions (LIBs #701, 702, 703, 704, 705, 706, 707, and 710) under MOC #4 to southern Toungoo District and adjacent areas of northern Nyaunglebin and Papun districts in November 2007, as reinforcements for the Tatmadaw offensive initiated in the area during 2005.[24] The Free Burma Rangers (FBR) also report the deployment of seven battalions under MOC #4 as part of the offensive, with four battalions in Papun and three in Toungoo; in May 2008 FBR reported that three battalions under Tactical Operations Command (TOC) #2 of MOC #4 operated out of several camps between southern Toungoo and northern Papun districts until April 1st 2008, when they rotated with TOC #1 of MOC #4.[25]
|
|
Date
|
November 30th to December 10th 2007
|
|
Information
|
KHRG reports that soldiers under MOC #4 carry out multiple attacks on displaced villagers and settlements in Th'Ay Kee area of Toungoo District in December 2007.[26] Documentation by KHRG includes photos and video of a civilian hiding site burned at Th'ay Kee, and details on attacks and destruction of homes in at least four hiding sites. KHRG also releases a video showing children displaced during the attack on Th'Ay Kee, which included the destruction of the school.[27] These attacks are also reported by the Free Burma Rangers (FBR).[28]
|
|
Date
|
January 1st 2008
|
|
Information
|
FBR reports that soldiers in LIB #704 under MOC #4 shoot and kill one villager and wound another in an attack on civilians in Yaw Kee village, located between Mone Township in northern Nyaunglebin District and Tantabin Township in southern Toungoo District.[29] The report notes that Yaw Kee has been attacked multiple times during previous months, including being mortared and burned down in October 2007, prior to the arrival of MOC #4 in the area.
|
|
Date
|
March 4th and 5th 2008
|
|
Information
|
KHRG reports that MOC #4 troops attack Lay Poh Der and Gheh Yuh Der villages in the Lay Kee area of Kay Bpoo village tract in northern Papun District, adjacent to southern Toungoo District.[30] The attacks include the destruction of at least nine homes and three hillside rice fields. The incident is also documented by FBR, which notes that 80 residents of Gheh Yuh Der, and approximately 400 civilians from nearby communities, fled the attacks.[31]
|
|
Date
|
April 19th 2008
|
|
Information
|
KHRG reports that two columns from LIB #706 under MOC #4 returned to Buh Kee village in Tantabin Township in southern Toungoo District which had already been attacked and burned by MOC #4 troops on December 5th 2007. Civilians in hiding in the area flee the incoming patrol, abandoning essential property including rice, salt, clothes, blankets, and cooking equipment, which is subsequently looted by MOC #4 soldiers.[32]
|
|
Date
|
Information
|
|
November 2007 to April 2008
|
KHRG and The Irrawaddy report the deployment of seven battalions (LIBs #701, 702, 703, 704, 705, 706, 707, and 710) under MOC #4 to southern Toungoo District and adjacent areas of northern Nyaunglebin and Papun districts in November 2007, as reinforcements for the Tatmadaw offensive initiated in the area during 2005.[24] The Free Burma Rangers (FBR) also report the deployment of seven battalions under MOC #4 as part of the offensive, with four battalions in Papun and three in Toungoo; in May 2008 FBR reported that three battalions under Tactical Operations Command (TOC) #2 of MOC #4 operated out of several camps between southern Toungoo and northern Papun districts until April 1st 2008, when they rotated with TOC #1 of MOC #4.[25]
|
|
November 30th to December 10th 2007
|
KHRG reports that soldiers under MOC #4 carry out multiple attacks on displaced villagers and settlements in Th'Ay Kee area of Toungoo District in December 2007.[26] Documentation by KHRG includes photos and video of a civilian hiding site burned at Th'ay Kee, and details on attacks and destruction of homes in at least four hiding sites. KHRG also releases a video showing children displaced during the attack on Th'Ay Kee, which included the destruction of the school.[27] These attacks are also reported by the Free Burma Rangers (FBR).[28]
|
|
January 1st 2008
|
FBR reports that soldiers in LIB #704 under MOC #4 shoot and kill one villager and wound another in an attack on civilians in Yaw Kee village, located between Mone Township in northern Nyaunglebin District and Tantabin Township in southern Toungoo District.[29] The report notes that Yaw Kee has been attacked multiple times during previous months, including being mortared and burned down in October 2007, prior to the arrival of MOC #4 in the area.
|
|
March 4th and 5th 2008
|
KHRG reports that MOC #4 troops attack Lay Poh Der and Gheh Yuh Der villages in the Lay Kee area of Kay Bpoo village tract in northern Papun District, adjacent to southern Toungoo District.[30] The attacks include the destruction of at least nine homes and three hillside rice fields. The incident is also documented by FBR, which notes that 80 residents of Gheh Yuh Der, and approximately 400 civilians from nearby communities, fled the attacks.[31]
|
|
April 19th 2008
|
KHRG reports that two columns from LIB #706 under MOC #4 returned to Buh Kee village in Tantabin Township in southern Toungoo District which had already been attacked and burned by MOC #4 troops on December 5th 2007. Civilians in hiding in the area flee the incoming patrol, abandoning essential property including rice, salt, clothes, blankets, and cooking equipment, which is subsequently looted by MOC #4 soldiers.[32]
|
, 
These photos, taken on July 13th 2011, show South African President Jacob Zuma accepting a letter of credence from the Myanmar Ambassador Myint Naung at the Presidential Guest House in Pretoria. Publicly-available information indicates that the Myanmar Ambassador is retired Tatmadaw Brigadier General Myint Naung, who may have commanded ten battalions that primary documentation by KHRG indicates committed serious violations of international humanitarian law. [Photos: Presidency of the Republic of South Africa]
If the South Africa government is satisfied that it has a full understanding of the Ambassador's service record, and that the Ambassador did not command units that may have perpetrated violations of IHL, it should issue a public statement to this effect, outlining the steps it has taken to make these conclusions. If, on the other hand, the South Africa government is not satisfied that the Ambassador did not command units that may have perpetrated violations of IHL, it should continue submitting inquiries to the Government of Myanmar, or consider declaring the Ambassador persona non grata and requesting his recall by Government of Myanmar. If additional information about the service history of Ambassador Myint Naung becomes available, for example regarding different command positions at different times, primary documentation collected by KHRG may be able to identify involvement in other abuses in violation of international norms.The South Africa government should seek to clarify Ambassador Myint Naung's service history and potential responsibility for individual, documented incidents of serious violations of international humanitarian law. KHRG wishes to emphasise that this is not a call to categorically denounce all Tatmadaw officers or Myanmar government officials or disregard basic obligations to treat foreign representatives with courtesy. Rather, in light of the information outlined in Sections II and III below indicating the Ambassador's potential involvement in grave violations of IHL, the South Africa government should request from the Myanmar government comprehensive information about the ambassador's service in the Tatmadaw, including the unit number, dates and deployment locations relating to all command positions previously held by Ambassador Myint Naung. The South Africa government should then examine abuses documented in connection with those units, and further investigate or inquire into specific incidents of concern until it has a full picture of the Ambassador's service history.
