Human Rights Foundation of Monland
(
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Contents:
I. ILO’s Actions on Burma
II. Breach of “rule of law” in
III. SPDC’s attempts to misinform about the cases of
forced labour
IV. Requisition of forced labour in recent months
A.
Forced labour for porter service,
B.
Forced labour in battalions’ works
C.
Forced labour in new military deployment
E.
Forced labour for security purposes
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Some
acronyms:
SLORC -
State Law and Order Restoration
Council
SPDC -
State Peace and Development Council
LIB -
Light Infantry Battalion
IB -
Infantry Battalion
USDA - Union Solidarity and Development Association (SPDC supported group)
ILO -
International Labour Organization
ILC -
International Labour Conference
KNLA -
Karen National Liberation Army
Tatmadaw-
Burmese Army in Burmese language
Lote-ar-pay
– Requisition of forced labour in
Burmese language
In
coming September 2001, ILO (International
Labour Organization) plans to send a High-Level Team to Burma to investigate
whether the regime, SPDC and its local administration authorities and armed
force (tatmadaw) members have stopped
the practices of requisition of forced labour (the so-called lote-ar-pay) in many parts of Burma.
Accordingly
our local HURFOM (Human Rights Foundation
of Monland) human rights workers’ reports, the requisition of forced labour
have still continued in many rural areas of
After
additional order issued by SPDC’s Ministry of Home Affairs supplementing to the
order 1/99, to stop requisition of forced labour, most administration
authorities in lower part of
During
the month from to June to July before ILO High-Level Team to
Under
the rule of military regime, the local authorities or military commanders have
the highest authority in their respective control area. They could do what they liked without caring
the existing laws and orders. In period
under the rule of the then regime, SLORC and the current SPDC, the regime could
adopt their administrative power in towns and villages by relying on their
military battalions or commanders in the area.
Most parts of rural areas are under SPDC semi-control and therefore, it
remained dependent on military battalions in these area. Thus, justice and rule of law could not come
into existence in these area for several years.
In many cases, after SPDC’s order 1/99 and supplementing October 2000 order, the civilians in both urban and rural areas have not protected according to the orders and laws. The authorities have not explained the detail description of these orders to the people and orders have been just for a show to ILO and international organizations. The authorities and members of armed force have not shown interest on these orders and the higher authorities also have not made much input above their subordinates to follow these orders. While SPDC distributed October 2000 order, it reached only to headmen in village tracts and villages in rural areas and SPDC authorities in urban area, but the explanation of this order to civilians were conducted in many places.
After
receiving October order, although members of SPDC administrative authorities
reduced the practices of requisition of forced labour or conducted more secret
requisitions of forced labour, but tatmadaw
members who have a high authority in every respective area, have still
conscripted compulsory labour from the civilians in rural areas. Tatmadaw
members have conscripted many rural civilians as porters during their
military operation and offensives against rebel armed forces in southern part
of
In
the new military employment, the concerned military regiments in rural areas by
cooperating with the local village authorities have still forced the villagers
to build their military barracks, tactical commander office and other
infrastructure in recent months in
Even
SPDC is increasing its troop numbers in Mon State and Karen State, still tatmadaw troops could not provide
security for motor road, railway road, river way and bridges. As a result, they still force the local
civilians to provide security in these places and instructed them to inform the
nearest army base about the activities of rebel troops.
Why
are these types of requisition of forced labour occurring after SPDC’s
supplementing October 2000 order?
Actually, the military regime, SPDC has no strong commitment to put in
place the definite frame works of legislative, executive and administrative
measures or have not taken actions against its military men, who violated laws
and orders described in October 2000.
Thus, the violation of requisition of forced labour continued ever after
October 2000.
Although
the laws that prohibited all sorts of the requisition of forced labour (lote-ar-pay), have
existed in legislative measures, but in practice, the regime has not
implemented the laws sincerely. Since
November 2000 till the special sitting of ILO on
Because
of lack of legal system and justice, the villagers who suffered from the
requisition of forced labour have no place to file or complain their cases ever
they knew and understood the orders.
They also faced no safe situation if they talked about the army’s abuses
even to their village headmen. The
village headmen themselves who knew the order could not refuse when the army
requested labour from their villages.
Thus, both 1/99 order and supplementing October 2000 order are not so
effective in rural area.
All
the time before ILC (International Labour
Conference) Special Sitting on Burma, the higher authorities and military
intelligence (MI) already knew there was requisition of forced labour in many
parts of rural area, however, they have no seeable attempts to stop forced
labour. Instead, now, the authorities tried to close down all cases of forced labour and
attempts to shut the mouths of civilians to not say true happenings in
the recent months.
After
ILC (International Labour Conference) Special
Sitting on
In
recent June and July, before ILO team arrived to
There
were many evidences that the local authorities have arranged such meetings with
local villagers.
An evidence in
On
May 26 and 27, 2001, in Karen State, five members group of Kawkareik Township
authorities led by Township Secretary U Aung Lin went to five villages in
township area and hold meeting with village civilians. They went to Kha-rit, Kaw-go, Kaw-bein,
Kaw-pauk and Min-ywa villages and hold meetings with them. In meetings, the authorities explained to
villagers that the authorities would not use longer for lote-ar-pay (requisition of forced labour) in rural area according
to order 1/99 and supplementing October 2000 order. After explanation about the order, he also
added that some foreigners would come to
After
meeting, the authorities collected for each village 8, 000 Kyat from headmen
for their expenses of traveling, films and developing photos. So that the authorities
received about 40, 000 Kyat totally from five villagers for their expenses
during two days trip. Then, the
village headmen have to collect from the villagers again.
Another evidence in
In
first week of June, SPDC ordered Mon State authorities to hold meetings with
civilians in ten townships (in two
districts, namely Moulmein District and Thaton District), and instructed to
explain about the order of No. 1/99 and supplementing October 2000 order.
Therefore,
all level of
In
some places of
As evidence,
On
About
From
June 4 to June 7 for four days, Moulmein Township authorities hold meetings in
many town wards and explained about the order of 1/99 and supplementing October
2000 order.
On
June 5, in a meeting held in “Shwe-myaing-thiri” ward, Chairman of Ward SPDC
authorities explained a crowd of civilians from the ward that now the regime
was planning to stop all requisition of forced labour according to its order
No. 1/99 and additional October 2000 order.
Then, he said that if the foreigners come and the people in the ward
about lote-ar-pay and tax collection
to build roads in wards, they must answer to those foreigners that there was no
lote-ar-pay and tax for road
construction in the recent months. He
added that if someone tell to foreigners that there
was lote-ar-pay and tax payment for
road and other constructions, that person must be punished. But he did not mention what types of
punishment.
The
similar meetings were also held in other city wards, such as, Kyaik-pha-nae,
Thiri-myaing, Shwe-taung, Mayan-gone and Myaing-tha-yar, and civilians in these
wards were also forced to tell the foreigners there was no lote-ar-pay, and tax collection for road and other
constructions.
Sometimes,
the authorities have discussed in secret way and instructed the village headmen
if the foreigners come and ask them about requisition of forced labour or lote-ar-pay, they must have to answer NO
to them.
As an evidence,
On
May 1, 2001 (May Day), Township
Worker Association (SPDC control Trade
Unions) in Kawkareik Township called a meeting with headmen from three Mon
villages, namely, Kha-rit, Kaw-ka-taw and Kyauk-ye-twin villages and forced
them to say there was no forced labour and no tax collection for road and other
construction instead of labour requested by authorities and army from their villages. Three headmen from Kharit village, Nai Tin
Aung, Nai Khin Maung Win and Nai Ka; two headmen from Kaw-ka-taw village, Nai
Maung Hla and Nai Tin Shein; and one headman from Kyauk-ye-twin village, Nai
Mon Than attended the meeting. In the
meeting, the authorities instructed them that they must say there was no lote-ar-pay and tax collection and let
them practise how to say. Then, the
SPDC worker authorities asked them questions whether there was forced labour
and tax collection in recent months, they have to answer that “no forced labour
and no tax instead of labour”. The
authorities also recorded questions and their answers with a mini tape
recorder.
These are SPDC forced labour and additionally, the civilians are forced to not tell true to ILO High-Level Team. preparation to close down information that connected to all cases of its requisition of
Like
other many SPDC administrative bodies, members of Burmese Army (Tatmadaw) received 1/99 order and
supplementing October 2000 order to not make any requisition of forced labour
from civilians. However, at the same
time, they also received order from the concerned military commands to operate
military activities and to launch offensives against rebel armies.
In
southern part of
Case 1:
From 28th May to 6th
June, when two military battalions of Burmese Army, IB No. 61 and LIB No. 299
changed their deployment in Three Pagoda Pass, a border town with Thailand, in
southern part of Burma, the soldiers used about 40 villagers from Ye Township
area as civilian porters during their operations, according to a source from
Three Pagoda Pass.