KHRG believes that an inquiry by the South Africa government is reasonable given questions and concerns that arise from the information detailed in this note; it is also within South Africa's rights under international law relevant to diplomatic relations,[3] and consistent with obligations under treaty and customary IHL that members of the international community ensure respect for international humanitarian law erga omnes.[4] It is not credible to assume that domestic legal or other accountability procedures within the Government of Myanmar, or specifically the Tatmadaw, have taken any steps to determine Brig-Gen. Myint Naung's involvement in violations of IHL documented by KHRG and others.[5]
Moreover, if an inquiry justifiably results in an adverse impact on the career prospects of a former Tatmadaw officer, KHRG believes that this could help to increase the perceived opportunity costs of utilising abusive practices for currently-serving Tatmadaw officers who will be in a position to order, or permit, violations of international humanitarian and human rights law in the future. It could also encourage the perception domestically that further measures for accountability and compliance with international norms are palatable, and necessary, insofar as they can help to avoid future similar international inquiries into past conduct by Tatmadaw officers. Ultimately, if an inquiry by the South Africa government can contribute to even an incremental reduction or change in abusive conduct by currently-serving Tatmadaw officers, this offers vital assistance to communities currently facing abuse in eastern Burma.
On March 14th 2011, the state-run New Light of Myanmar reported that an U Myint Naung had been appointed as the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar to the Republic of South Africa.[6]On July 12th 2011, U Myint Naung's credentials were presented to and accepted by the President of the Republic of South Africa, Jacob Zuma.[7] Publicly-available information, including articles published by Burma's state media, academic works by experts on the Tatmadaw, and exile news agencies indicates that Ambassador U Myint Naung and Brig-Gen. Myint Naung are the same person, and that the latter likely commanded Tatmadaw units during major combat operations in Karen State.
In August 2010, The Irrawaddy newspaper reported that a Tatmadaw Brigadier General Myint Naung had been transferred to the Myanmar Ministry of Foreign Affairs.[8] Public sources indicate that Brigadier General Myint Naung likely commanded Tatmadaw Military Operation Command (MOC) #4 at least between June 2007 and February 2008. It is possible that he commanded MOC #4 prior to June 2007 and subsequent to February 2008, however KHRG could not confirm a longer period of command via public sources. Some time after February 2008, and prior to September 2008, public information suggest Brig-Gen. Myint Naung was appointed as head of the Tatmadaw's Bayinnaung combat training school, a military institution that trains Tatmadaw personnel in counter-insurgency tactics, located in Toungoo District, or Thandaunggyi Township by government designations.
Figure 1 below shows information which KHRG has gathered to date, listed in roughly chronological order. All information is from public sources unless otherwise indicated; where available, online versions of sources have been hyper-linked in related footnotes.
|
Date
|
Date
|
|
Information
|
Information
|
|
Date
|
July 17th 2005
|
|
Information
|
The New Light of Myanmar reports that "Colonel Myint Naung of Phugyi Station" attended a tree planting ceremony at Taikkyi Station on July 17th 2005.[9] The article does not mention a specific Tatmadaw unit in connection with Col. Myint Naung, however Phugyi, also transliterated 'Hpugyi' is the official headquarters of MOC #4,[10] and individual battalions under MOC #4 have been reported by the Network for Democracy and Development (NDD) to be headquartered in Phugyi and Taikkyi, as well as other proximate villages or towns in Yangon Region.[11]
|
|
Date
|
June 7th 2007
|
|
Information
|
An article in the New Light of Myanmar mentions "Phugyi Station Commander Brig-Gen. Myint Naung". The article does not mention a specific Tatmadaw unit, however Phugyi, also transliterated 'Hpugyi' is the headquarters of MOC #4.[12]
|
|
Date
|
February 2008
|
|
Information
|
An appendix in the book Building the Tatmadaw by Tatmadaw insider Maung Aung Myoe, cites Brig-Gen Myint Naung as Tatmadaw MOC #4 Commander, as of February 2008.[13]
|
|
Date
|
September 25th 2008
|
|
Information
|
A Burmese-language article published by the Yoma3 news agency attributes command responsibility for incidents perpetrated by battalions under MOC #4 in South Okalappa in Rangoon in September 2007 to "former MOC #4 Commander" Brig-Gen. Myint Naung. The article indicates that, by September 2008, Brig-Gen. Myint Naung is serving as the head of Bayinnaung combat training school in Thandaunggyi Township, Kayin State.[14]
|
|
Date
|
August 24th 2010
|
|
Information
|
A Burmese-language article published in the Irrawaddy indicates that Brig-Gen Myint Naung continued to serve as the head of Bayinnaung combat training school until his appointment to the ministry of foreign affairs in August 2010.[15]
|
|
Date
|
October 2011
|
|
Information
|
A non-public source informs KHRG that the wife of Tatmadaw officer Brig-Gen Myint Naung is named Swe Swe Thein. Documents dated September 14th 2011 available on the website of the South Africa Government's Department in International Relations & Cooperation also list Swe Swe Thein as the wife of the current ambassador U Myint Naung.[16]
|
|
Date
|
Information
|
|
July 17th 2005
|
The New Light of Myanmar reports that "Colonel Myint Naung of Phugyi Station" attended a tree planting ceremony at Taikkyi Station on July 17th 2005.[9] The article does not mention a specific Tatmadaw unit in connection with Col. Myint Naung, however Phugyi, also transliterated 'Hpugyi' is the official headquarters of MOC #4,[10] and individual battalions under MOC #4 have been reported by the Network for Democracy and Development (NDD) to be headquartered in Phugyi and Taikkyi, as well as other proximate villages or towns in Yangon Region.[11]
|
|
June 7th 2007
|
An article in the New Light of Myanmar mentions "Phugyi Station Commander Brig-Gen. Myint Naung". The article does not mention a specific Tatmadaw unit, however Phugyi, also transliterated 'Hpugyi' is the headquarters of MOC #4.[12]
|
|
February 2008
|
An appendix in the book Building the Tatmadaw by Tatmadaw insider Maung Aung Myoe, cites Brig-Gen Myint Naung as Tatmadaw MOC #4 Commander, as of February 2008.[13]
|
|
September 25th 2008
|
A Burmese-language article published by the Yoma3 news agency attributes command responsibility for incidents perpetrated by battalions under MOC #4 in South Okalappa in Rangoon in September 2007 to "former MOC #4 Commander" Brig-Gen. Myint Naung. The article indicates that, by September 2008, Brig-Gen. Myint Naung is serving as the head of Bayinnaung combat training school in Thandaunggyi Township, Kayin State.[14]
|
|
August 24th 2010
|
A Burmese-language article published in the Irrawaddy indicates that Brig-Gen Myint Naung continued to serve as the head of Bayinnaung combat training school until his appointment to the ministry of foreign affairs in August 2010.[15]
|
|
October 2011
|
A non-public source informs KHRG that the wife of Tatmadaw officer Brig-Gen Myint Naung is named Swe Swe Thein. Documents dated September 14th 2011 available on the website of the South Africa Government's Department in International Relations & Cooperation also list Swe Swe Thein as the wife of the current ambassador U Myint Naung.[16]
|
Note that some public sources also name a Col. Tint Wai as a former MOC #4 Commander prior to May 2007.[17] Other public sources, meanwhile, including state media suggest that Col. Tint Wai has served as the Myanmar military attaché to China since at least June 2007, and possibly since late 2006.[18] Tatmadaw experts have also noted that it is unlikely that an officer holding the rank of Colonel would server as an MOC commander on anything other than a temporary basis without being promoted to the rank of Brigadier General, or replaced.[19] Due to conflicting sources about the identity of the MOC #4 commander prior to June 2007, however, Section III below only summarises incidents documented in connection to MOC #4 after June 2007, when the New Light of Myanmar described Brig-Gen. Myint Naung as "Phugyi Station Commander." If additional information about the service history of Ambassador Myint Naung becomes available, primary documentation collected by KHRG may be able to identify involvement in prohibited acts perpetrated at other times and related to other units.
The information listed in Section II of this briefing document suggests an approximate time frame for Brig-Gen. Myint Naung's tenure as MOC #4 Commander, beginning in June 2007 and lasting until at least February 2008; this period may extend beyond February 2008, depending on when he was appointed to Bayinnaung combat training school. In addition to September 2007 incidents documented by Human Rights Watch and Yoma3 related to the government crackdown on monk-led protests in Rangoon,[20] which KHRG did not document, evidence gathered by KHRG field researchers inside Burma indicates that battalions under MOC #4 committed serious human rights abuses, including grave violations of humanitarian law, during the same time period. KHRG's documentation indicates that these battalions attacked on civilian communities, destroyed villages and agriculture and killed villagers in Toungoo, Nyaunglebin, and Papun districts during the last months of a major Tatmadaw offensive, which spanned the years 2005 to 2008 and took place in northern Karen State and eastern Bago Region.
The repeated and large-scale targeting of civilians in violation of international humanitarian law (IHL) by Tatmadaw units involved in the 2005-2008 Offensive was condemned by both the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar and, in a rare public statement, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).[21] Covering the same period, based upon primary documentation by field researchers in the area, KHRG published 43 reports,[22] each detailing repeated grave violations of IHL by Tatmadaw units. While KHRG field researchers were not in all cases able to identify the specific units responsible for the violations, four reports highlighted abuses committed by soldiers under the command of MOC #4. Importantly, many of these reports can be triangulated by comparison to reporting by Amnesty International and a variety of local organisations active inside Burma, which all have published extensive documentation covering the period.[23]
Figure 2 below summarises documented incidents linked to MOC #4 during the period November 2007 and April 2008, when the unit may have been commanded by Myint Naung. Items are listed in roughly chronological order; all information is from KHRG primary documention and other published sources, and online versions of sources have been hyper-linked in related footnotes.
|
Date
|
Date
|
|
Information
|
Information
|
|
Date
|
November 2007 to April 2008
|
|
Information
|
KHRG and The Irrawaddy report the deployment of seven battalions (LIBs #701, 702, 703, 704, 705, 706, 707, and 710) under MOC #4 to southern Toungoo District and adjacent areas of northern Nyaunglebin and Papun districts in November 2007, as reinforcements for the Tatmadaw offensive initiated in the area during 2005.[24] The Free Burma Rangers (FBR) also report the deployment of seven battalions under MOC #4 as part of the offensive, with four battalions in Papun and three in Toungoo; in May 2008 FBR reported that three battalions under Tactical Operations Command (TOC) #2 of MOC #4 operated out of several camps between southern Toungoo and northern Papun districts until April 1st 2008, when they rotated with TOC #1 of MOC #4.[25]
|
|
Date
|
November 30th to December 10th 2007
|
|
Information
|
KHRG reports that soldiers under MOC #4 carry out multiple attacks on displaced villagers and settlements in Th'Ay Kee area of Toungoo District in December 2007.[26] Documentation by KHRG includes photos and video of a civilian hiding site burned at Th'ay Kee, and details on attacks and destruction of homes in at least four hiding sites. KHRG also releases a video showing children displaced during the attack on Th'Ay Kee, which included the destruction of the school.[27] These attacks are also reported by the Free Burma Rangers (FBR).[28]
|
|
Date
|
January 1st 2008
|
|
Information
|
FBR reports that soldiers in LIB #704 under MOC #4 shoot and kill one villager and wound another in an attack on civilians in Yaw Kee village, located between Mone Township in northern Nyaunglebin District and Tantabin Township in southern Toungoo District.[29] The report notes that Yaw Kee has been attacked multiple times during previous months, including being mortared and burned down in October 2007, prior to the arrival of MOC #4 in the area.
|
|
Date
|
March 4th and 5th 2008
|
|
Information
|
KHRG reports that MOC #4 troops attack Lay Poh Der and Gheh Yuh Der villages in the Lay Kee area of Kay Bpoo village tract in northern Papun District, adjacent to southern Toungoo District.[30] The attacks include the destruction of at least nine homes and three hillside rice fields. The incident is also documented by FBR, which notes that 80 residents of Gheh Yuh Der, and approximately 400 civilians from nearby communities, fled the attacks.[31]
|
|
Date
|
April 19th 2008
|
|
Information
|
KHRG reports that two columns from LIB #706 under MOC #4 returned to Buh Kee village in Tantabin Township in southern Toungoo District which had already been attacked and burned by MOC #4 troops on December 5th 2007. Civilians in hiding in the area flee the incoming patrol, abandoning essential property including rice, salt, clothes, blankets, and cooking equipment, which is subsequently looted by MOC #4 soldiers.[32]
|
|
Date
|
Information
|
|
November 2007 to April 2008
|
KHRG and The Irrawaddy report the deployment of seven battalions (LIBs #701, 702, 703, 704, 705, 706, 707, and 710) under MOC #4 to southern Toungoo District and adjacent areas of northern Nyaunglebin and Papun districts in November 2007, as reinforcements for the Tatmadaw offensive initiated in the area during 2005.[24] The Free Burma Rangers (FBR) also report the deployment of seven battalions under MOC #4 as part of the offensive, with four battalions in Papun and three in Toungoo; in May 2008 FBR reported that three battalions under Tactical Operations Command (TOC) #2 of MOC #4 operated out of several camps between southern Toungoo and northern Papun districts until April 1st 2008, when they rotated with TOC #1 of MOC #4.[25]
|
|
November 30th to December 10th 2007
|
KHRG reports that soldiers under MOC #4 carry out multiple attacks on displaced villagers and settlements in Th'Ay Kee area of Toungoo District in December 2007.[26] Documentation by KHRG includes photos and video of a civilian hiding site burned at Th'ay Kee, and details on attacks and destruction of homes in at least four hiding sites. KHRG also releases a video showing children displaced during the attack on Th'Ay Kee, which included the destruction of the school.[27] These attacks are also reported by the Free Burma Rangers (FBR).[28]
|
|
January 1st 2008
|
FBR reports that soldiers in LIB #704 under MOC #4 shoot and kill one villager and wound another in an attack on civilians in Yaw Kee village, located between Mone Township in northern Nyaunglebin District and Tantabin Township in southern Toungoo District.[29] The report notes that Yaw Kee has been attacked multiple times during previous months, including being mortared and burned down in October 2007, prior to the arrival of MOC #4 in the area.