Before the operation started on 28th
May, IB No. 61 battalion, which bases are in Ye Town, ordered the village
headmen from 10 villages in northern part of township to provide 40 villagers
to carry their ammunitions and food supplies for soldiers when they moved from
Ye Town to
Additionally, the civilians in Ye town
have to pay porter fee to hire about 24 porters for their quota. They paid money to IB No. 61 commanders and
that battalion also hired some porters.
The battalion has to pay 8000 Kyat for each porter and there are 8 town
wards in Town. Each Town ward had to
take responsibility to provide 3 porters and collected 24, 000 Kyat from
civilians.
Villager porters collected by headmen
had to go IB No. 61 battalion GHQs in Ye and then IB
No. 61’s troops picked them up on 28th May and moved to
Case
2:
During
April and May, one of SPDC battalion, IB No. 109, which is under the control of
Southeast Command, had operated
military activities to attack against KNLA troops in eastern part of Kya Inn
Seikyi township and along Three Pagoda Pass – Thanbyuzayat motor road.
On
April 4, 2000, when IB No. 109 troops arrived at Chaung-zon village, after 10
kilometers far from Three Pagoda Pass town, they arrested 10 trucks, which were
on motor road proceeded to Thanbyuzayat town and forced drivers of these trucks
to carry and bring their soldiers, ammunitions and food supplies to a village
called Mae-za-lee, about 30 kilometers from Chaung-zon. Although truck drivers worried the shooting
from KNLA soldiers, but they have no choice and had to go along dangerous part
of
The
battalion troops just moved around in the area and took porters from the
villages they arrived or arrested the travelers who were on the road. On
Like
previous two battalions, many other military battalions, who have duties to
launch military patrol in a specific area also have arrested many number of
porters in rural area and forced them to carry ammunitions and food supplies
for the army. As an instance, on
Both
Southeast Command and Coastal Region Military
Command ordered their subordinate military battalions to create “self-reliance”
program, especially, to find paddy growing farms and some plantations to have a
regular income to support their soldiers and families who stay in the
battalions. The following cases are how
some military battalions have used forced labour in recent months.
Sometimes, the soldiers forced the headmen to send the villagers on a daily basis to do daily works in their bases such as cooking, carrying water, collecting fire-woods, etc. The villagers would not get any payment for their works in the battalions.
Case 1:
In
the first and second week of April, the villagers from Kanni, Kaw-lyan,
Meegalone, Chaung-phar, Kha-rit, Daw-phar and Kyone-doe village tracts, Kawkareik
Township of Karen State, were forced to reap paddy grains in LIB No. 545 and
No. 546’s paddy farms. These battalions
had grown about 300 acres of dry-seasonal paddy crop by taking water from
Gyaing river which is close to their farms.
Since
the beginning of cultivation, the authorities have forced the villagers from
these village tracts, to plough the lands, to grow small paddy plants, to take
water with pump engines into farms until they could reap the paddy. These battalions also collected fund from
villagers to buy fertilizers and gasoline for their use in cultivation.
Similarly, on
Case 2:
On
June 22, a police officer who base in Kha-rit village, Kaw-kareik Township,
rebuilt a barrack and ordered the villagers from Kyauk-ye-twin, Nyar-chan-gone
and Kyaikabin, to send 25 bamboo from each village. Therefore, about 30 villagers from three
villagers have to carry bamboo for 4-5 miles distance, from their villages to
police base. They did not get any
payment and were not fed with foods.
In
recent months, the Burmese Army or SPDC has deployed more military battalions
in
Whenever
a new military battalion is deployed in one area, the regime confiscated some
available lands for that battalion to have enough lands to build all required
buildings, to grow some trees and vegetables, to build bankers and dig canals
and for other matters.
Additionally, in building military barracks and other infrastructure for the existence of military battalion, the civilians nearby are constantly forced by soldiers to contribute their labour in building or to provide building materials for which they have to contribute their manual labour outside of military camp.
Case 1:
In
late March 2001, SPDC’s two new military battalions, LIB No. 548 and LIB No.
549, under the command of Southeast
Command planned to deploy their troops in Phaya-ngote-to village in
On
March 25, LIB No. 548’s Commander, Lt. Col. Khin Maung Win, called a meeting
with village headmen from 9 villages from Yale, Da-none, Sin-boke-inn,
Htee-pa-lay, Phaya-note-to, Kyaik-round, Ah-kyar, Ze-zone and Kalort-taw-chaung
and ordered them to send villagers from their villages to contribute labour for
new battalions’ construction.