|
|
March 4th and 5th 2008
|
KHRG reports that MOC #4 troops attack Lay Poh Der and Gheh Yuh Der villages in the Lay Kee area of Kay Bpoo village tract in northern Papun District, adjacent to southern Toungoo District.[30] The attacks include the destruction of at least nine homes and three hillside rice fields. The incident is also documented by FBR, which notes that 80 residents of Gheh Yuh Der, and approximately 400 civilians from nearby communities, fled the attacks.[31]
|
|
April 19th 2008
|
KHRG reports that two columns from LIB #706 under MOC #4 returned to Buh Kee village in Tantabin Township in southern Toungoo District which had already been attacked and burned by MOC #4 troops on December 5th 2007. Civilians in hiding in the area flee the incoming patrol, abandoning essential property including rice, salt, clothes, blankets, and cooking equipment, which is subsequently looted by MOC #4 soldiers.[32]
|
, 
The photos above show the remains of burned homes at one of the hiding sites in the Th'Ay Kee area attacked by Tatmadaw MOC #4 soldiers between December 1st and 10th 2007. A KHRG researcher took these photos on December 6th 2007, two days after this site was attacked, while accompanying families who returned to attempt to retrieve food and other essential property left at their homes when they fled the attack. [Photos: KHRG]
If the South Africa government is satisfied that it has a full understanding of the Ambassador's service record, and that the Ambassador did not command units that may have perpetrated violations of IHL, it should issue a public statement to this effect, outlining the steps it has taken to make these conclusions. If, on the other hand, the South Africa government is not satisfied that the Ambassador did not command units that may have perpetrated violations of IHL, it should continue submitting inquiries to the Government of Myanmar, or consider declaring the Ambassador persona non grata and requesting his recall by Government of Myanmar. If additional information about the service history of Ambassador Myint Naung becomes available, for example regarding different command positions at different times, primary documentation collected by KHRG may be able to identify involvement in other abuses in violation of international norms.The South Africa government should seek to clarify Ambassador Myint Naung's service history and potential responsibility for individual, documented incidents of serious violations of international humanitarian law. KHRG wishes to emphasise that this is not a call to categorically denounce all Tatmadaw officers or Myanmar government officials or disregard basic obligations to treat foreign representatives with courtesy. Rather, in light of the information outlined in Sections II and III below indicating the Ambassador's potential involvement in grave violations of IHL, the South Africa government should request from the Myanmar government comprehensive information about the ambassador's service in the Tatmadaw, including the unit number, dates and deployment locations relating to all command positions previously held by Ambassador Myint Naung. The South Africa government should then examine abuses documented in connection with those units, and further investigate or inquire into specific incidents of concern until it has a full picture of the Ambassador's service history.
KHRG believes that an inquiry by the South Africa government is reasonable given questions and concerns that arise from the information detailed in this note; it is also within South Africa's rights under international law relevant to diplomatic relations,[3] and consistent with obligations under treaty and customary IHL that members of the international community ensure respect for international humanitarian law erga omnes.[4] It is not credible to assume that domestic legal or other accountability procedures within the Government of Myanmar, or specifically the Tatmadaw, have taken any steps to determine Brig-Gen. Myint Naung's involvement in violations of IHL documented by KHRG and others.[5]
Moreover, if an inquiry justifiably results in an adverse impact on the career prospects of a former Tatmadaw officer, KHRG believes that this could help to increase the perceived opportunity costs of utilising abusive practices for currently-serving Tatmadaw officers who will be in a position to order, or permit, violations of international humanitarian and human rights law in the future. It could also encourage the perception domestically that further measures for accountability and compliance with international norms are palatable, and necessary, insofar as they can help to avoid future similar international inquiries into past conduct by Tatmadaw officers. Ultimately, if an inquiry by the South Africa government can contribute to even an incremental reduction or change in abusive conduct by currently-serving Tatmadaw officers, this offers vital assistance to communities currently facing abuse in eastern Burma.
On March 14th 2011, the state-run New Light of Myanmar reported that an U Myint Naung had been appointed as the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar to the Republic of South Africa.[6]On July 12th 2011, U Myint Naung's credentials were presented to and accepted by the President of the Republic of South Africa, Jacob Zuma.[7] Publicly-available information, including articles published by Burma's state media, academic works by experts on the Tatmadaw, and exile news agencies indicates that Ambassador U Myint Naung and Brig-Gen. Myint Naung are the same person, and that the latter likely commanded Tatmadaw units during major combat operations in Karen State.
In August 2010, The Irrawaddy newspaper reported that a Tatmadaw Brigadier General Myint Naung had been transferred to the Myanmar Ministry of Foreign Affairs.[8] Public sources indicate that Brigadier General Myint Naung likely commanded Tatmadaw Military Operation Command (MOC) #4 at least between June 2007 and February 2008. It is possible that he commanded MOC #4 prior to June 2007 and subsequent to February 2008, however KHRG could not confirm a longer period of command via public sources. Some time after February 2008, and prior to September 2008, public information suggest Brig-Gen. Myint Naung was appointed as head of the Tatmadaw's Bayinnaung combat training school, a military institution that trains Tatmadaw personnel in counter-insurgency tactics, located in Toungoo District, or Thandaunggyi Township by government designations.
Figure 1 below shows information which KHRG has gathered to date, listed in roughly chronological order. All information is from public sources unless otherwise indicated; where available, online versions of sources have been hyper-linked in related footnotes.
|
Date
|
Date
|
|
Information
|
Information
|
|
Date
|
July 17th 2005
|
|
Information
|
The New Light of Myanmar reports that "Colonel Myint Naung of Phugyi Station" attended a tree planting ceremony at Taikkyi Station on July 17th 2005.[9] The article does not mention a specific Tatmadaw unit in connection with Col. Myint Naung, however Phugyi, also transliterated 'Hpugyi' is the official headquarters of MOC #4,[10] and individual battalions under MOC #4 have been reported by the Network for Democracy and Development (NDD) to be headquartered in Phugyi and Taikkyi, as well as other proximate villages or towns in Yangon Region.[11]
|
|
Date
|
June 7th 2007
|
|
Information
|
An article in the New Light of Myanmar mentions "Phugyi Station Commander Brig-Gen. Myint Naung". The article does not mention a specific Tatmadaw unit, however Phugyi, also transliterated 'Hpugyi' is the headquarters of MOC #4.[12]
|
|
Date
|
February 2008
|
|
Information
|
An appendix in the book Building the Tatmadaw by Tatmadaw insider Maung Aung Myoe, cites Brig-Gen Myint Naung as Tatmadaw MOC #4 Commander, as of February 2008.[13]
|
|
Date
|
September 25th 2008
|
|
Information
|
A Burmese-language article published by the Yoma3 news agency attributes command responsibility for incidents perpetrated by battalions under MOC #4 in South Okalappa in Rangoon in September 2007 to "former MOC #4 Commander" Brig-Gen. Myint Naung. The article indicates that, by September 2008, Brig-Gen. Myint Naung is serving as the head of Bayinnaung combat training school in Thandaunggyi Township, Kayin State.[14]
|
|
Date
|
August 24th 2010
|
|
Information
|
A Burmese-language article published in the Irrawaddy indicates that Brig-Gen Myint Naung continued to serve as the head of Bayinnaung combat training school until his appointment to the ministry of foreign affairs in August 2010.[15]
|
|
Date
|
October 2011
|
|
Information
|
A non-public source informs KHRG that the wife of Tatmadaw officer Brig-Gen Myint Naung is named Swe Swe Thein. Documents dated September 14th 2011 available on the website of the South Africa Government's Department in International Relations & Cooperation also list Swe Swe Thein as the wife of the current ambassador U Myint Naung.[16]
|
|
Date
|
Information
|
|
July 17th 2005
|
The New Light of Myanmar reports that "Colonel Myint Naung of Phugyi Station" attended a tree planting ceremony at Taikkyi Station on July 17th 2005.[9] The article does not mention a specific Tatmadaw unit in connection with Col. Myint Naung, however Phugyi, also transliterated 'Hpugyi' is the official headquarters of MOC #4,[10] and individual battalions under MOC #4 have been reported by the Network for Democracy and Development (NDD) to be headquartered in Phugyi and Taikkyi, as well as other proximate villages or towns in Yangon Region.[11]
|
|
June 7th 2007
|
An article in the New Light of Myanmar mentions "Phugyi Station Commander Brig-Gen. Myint Naung". The article does not mention a specific Tatmadaw unit, however Phugyi, also transliterated 'Hpugyi' is the headquarters of MOC #4.[12]
|
|
February 2008
|
An appendix in the book Building the Tatmadaw by Tatmadaw insider Maung Aung Myoe, cites Brig-Gen Myint Naung as Tatmadaw MOC #4 Commander, as of February 2008.[13]
|
|
September 25th 2008
|
A Burmese-language article published by the Yoma3 news agency attributes command responsibility for incidents perpetrated by battalions under MOC #4 in South Okalappa in Rangoon in September 2007 to "former MOC #4 Commander" Brig-Gen. Myint Naung. The article indicates that, by September 2008, Brig-Gen. Myint Naung is serving as the head of Bayinnaung combat training school in Thandaunggyi Township, Kayin State.[14]
|
|
August 24th 2010
|
A Burmese-language article published in the Irrawaddy indicates that Brig-Gen Myint Naung continued to serve as the head of Bayinnaung combat training school until his appointment to the ministry of foreign affairs in August 2010.[15]
|
|
October 2011
|
A non-public source informs KHRG that the wife of Tatmadaw officer Brig-Gen Myint Naung is named Swe Swe Thein. Documents dated September 14th 2011 available on the website of the South Africa Government's Department in International Relations & Cooperation also list Swe Swe Thein as the wife of the current ambassador U Myint Naung.[16]
|
Note that some public sources also name a Col. Tint Wai as a former MOC #4 Commander prior to May 2007.[17] Other public sources, meanwhile, including state media suggest that Col. Tint Wai has served as the Myanmar military attaché to China since at least June 2007, and possibly since late 2006.[18] Tatmadaw experts have also noted that it is unlikely that an officer holding the rank of Colonel would server as an MOC commander on anything other than a temporary basis without being promoted to the rank of Brigadier General, or replaced.[19] Due to conflicting sources about the identity of the MOC #4 commander prior to June 2007, however, Section III below only summarises incidents documented in connection to MOC #4 after June 2007, when the New Light of Myanmar described Brig-Gen. Myint Naung as "Phugyi Station Commander." If additional information about the service history of Ambassador Myint Naung becomes available, primary documentation collected by KHRG may be able to identify involvement in prohibited acts perpetrated at other times and related to other units.
The information listed in Section II of this briefing document suggests an approximate time frame for Brig-Gen. Myint Naung's tenure as MOC #4 Commander, beginning in June 2007 and lasting until at least February 2008; this period may extend beyond February 2008, depending on when he was appointed to Bayinnaung combat training school. In addition to September 2007 incidents documented by Human Rights Watch and Yoma3 related to the government crackdown on monk-led protests in Rangoon,[20] which KHRG did not document, evidence gathered by KHRG field researchers inside Burma indicates that battalions under MOC #4 committed serious human rights abuses, including grave violations of humanitarian law, during the same time period. KHRG's documentation indicates that these battalions attacked on civilian communities, destroyed villages and agriculture and killed villagers in Toungoo, Nyaunglebin, and Papun districts during the last months of a major Tatmadaw offensive, which spanned the years 2005 to 2008 and took place in northern Karen State and eastern Bago Region.
The repeated and large-scale targeting of civilians in violation of international humanitarian law (IHL) by Tatmadaw units involved in the 2005-2008 Offensive was condemned by both the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar and, in a rare public statement, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).[21] Covering the same period, based upon primary documentation by field researchers in the area, KHRG published 43 reports,[22] each detailing repeated grave violations of IHL by Tatmadaw units. While KHRG field researchers were not in all cases able to identify the specific units responsible for the violations, four reports highlighted abuses committed by soldiers under the command of MOC #4. Importantly, many of these reports can be triangulated by comparison to reporting by Amnesty International and a variety of local organisations active inside Burma, which all have published extensive documentation covering the period.[23]
Figure 2 below summarises documented incidents linked to MOC #4 during the period November 2007 and April 2008, when the unit may have been commanded by Myint Naung. Items are listed in roughly chronological order; all information is from KHRG primary documention and other published sources, and online versions of sources have been hyper-linked in related footnotes.
|
Date
|
Date
|
|
Information
|
Information
|
|
Date
|
November 2007 to April 2008
|
|
Information
|
KHRG and The Irrawaddy report the deployment of seven battalions (LIBs #701, 702, 703, 704, 705, 706, 707, and 710) under MOC #4 to southern Toungoo District and adjacent areas of northern Nyaunglebin and Papun districts in November 2007, as reinforcements for the Tatmadaw offensive initiated in the area during 2005.[24] The Free Burma Rangers (FBR) also report the deployment of seven battalions under MOC #4 as part of the offensive, with four battalions in Papun and three in Toungoo; in May 2008 FBR reported that three battalions under Tactical Operations Command (TOC) #2 of MOC #4 operated out of several camps between southern Toungoo and northern Papun districts until April 1st 2008, when they rotated with TOC #1 of MOC #4.[25]
|
|
Date
|
November 30th to December 10th 2007
|
|
Information
|
KHRG reports that soldiers under MOC #4 carry out multiple attacks on displaced villagers and settlements in Th'Ay Kee area of Toungoo District in December 2007.[26] Documentation by KHRG includes photos and video of a civilian hiding site burned at Th'ay Kee, and details on attacks and destruction of homes in at least four hiding sites. KHRG also releases a video showing children displaced during the attack on Th'Ay Kee, which included the destruction of the school.[27] These attacks are also reported by the Free Burma Rangers (FBR).[28]
|
|
Date
|
January 1st 2008
|
|
Information
|
FBR reports that soldiers in LIB #704 under MOC #4 shoot and kill one villager and wound another in an attack on civilians in Yaw Kee village, located between Mone Township in northern Nyaunglebin District and Tantabin Township in southern Toungoo District.[29] The report notes that Yaw Kee has been attacked multiple times during previous months, including being mortared and burned down in October 2007, prior to the arrival of MOC #4 in the area.
|
|
Date
|
March 4th and 5th 2008
|
|
Information
|
KHRG reports that MOC #4 troops attack Lay Poh Der and Gheh Yuh Der villages in the Lay Kee area of Kay Bpoo village tract in northern Papun District, adjacent to southern Toungoo District.[30] The attacks include the destruction of at least nine homes and three hillside rice fields. The incident is also documented by FBR, which notes that 80 residents of Gheh Yuh Der, and approximately 400 civilians from nearby communities, fled the attacks.[31]
|
|
Date
|
April 19th 2008
|
|
Information
|
KHRG reports that two columns from LIB #706 under MOC #4 returned to Buh Kee village in Tantabin Township in southern Toungoo District which had already been attacked and burned by MOC #4 troops on December 5th 2007. Civilians in hiding in the area flee the incoming patrol, abandoning essential property including rice, salt, clothes, blankets, and cooking equipment, which is subsequently looted by MOC #4 soldiers.[32]
|
|
Date
|
Information
|
|
November 2007 to April 2008
|
KHRG and The Irrawaddy report the deployment of seven battalions (LIBs #701, 702, 703, 704, 705, 706, 707, and 710) under MOC #4 to southern Toungoo District and adjacent areas of northern Nyaunglebin and Papun districts in November 2007, as reinforcements for the Tatmadaw offensive initiated in the area during 2005.[24] The Free Burma Rangers (FBR) also report the deployment of seven battalions under MOC #4 as part of the offensive, with four battalions in Papun and three in Toungoo; in May 2008 FBR reported that three battalions under Tactical Operations Command (TOC) #2 of MOC #4 operated out of several camps between southern Toungoo and northern Papun districts until April 1st 2008, when they rotated with TOC #1 of MOC #4.[25]
|
|
November 30th to December 10th 2007
|
KHRG reports that soldiers under MOC #4 carry out multiple attacks on displaced villagers and settlements in Th'Ay Kee area of Toungoo District in December 2007.[26] Documentation by KHRG includes photos and video of a civilian hiding site burned at Th'ay Kee, and details on attacks and destruction of homes in at least four hiding sites. KHRG also releases a video showing children displaced during the attack on Th'Ay Kee, which included the destruction of the school.[27] These attacks are also reported by the Free Burma Rangers (FBR).[28]
|
|
January 1st 2008
|
FBR reports that soldiers in LIB #704 under MOC #4 shoot and kill one villager and wound another in an attack on civilians in Yaw Kee village, located between Mone Township in northern Nyaunglebin District and Tantabin Township in southern Toungoo District.[29] The report notes that Yaw Kee has been attacked multiple times during previous months, including being mortared and burned down in October 2007, prior to the arrival of MOC #4 in the area.
|
|
March 4th and 5th 2008
|
KHRG reports that MOC #4 troops attack Lay Poh Der and Gheh Yuh Der villages in the Lay Kee area of Kay Bpoo village tract in northern Papun District, adjacent to southern Toungoo District.[30] The attacks include the destruction of at least nine homes and three hillside rice fields. The incident is also documented by FBR, which notes that 80 residents of Gheh Yuh Der, and approximately 400 civilians from nearby communities, fled the attacks.[31]
|
|
April 19th 2008
|
KHRG reports that two columns from LIB #706 under MOC #4 returned to Buh Kee village in Tantabin Township in southern Toungoo District which had already been attacked and burned by MOC #4 troops on December 5th 2007. Civilians in hiding in the area flee the incoming patrol, abandoning essential property including rice, salt, clothes, blankets, and cooking equipment, which is subsequently looted by MOC #4 soldiers.[32]
|
, 
The photo at left, taken on April 10th 2008, shows the burned remains of a home in Gheh Yuh Der village in northern Papun District. Gheh Yuh Der and nearby Lay Poh Der village were attacked by Tatmadaw MOC #4 soldiers on March 4th 2008, who destroyed at least nine homes and three hillside paddy fields in the attacks, forcing approximately 400 civilians to flee the area. The photo at right, taken on May 17th 2008, shows a woman using a communal rice pounder at a hiding site in northern Papun District, where residents of Gheh Yuh Der village remained in hiding more than two months after the March attack. Residents of the hiding site told a KHRG researcher that, in their home villages, each family had its own equipment for pounding rice paddy. [Photos: KHRG]
If the South Africa government is satisfied that it has a full understanding of the Ambassador's service record, and that the Ambassador did not command units that may have perpetrated violations of IHL, it should issue a public statement to this effect, outlining the steps it has taken to make these conclusions. If, on the other hand, the South Africa government is not satisfied that the Ambassador did not command units that may have perpetrated violations of IHL, it should continue submitting inquiries to the Government of Myanmar, or consider declaring the Ambassador persona non grata and requesting his recall by Government of Myanmar. If additional information about the service history of Ambassador Myint Naung becomes available, for example regarding different command positions at different times, primary documentation collected by KHRG may be able to identify involvement in other abuses in violation of international norms.The South Africa government should seek to clarify Ambassador Myint Naung's service history and potential responsibility for individual, documented incidents of serious violations of international humanitarian law. KHRG wishes to emphasise that this is not a call to categorically denounce all Tatmadaw officers or Myanmar government officials or disregard basic obligations to treat foreign representatives with courtesy. Rather, in light of the information outlined in Sections II and III below indicating the Ambassador's potential involvement in grave violations of IHL, the South Africa government should request from the Myanmar government comprehensive information about the ambassador's service in the Tatmadaw, including the unit number, dates and deployment locations relating to all command positions previously held by Ambassador Myint Naung. The South Africa government should then examine abuses documented in connection with those units, and further investigate or inquire into specific incidents of concern until it has a full picture of the Ambassador's service history.
KHRG believes that an inquiry by the South Africa government is reasonable given questions and concerns that arise from the information detailed in this note; it is also within South Africa's rights under international law relevant to diplomatic relations,[3] and consistent with obligations under treaty and customary IHL that members of the international community ensure respect for international humanitarian law erga omnes.[4] It is not credible to assume that domestic legal or other accountability procedures within the Government of Myanmar, or specifically the Tatmadaw, have taken any steps to determine Brig-Gen. Myint Naung's involvement in violations of IHL documented by KHRG and others.[5]
Moreover, if an inquiry justifiably results in an adverse impact on the career prospects of a former Tatmadaw officer, KHRG believes that this could help to increase the perceived opportunity costs of utilising abusive practices for currently-serving Tatmadaw officers who will be in a position to order, or permit, violations of international humanitarian and human rights law in the future. It could also encourage the perception domestically that further measures for accountability and compliance with international norms are palatable, and necessary, insofar as they can help to avoid future similar international inquiries into past conduct by Tatmadaw officers. Ultimately, if an inquiry by the South Africa government can contribute to even an incremental reduction or change in abusive conduct by currently-serving Tatmadaw officers, this offers vital assistance to communities currently facing abuse in eastern Burma.
On March 14th 2011, the state-run New Light of Myanmar reported that an U Myint Naung had been appointed as the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar to the Republic of South Africa.[6]On July 12th 2011, U Myint Naung's credentials were presented to and accepted by the President of the Republic of South Africa, Jacob Zuma.[7] Publicly-available information, including articles published by Burma's state media, academic works by experts on the Tatmadaw, and exile news agencies indicates that Ambassador U Myint Naung and Brig-Gen. Myint Naung are the same person, and that the latter likely commanded Tatmadaw units during major combat operations in Karen State.
In August 2010, The Irrawaddy newspaper reported that a Tatmadaw Brigadier General Myint Naung had been transferred to the Myanmar Ministry of Foreign Affairs.[8] Public sources indicate that Brigadier General Myint Naung likely commanded Tatmadaw Military Operation Command (MOC) #4 at least between June 2007 and February 2008. It is possible that he commanded MOC #4 prior to June 2007 and subsequent to February 2008, however KHRG could not confirm a longer period of command via public sources. Some time after February 2008, and prior to September 2008, public information suggest Brig-Gen. Myint Naung was appointed as head of the Tatmadaw's Bayinnaung combat training school, a military institution that trains Tatmadaw personnel in counter-insurgency tactics, located in Toungoo District, or Thandaunggyi Township by government designations.
Figure 1 below shows information which KHRG has gathered to date, listed in roughly chronological order. All information is from public sources unless otherwise indicated; where available, online versions of sources have been hyper-linked in related footnotes.
|
Date
|
Date
|
|
Information
|
Information
|
|
Date
|
July 17th 2005
|
|
Information
|
The New Light of Myanmar reports that "Colonel Myint Naung of Phugyi Station" attended a tree planting ceremony at Taikkyi Station on July 17th 2005.[9] The article does not mention a specific Tatmadaw unit in connection with Col. Myint Naung, however Phugyi, also transliterated 'Hpugyi' is the official headquarters of MOC #4,[10] and individual battalions under MOC #4 have been reported by the Network for Democracy and Development (NDD) to be headquartered in Phugyi and Taikkyi, as well as other proximate villages or towns in Yangon Region.[11]
|
|
Date
|
June 7th 2007
|
|
Information
|
An article in the New Light of Myanmar mentions "Phugyi Station Commander Brig-Gen. Myint Naung". The article does not mention a specific Tatmadaw unit, however Phugyi, also transliterated 'Hpugyi' is the headquarters of MOC #4.[12]
|
|
Date
|
February 2008
|
|
Information
|
An appendix in the book Building the Tatmadaw by Tatmadaw insider Maung Aung Myoe, cites Brig-Gen Myint Naung as Tatmadaw MOC #4 Commander, as of February 2008.[13]
|
|
Date
|
September 25th 2008
|
|
Information
|
A Burmese-language article published by the Yoma3 news agency attributes command responsibility for incidents perpetrated by battalions under MOC #4 in South Okalappa in Rangoon in September 2007 to "former MOC #4 Commander" Brig-Gen. Myint Naung. The article indicates that, by September 2008, Brig-Gen. Myint Naung is serving as the head of Bayinnaung combat training school in Thandaunggyi Township, Kayin State.[14]
|
|
Date
|
August 24th 2010
|
|
Information
|
A Burmese-language article published in the Irrawaddy indicates that Brig-Gen Myint Naung continued to serve as the head of Bayinnaung combat training school until his appointment to the ministry of foreign affairs in August 2010.[15]
|
|
Date
|
October 2011
|
|
Information
|
A non-public source informs KHRG that the wife of Tatmadaw officer Brig-Gen Myint Naung is named Swe Swe Thein. Documents dated September 14th 2011 available on the website of the South Africa Government's Department in International Relations & Cooperation also list Swe Swe Thein as the wife of the current ambassador U Myint Naung.[16]
|
|
Date
|
Information
|
|
July 17th 2005
|
The New Light of Myanmar reports that "Colonel Myint Naung of Phugyi Station" attended a tree planting ceremony at Taikkyi Station on July 17th 2005.[9] The article does not mention a specific Tatmadaw unit in connection with Col. Myint Naung, however Phugyi, also transliterated 'Hpugyi' is the official headquarters of MOC #4,[10] and individual battalions under MOC #4 have been reported by the Network for Democracy and Development (NDD) to be headquartered in Phugyi and Taikkyi, as well as other proximate villages or towns in Yangon Region.[11]
|
|
June 7th 2007
|
An article in the New Light of Myanmar mentions "Phugyi Station Commander Brig-Gen. Myint Naung". The article does not mention a specific Tatmadaw unit, however Phugyi, also transliterated 'Hpugyi' is the headquarters of MOC #4.[12]
|
|
February 2008
|
An appendix in the book Building the Tatmadaw by Tatmadaw insider Maung Aung Myoe, cites Brig-Gen Myint Naung as Tatmadaw MOC #4 Commander, as of February 2008.[13]
|
|
September 25th 2008
|
A Burmese-language article published by the Yoma3 news agency attributes command responsibility for incidents perpetrated by battalions under MOC #4 in South Okalappa in Rangoon in September 2007 to "former MOC #4 Commander" Brig-Gen. Myint Naung. The article indicates that, by September 2008, Brig-Gen. Myint Naung is serving as the head of Bayinnaung combat training school in Thandaunggyi Township, Kayin State.[14]
|
|
August 24th 2010
|
A Burmese-language article published in the Irrawaddy indicates that Brig-Gen Myint Naung continued to serve as the head of Bayinnaung combat training school until his appointment to the ministry of foreign affairs in August 2010.[15]
|
|
October 2011
|
A non-public source informs KHRG that the wife of Tatmadaw officer Brig-Gen Myint Naung is named Swe Swe Thein. Documents dated September 14th 2011 available on the website of the South Africa Government's Department in International Relations & Cooperation also list Swe Swe Thein as the wife of the current ambassador U Myint Naung.[16]
|
Note that some public sources also name a Col. Tint Wai as a former MOC #4 Commander prior to May 2007.[17] Other public sources, meanwhile, including state media suggest that Col. Tint Wai has served as the Myanmar military attaché to China since at least June 2007, and possibly since late 2006.[18] Tatmadaw experts have also noted that it is unlikely that an officer holding the rank of Colonel would server as an MOC commander on anything other than a temporary basis without being promoted to the rank of Brigadier General, or replaced.[19] Due to conflicting sources about the identity of the MOC #4 commander prior to June 2007, however, Section III below only summarises incidents documented in connection to MOC #4 after June 2007, when the New Light of Myanmar described Brig-Gen. Myint Naung as "Phugyi Station Commander." If additional information about the service history of Ambassador Myint Naung becomes available, primary documentation collected by KHRG may be able to identify involvement in prohibited acts perpetrated at other times and related to other units.