Lt.
Col. Khin Maung Win ordered the headmen that 20 villagers from big village and
10 villagers from small villages had to go every day and work in their
base. The headmen had to manage to send
the villagers on a rotation basis for every day. If the men could not go to the battalion’s
construction site, the women had to go instead. The villagers in the area had to work for
two weeks.
Case 2:
In
Ye Township area, SPDC planned to deploy about 10 military battalions to put
them under the command of No. 19 Operational Control Command that bases in
eastern part of Ye township, along Ye river.
Currently, No. 19 Command planned to build 2 battalions, LIB No. 583 and
LIB No. 591.
On July 7, 2001, No. 19 Command’s commander Col. Than Toe, LIB No. 583 commander, Lt. Col. Soe Naing and LIB No. 591 commander, Lt. Col. Myo Win, called a meeting with village headmen from 19 big and small from Kyaung-ywar and Tu-myaung village tracts and explained them they needed to build 3 barracks to use as Tactical offices. The commanders said two big villages, Kyaung-ywa and Mi-chaung had to build one building each and other small villages had to build one remaining building.
On
July 10, Kyaung-ywa started building the tactical office with the contribution
of villagers’ labour and the village headman also had to hire a carpenter with
payment collected from the villagers.
The carpenter produced design of building and give
instruction to villagers how to build.
In
most parts of rural and city like
Additionally,
the SPDC authorities including the tatmadaw
commanders in the area also involved
in forcing the civilians to contribute their labour in building roads, to crush
stones, lay pieces of stones and other works.
Sometimes, the authorities forced trucks including drivers to carry
stones, tar and other facilities to work places from distance places. The authorities never paid transportation
cost for those trucks and drivers.
Case 1:
In
a road construction in Kyaikmayaw Township of Mon State, which is called
Kyaikmayaw – Chaung-htit-kwa motor road, not only the civilians in Township are
forced to work in the construction, but the authorities forced trucks and
drivers in Kawmayaw and other township area.
On
When
the trucks arrived to work place, they were instructed to load on and about 450
kyins of pieces of stones for each
truck from several places where the civilians in the area have collected, carry
them to designated construction sites.
One kyin of stones is the
volume of 100 cubic feet. One truck
could load only about 2 kyins in one
trip and most trucks have to take 15-20 days to complete their duties. The authorities did not provide these trucks
for their gasoline expenses and labour cost.
Case 2:
At
the beginning of this year, the authorities in Ye Township planned to build a
motor road from Ye town to Kyaung-ywa village, which is about 10 miles far from
town. In building this motor road, the
authorities had not only already collected fund from the civilians, but also
conscripted labour from the civilians nearby.
In
March, Kyaung-ywa village tract authorities ordered the villagers from
Case 3:
In
March and April 2001, IB No. 82 battalion that bases in Pa-an
Township forced the civilians from Ein-du, Zarthapyin, Kaw-kyaik, Thaya-gone,
Kyayar and Kyone-phae villages to construct a 4 miles long road, that connects
Zarthapyin and Ein-du villages. As the
village headman had to send the villagers on a rotation basis, every household
had to work in the construction.
Although SPDC increased its troops from 200, 000 number to 350, 000, however, it could not take responsibility for protection of the roads, villages, infrastructure sites in rural areas. So, the local authorities and army give civilians this responsibility to safeguard the railway and motor road, gas-pipeline, bridges and other important places.
Case 1:
Sometimes,
KNLA troops also launched military activities in
In late May, 2001, for the security of Kawkareik Township’s roads and bridges, the authorities ordered the villagers from Kanni, Thayet-taw, Kaw-khaik, Kaw-lyan, Ywa-galay and Kaw-kyaik villages to clear the bushes and glasses along the motor road that proceeded to Myawaddy, a border town which is opposite of Mae Sot town. The villagers had to do this work for about one week.
Case 2:
Gas
pipeline that provides energy to a cement factory in Myaing-kalay village, Pa-an Township of Karen State, also passed close to a village
called “Wae-kanaing”, Thanbyuzayat township,
On
May 7, 2001, the column commander of LIB No. 106, Maj. San Nyo Win called a
meeting will all villagers of “Wae-kanaing”, and ordered them to pay porter fee
500 Kyat per household, as he explained he needed to hire porters during
military operations. Then, he added as
the army could not take security the whole area, 4 villagers each night must
take the security for their villages and in surrounding area including
pipeline.