The information listed in Section II of this briefing document suggests an approximate time frame for Brig-Gen. Myint Naung's tenure as MOC #4 Commander, beginning in June 2007 and lasting until at least February 2008; this period may extend beyond February 2008, depending on when he was appointed to Bayinnaung combat training school. In addition to September 2007 incidents documented by Human Rights Watch and Yoma3 related to the government crackdown on monk-led protests in Rangoon,[20] which KHRG did not document, evidence gathered by KHRG field researchers inside Burma indicates that battalions under MOC #4 committed serious human rights abuses, including grave violations of humanitarian law, during the same time period. KHRG's documentation indicates that these battalions attacked on civilian communities, destroyed villages and agriculture and killed villagers in Toungoo, Nyaunglebin, and Papun districts during the last months of a major Tatmadaw offensive, which spanned the years 2005 to 2008 and took place in northern Karen State and eastern Bago Region.
The repeated and large-scale targeting of civilians in violation of international humanitarian law (IHL) by Tatmadaw units involved in the 2005-2008 Offensive was condemned by both the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar and, in a rare public statement, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).[21] Covering the same period, based upon primary documentation by field researchers in the area, KHRG published 43 reports,[22] each detailing repeated grave violations of IHL by Tatmadaw units. While KHRG field researchers were not in all cases able to identify the specific units responsible for the violations, four reports highlighted abuses committed by soldiers under the command of MOC #4. Importantly, many of these reports can be triangulated by comparison to reporting by Amnesty International and a variety of local organisations active inside Burma, which all have published extensive documentation covering the period.[23]
Figure 2 below summarises documented incidents linked to MOC #4 during the period November 2007 and April 2008, when the unit may have been commanded by Myint Naung. Items are listed in roughly chronological order; all information is from KHRG primary documention and other published sources, and online versions of sources have been hyper-linked in related footnotes.
|
Date
|
Date
|
|
Information
|
Information
|
|
Date
|
November 2007 to April 2008
|
|
Information
|
KHRG and The Irrawaddy report the deployment of seven battalions (LIBs #701, 702, 703, 704, 705, 706, 707, and 710) under MOC #4 to southern Toungoo District and adjacent areas of northern Nyaunglebin and Papun districts in November 2007, as reinforcements for the Tatmadaw offensive initiated in the area during 2005.[24] The Free Burma Rangers (FBR) also report the deployment of seven battalions under MOC #4 as part of the offensive, with four battalions in Papun and three in Toungoo; in May 2008 FBR reported that three battalions under Tactical Operations Command (TOC) #2 of MOC #4 operated out of several camps between southern Toungoo and northern Papun districts until April 1st 2008, when they rotated with TOC #1 of MOC #4.[25]
|
|
Date
|
November 30th to December 10th 2007
|
|
Information
|
KHRG reports that soldiers under MOC #4 carry out multiple attacks on displaced villagers and settlements in Th'Ay Kee area of Toungoo District in December 2007.[26] Documentation by KHRG includes photos and video of a civilian hiding site burned at Th'ay Kee, and details on attacks and destruction of homes in at least four hiding sites. KHRG also releases a video showing children displaced during the attack on Th'Ay Kee, which included the destruction of the school.[27] These attacks are also reported by the Free Burma Rangers (FBR).[28]
|
|
Date
|
January 1st 2008
|
|
Information
|
FBR reports that soldiers in LIB #704 under MOC #4 shoot and kill one villager and wound another in an attack on civilians in Yaw Kee village, located between Mone Township in northern Nyaunglebin District and Tantabin Township in southern Toungoo District.[29] The report notes that Yaw Kee has been attacked multiple times during previous months, including being mortared and burned down in October 2007, prior to the arrival of MOC #4 in the area.
|
|
Date
|
March 4th and 5th 2008
|
|
Information
|
KHRG reports that MOC #4 troops attack Lay Poh Der and Gheh Yuh Der villages in the Lay Kee area of Kay Bpoo village tract in northern Papun District, adjacent to southern Toungoo District.[30] The attacks include the destruction of at least nine homes and three hillside rice fields. The incident is also documented by FBR, which notes that 80 residents of Gheh Yuh Der, and approximately 400 civilians from nearby communities, fled the attacks.[31]
|
|
Date
|
April 19th 2008
|
|
Information
|
KHRG reports that two columns from LIB #706 under MOC #4 returned to Buh Kee village in Tantabin Township in southern Toungoo District which had already been attacked and burned by MOC #4 troops on December 5th 2007. Civilians in hiding in the area flee the incoming patrol, abandoning essential property including rice, salt, clothes, blankets, and cooking equipment, which is subsequently looted by MOC #4 soldiers.[32]
|
|
Date
|
Information
|
|
November 2007 to April 2008
|
KHRG and The Irrawaddy report the deployment of seven battalions (LIBs #701, 702, 703, 704, 705, 706, 707, and 710) under MOC #4 to southern Toungoo District and adjacent areas of northern Nyaunglebin and Papun districts in November 2007, as reinforcements for the Tatmadaw offensive initiated in the area during 2005.[24] The Free Burma Rangers (FBR) also report the deployment of seven battalions under MOC #4 as part of the offensive, with four battalions in Papun and three in Toungoo; in May 2008 FBR reported that three battalions under Tactical Operations Command (TOC) #2 of MOC #4 operated out of several camps between southern Toungoo and northern Papun districts until April 1st 2008, when they rotated with TOC #1 of MOC #4.[25]
|
|
November 30th to December 10th 2007
|
KHRG reports that soldiers under MOC #4 carry out multiple attacks on displaced villagers and settlements in Th'Ay Kee area of Toungoo District in December 2007.[26] Documentation by KHRG includes photos and video of a civilian hiding site burned at Th'ay Kee, and details on attacks and destruction of homes in at least four hiding sites. KHRG also releases a video showing children displaced during the attack on Th'Ay Kee, which included the destruction of the school.[27] These attacks are also reported by the Free Burma Rangers (FBR).[28]
|
|
January 1st 2008
|
FBR reports that soldiers in LIB #704 under MOC #4 shoot and kill one villager and wound another in an attack on civilians in Yaw Kee village, located between Mone Township in northern Nyaunglebin District and Tantabin Township in southern Toungoo District.[29] The report notes that Yaw Kee has been attacked multiple times during previous months, including being mortared and burned down in October 2007, prior to the arrival of MOC #4 in the area.
|
|
March 4th and 5th 2008
|
KHRG reports that MOC #4 troops attack Lay Poh Der and Gheh Yuh Der villages in the Lay Kee area of Kay Bpoo village tract in northern Papun District, adjacent to southern Toungoo District.[30] The attacks include the destruction of at least nine homes and three hillside rice fields. The incident is also documented by FBR, which notes that 80 residents of Gheh Yuh Der, and approximately 400 civilians from nearby communities, fled the attacks.[31]
|
|
April 19th 2008
|
KHRG reports that two columns from LIB #706 under MOC #4 returned to Buh Kee village in Tantabin Township in southern Toungoo District which had already been attacked and burned by MOC #4 troops on December 5th 2007. Civilians in hiding in the area flee the incoming patrol, abandoning essential property including rice, salt, clothes, blankets, and cooking equipment, which is subsequently looted by MOC #4 soldiers.[32]
|