1. In
2. For
Burmese Army (tatmadaw), which has no
modernized logistical system for its troops during military patrol in a
specific area and military offensives in frontier areas, it has totally
remained and relied on “civilian porters”, who are arrested or requested from
community leaders in remote area. To
halt this practices of requisition of forced labour,
Burmese Army needs to revise its logistical system or needs to stop its
activities. Without this change, the
requisition of civilian porters would continue as long as the fighting in
frontier area is on going.
3. The regime and its authorities recently
conducted insincere activities to stop the community people and leaders to not
tell true situation on the requisition of forced labour to foreigners or
international organizations especially ILO Team. So that it is a concern among the civilians
that if they tell true about the recent requisition of forced labour, they
could be punished. For ILO High-Level
Team, it will face a difficult situation to have access for true information
and need to have a proper technique in approach to get information and the
following protection to those who talked to ILO Team.
4. The
regime must mention about the security reason to stop ILO team members to not
get entry to some areas where gross violations of requisition of forced labour
including arrests of porters often occurred.
These areas might close to armed conflict areas between Burmese Army and
ethnic rebel forces. To overcome this
condition, some negotiation with both sides of armies for temporary ceasefire
or withdrawing of troops must be required.
5. Additionally,
the regime would attempt to put their interpreters for translation or as
security persons together with team members and would provide misinformation as
much as it could. In fact, ILO must
have some preparations to not have misinformation from SPDC support persons,
including interpreters, regime’s worker associations, USDA members, some
village/ town ward headmen, army commanders and other sources.
VI. ANNEX
The
Government of the
(
The Ministry of Home Affairs of the Government of the
Union of Myanmar, under the direction of the State Peace and Development
Council, hereby directs that the following amendment shall be made to Order No.
1 / 99 dated 14th May, 1999
as requisition of forced labour is illegal and is an offense under the existing
laws of the Union of Myanmar:
1. Clause 5 of the said Order 1 /99 shall be
substituted with the following:
(a) Responsible persons including members of the local
authorities, members of the Armed Forces, members of the Police Force and other
public service personnel shall not requisition work or service notwithstanding
anything contained in Sections 7 (1) and 9 (b) of the Towns Act, 1907 and
Sections 8 (1) and 11 (d) of the Village Act, 1907
(b) The above Clause ( a ) shall not apply to
requisition work or service when an emergency arises due to fire, flood, storm,
earthquake, epidemic disease, war, famine and epizootic that poses an imminent
danger to the general public and the community
2. When the responsible persons have to
requisition work or service for purposes mentioned in Clause 1 (b) of this
Supplementary Order the following shall be complied:-
(a) The work or service shall not lay too heavy a
burden upon the present population of the region.
(b) The work or service shall not entail the
removal of workers from their place of habitual residence.
(c) The work or service shall be important and of
direct interest for the community. It
shall not be for the benefit of private individuals, companies or associations.
(d) It shall be in circumstances where it is
impossible to obtain labour by the offer of usual rates of wages. In such
circumstances, the people of the area who are participating shall be paid rates
of wages not less favourable than those prevailing in the area.
(e) School teachers and pupils shall be exempted
from requisition of work or service.
(f) In the case of adult able-bodied men who are
the main supporters of the necessities of food clothing and shelter for the
family and indispensable for social life, requisition shall not be made except
only in unavoidable circumstances.
(g) The work
or service shall be carried out during the normal working hours. The hours
worked in excess of the normal working hours shall be remunerated at prevailing
overtime rates.
(h) In case of accident, sickness in disability
arising at the place of work, benefits shall be granted in accordance with the
Workmen’s Compensation Act.
(i) The work or service shall not be used for
work underground in mines.
3. When the responsible persons have to
requisition work or service for purposes mentioned in Clause 1 (b) of this
Supplementary Order, they shall do so only with the permission of the Deputy Commissioner of the General
Administration Department who is also a member of the relevant District Peace
Development Council.
4. The State or Divisional Commissioner of the
General Administration Department who is also a member of the relevant State or
Divisional Peace and Development Council shall supervise the responsible
persons to abide by the Order No. 1/99 and this Supplementary Order.
5. The phrase “Any person who
fails to abide by this Order shall have action taken against him under the
existing law” contained in Clause 6 of the said Order No 1/99 means that any
person including local authorities, members of the Armed Forces, members of the
Police Force and other public service personnel shall have action taken against
him under Section 374 of the Penal Code or any other existing law.
Col.
Tin Hlaing
Minister
Ministry of Home Affairs
Letter No. Pa-Hta-Ya / 2-3 (3140)/Oo 3
Dated: