* To monitor human rights situations in Mon territory
and other areas southern part of Burma
* To protect and promote internationally recognized
human rights in Burma
human rights
foundation of monland
Human
Rights Report 1/97 (May, 1997)
___________________________________________________________________
Report One
The Forced Purchasing of Paddy in Mon State
Report Two
Golden Jubilee Mon National Day was Prohibited and
other Oppression against Mon Literature and Culture
Some Acronyms
SLORC - State Law and Order Restoration Council,
NMSP - New Mon State Party
Report One
The Forced Purchasing of Paddy in Mon State
The Set Amount of Paddy and Related Abuses by
Government
Like other farmers in the whole country, the farmers in Mon State were also
forced to sell their rice at the beginning of 1997. The government authorities
created paddy buying centers in the whole Mon State and forced the farmers to
sell their rice at low price. All farmers are required to sell about 12 baskets
(the unit weight of one basket paddy is 46 pounds) per acre and if they refused
they must be punished. The SLORC has set the price of one basket of paddy is
only 80 Kyats while the farmers can get about 400-500 Kyats in the market
price.
In Mon State, among ten
townships, the villagers and town residents from Thaton, Paung, Kyaik-ma-yaw,
Chaung Zon, Mudon, Thanbyuzayat and Ye have large rice-fields and have to sell
a huge amount of paddy to the government. For example, according to the
instruction of Township LORC of Mudon, the farmers in the whole area were
forced to sell about 872,000 baskets of paddy to government. About 9 paddy
buying centers were opened in the whole township's area and every farmer had to
send their paddy to the nearest paddy buying center. The duration of purchasing
these all amounts of paddy was defined from December 9, 1996 to February 12,
1997.
Similarly, Thanbyuzayat
township's farmers were instructed to sell about 400,000 baskets of paddy while
Ye township's farmers were instructed to sell about
500,000 baskets. Before the NMSP agreed for a ceasefire with military regime,
the SLORC troops could not reached to the whole areas of these two township and could not get according to their set amount of
paddy. After ceasefire, the SLORC troops went into every villages
and forced the farmers to sell their rice. But the farmers from the areas under
the SLORC firm control such as Mudon, Kyaik-ma-yaw, Chaung Zon, Paung, Thaton
townships, were constantly forced to sell the constant amount of paddy to the
government.
The military also instructed
to the farmers the quality of paddy they needed and if the quality was low or
not reached to the defined standard, it must be refused by authorities. The
authorities also instructed to farmers to not sell the paddy after it was wet
by rain water or later was drought by sunshine, unclear paddy with mud, paddy
with yellow colour seed, paddy with low quality and small seed and etc.. In addition, to get high quality paddy, they also forced
to sell the real rice from their farm and did not allow buying low quality
paddy and sell to them.
In Mudon township,
the military and township LORC instructed the farmers to sell the set amount of
paddy before the end of January. At the beginning of February, the authorities
including soldiers arrested the farmers who did not finish or refuse to sell
the set amount of rice. In some villages, the villagers had to flee from their
homes and the authorities went into every house and took the paddy from their
paddy-store. In some cases, the farmers were arrested and his paddy was also
confiscated.
Because of this forcible
confiscation of paddy, about 44 houses of farmers in Hneepadaw village, Mudon township, was burnt into ashes by sudden flame from a house
kitchen. When the authorities, village security forces and soldiers came into
village to arrest farmers and confiscate paddy on 6 February about 1:00 p.m.
afternoon, all villagers fled from their homes. In one house, while a housewife
was cooking for foods, she was taken by soldiers to find her husband to come
home. The flame from her kitchen spread to her whole house and then to a whole
section of the village. Most villagers fled out of the section and all their
houses and belongings were burnt into ashes. Estimatedly, the villagers lost
about 16 million Kyats totally in cash because of this flame and the government
did not inquiry the incident to pay compensation or provide any humanitarian
help to the victims.
In addition, in March, the
SLORC authorities and soldiers went into Kalortort village, Mudon township, to arrest the farmers and take the paddy. In some
houses, besides they took paddy from the store, they also took other valuables
and other belongings from the houses. One farmer from this village said to our
human rights workers that:
On that day, the township
authorities, village security forces (pyi-thu-sit) and soldiers came into
village and climbed every house in our section. When they reached to my house,
the soldiers arrested my husband and put him on the truck to take him to Mudon.
They went to our paddy-store and destroyed its wall and took all paddy to their paddy truck (10 wheel trucks). The
authorities told me that we left to sell them about 70 baskets and now we have
only 50 baskets, so they said to buy paddy and give them. I explained to them I
have no cash to buy paddy and the commander angered to me and shout me to go
out. Then the soldiers and authorities climbed to my house and take all our belongings
such as my necklaces in my bed room, my son's tape cassette recorder, clock,
steel carriage cage and others.
Similarly, the farmers from
Paung, Kyaikmayaw, Thanbyuzayat, Ye were also arrested by the SLORC officials
and soldiers and detained in short imprisonment term for their failure of selling
set amount of rice to the government.
While they were detained, the soldiers or polices also mistreated them
such as beating or putting them in a dog-cell.
For instance,
In the first week of
March, a farmer, Nai Tim Ye (47 years old) from Wetae
village, Mudon township, was severely tortured by soldiers and township
policemen because of his constant refusal to sell the paddy. They beat him with
gun butts and fists. His whole back was severely injured and some tooth were broken.
SLORC Set Order in Forced Purchasing of Paddy from
Farmers
To realize how the SLORC is
instructing to conduct forced purchasing paddy from the farmers and we also
gathered a set order instructed by the Secretary of Mudon Township LORC to all
quarters (in town) and villages' chairmen to set up paddy buying centers and
purchase paddy from farmers. The list of the set amount of paddy was also
attached with this order.
Here is the translation of a
set order by Mudon township LORC in forcing the local
farmers to sell their rice.
Township Law and Order
Restoration Council
Mudon Township, Mudon Town,
Letter No. 060/2-5/Township
LORC
Date: December 19, 1996.
To
Chairman
Quarter/ Village Law and
Order Restoration Council (All)
Mudon Township
SUBJECT: Purchasing paddy from farmers
We set this order to all
Quarter/ Village LORC that in the paddy purchasing season of 1996/1997, you
must have to buy to complete 827,000 baskets of paddy from the whole township
according to instruction of the State. You must have to instruct the farmers to
sell 12 baskets of paddy per acre and the set date is from December 9,1996 through February 12, 1997. You must have to complete
this duty on this deadline. Please inform the farmers in the respective area
that we will not accept the following kind of paddy.
The kinds of unaccepted paddy
are,
(1) The wet paddy by rain,
(2) The already wet paddy
(but is drought) by rain
(3) The paddy with mud or
sprout,
(4) The paddy with yellow
seed,
(5) The paddy with low dwarf
seed,
(6) The paddy which unreached
to qualified standard of respective sort,
(7) The low quality paddy
bought and replaced from other farm,
(Signature)
Chairman,
(Myint Soe)
Secretary,
Township LORC Mudon
Township
Note: The list of the amount
of the paddy to purchase in "1996-1997 paddy purchasing season" is
also attached.
The list of the amount of paddy, 1996-1997 paddy
purchasing season
Mudon Township, Mon State (The respective paddy
purchasing center and the villages)
|
No. Name of
paddy purchasing
center |
Villages to sell to center |
The set amount Total amount of of paddy of paddy |
|||
|
1. Phar-out |
Kawkhani Naungkhari Kya-Inn Kawkhamae Phar-out Yogo |
5825 2810 6990 22735 21810 9840 |
|||
|
Total |
70000 70000 |
||||
|
2. Kway-one |
Tharpaton Kway-one Naingpraing
Kyauktalone Mainganane |
16000 14900 18900 2500 6700 |
|||
|
Total |
69000 69000 |
||||
|
3. Town quarter (1) |
Kawkhapone Kwantar Baeyan Kinchaung Quarter (1) Quarter (4) |
15335 10600 4200 3415 19050 12400 |
|||
|
Total |
75000 75000 |
||||
|
4. Town quarter (2) |
Quarter (2) Quarter (3) Kyonephaik Wet-tae Nyaung-gone |
30500 24500 11000 9000 50000 |
|||
|
Total |
135000 135000 |
||||
|
5. Tagondaing |
Tagondaing Tawku Kyaik-ywe |
21000 18000 16000 |
|||
|
Total |
55000 55000 |
||||
|
6. No. 078 center |
Teingon Gone-nyin-tan Naunghlon Ah-kun Total |
70000 5000 40500 3599 12000 12000 |
|||
|
|
|
|
|
||
|
|
|
|
|
||
|
7. No. 079 center Kamawet |
66000 |
|
|
||
|
Seintaung Taungkay |
52000 29000 |
|
|
||
|
Total |
147000 |
147000 |
|
||
|
8. Kalortort Phaedow |
6500 |
|
|
||
|
Kalortort |
26000 |
|
|
||
|
Kawpeehtaw Taung-pa Htone-mun |
15000 30000 3500 |
|
|
||
|
Kwankabyue Doema Set-twae Hneepadaw Yaungdaung Kwan-hlar |
7500 5200 6300 12500 5500 22000 |
|
|
||
|
Total |
140000 |
140000 |
|
||
|
|
|
|
|
||
|
|
|
|
|
||
|
9. Kawparan Kawparan
Kadonepaw
Balout |
23820 3560 9620 |
|
|
||
|
Waegaleet
Kamar-oat |
1600 5400 |
|
|
||
|
Nae-kyaw |
17000 |
|
|
||
|
Total |
17000 |
17000 |
|
||
|
GRAND TOTAL 28 villages |
872000 |
872000 |
|
||
Report Two
Golden Jubilee Mon National Day was Prohibited and
other Oppression against Mon Literature and Culture
The Prohibition of Mon National Day
On the eve of the Golden
Jubilee Mon National Day, on 21 February, the prepared celebration in most
towns of the whole Mon State were ordered to stop by the SLORC's intelligence
and local authorities. This order was issued and instructed to concerned local
authorities by No. 5 Military Intelligence Battalion based in Moulmein, the
capital of Mon State.
This forcible prevention of
the Mon National Day made the whole Mon populace to be angry and created more
dissatisfaction on the government. The Mon community leaders including Buddhist
monks and university students have celebrated the Mon National Day at township
and village level every year and this day has been performed as a very
important day for the Mon people to remember the day of establishment of Mon
kingdom in Pegu.
As a special occasion to
celebrate the Golden Jubilee Mon National Day, the Mon people have prepared for
nearly three months before this day to conduct a smooth and
proper ceremonies. The respective celebration committees were formed in
villages and towns. Each celebration committee sent representatives and a
Central Celebration Committee, Golden Jubilee Mon National Day was formed in
Moulmein and attempted to celebrate a biggest celebration in Moulmein and
invited all community leaders in the whole Mon State to attend this ceremony.
The central celebration
committee also asked the SLORC to allow the ceremony in "Maing Dar"
ground, a biggest ground in Moulmein where the Mon National Day was celebrated
every year in the past. But the authorities rejected the request on the eve of
the cerebration. They were informed by the intelligence officers that the celebration
was barred definitely and it was unnecessary to celebrate Mon National Day
because the SLORC has always celebrated the Mon State Day, on March 19, every
year for the Mon people. They also added if the Mon people would like to
celebrate this day, they must hold in monasteries or other religious buildings
and did not allow in public grounds.
After the formation of
celebration committees, the members had tried hard in preparing in every sector
such as collecting funds, distributing pamphlets, requesting and preparing the
suitable grounds, and etc.. When all preparing processes were nearly completed,
the celebration was officially prohibited. Thus, on 18 February, the central
celebration committee decided not to celebrate the Mon National Day without in
a public ground. The committee also declared that the Golden Jubilee was
invisible to celebrate inside a monastery or religious building and stopped
celebration.
An excerpt of the
declaration was:
Like other ethnic
nationalities in Burma, we, people, warmly accept the 1st Wanning Tapotwe day
is an historic and important day for us to celebrate the Mon National Day.
Additionally, we have been waiting for the coming of the Golden Jubilee Mon
National Day for several years (in this century). Meanwhile, we, the central
celebration committee, have attempted and prepared to celebrate a most
brilliant ceremony of
the Golden Jubilee Mon National Day in this year. (..................)
However, we, Mon people,
are unlucky, because after several rounds of discussion with government
authorities, the celebration is absolutely prohibited to celebrate in Maing Dar
ground.
If we celebrate this day
in other places instructed by the authorities, the ceremony must be faint and
invisible like the golden jubilee. (..........) Therefore, due to the 18 February meeting of
the central
celebrating committee, we decided to not celebrate this day.
The central celebrating
committee adopted three objectives to celebrate the Golden Jubilee Mon National
Day as below:
(1) To remember the native
and historical background of the Mon people.
(2) To achieve the strong
unity among the Mon people.
(3) To achieve the
national reconciliation among all ethnic races in the Union of Burma.
These objectives are faint
arid we express sorrowfulness to all Mon people for the impossible situation to
celebrate the Golden Jubilee Mon National Day.
Like Mon National Day in
Moulmein, the authorities also prohibited the celebration in other towns such
as Mudon, Thanbyuzayat, Ye and Paung.
This behaviour is an action
of the military regime in preventing democratic and ethnic rights in Burma.
Since the military came into power, like other ethnic nationalities and
democratic opposition, the Mon people have been deprived of rights to enjoy
freedom of expression and assembly.
Other Oppression against the Mon Literature and
Culture
Besides the forced
prohibition of the Golden Jubilee Mon National Day, the activities for the
promotion of Mon literature and culture were also constantly disturbed by the
government. At the same time, the SLORC has also attempted to stop the Mon
Education System adopted by the NMSP and the local community.
In every dry season from the
beginning of March to the end of April, the Mon community leaders including
Buddhist monks and university students arranged for the dry season literacy
training to teach the Mon language to children and adults. This
kind of training have been managed by the community for more than ten
years in village and town levels. This training was initiated in local villages
and later separated to the towns. The government
authorities have felt very unhappy for this training arranged by the Mon
community leaders and have always make troubles when they have chance.
Even though the authorities
have tried to disturb, the promotion of the Mon literature was unstopped and
more and more training courses were conducted in more several Mon villages.
First of all, the authorities did not allow to use the
government schools, which were built and paid by the villagers, to use as
training centers. Only some villages, where the village leaders were willing to
participate and encourage for the training, had chance to use the schools. If
the authorities allowed to use the schools, the
community could organize more students and the training was more well-known.
Sometimes, the authorities
also came to the village and met concerned community leaders and warned
officially to stop the arrangement of the teaching of Mon language. Though many
community leaders were warned to stop but they continued their activities and
when one leader was arrested, the others continued. Later on, the authorities
could not stop the training.
Since 1996, the authorities
changed the tactics in suppressing the literacy training. While the community
leaders were running the training, the authorities also came in and conducted another training such as the Buddhist Cultural Training, in
the town and villager levels to divide the students and attempt to weaken the
Mon literacy training.
In an interview with a
Buddhist monk from Kamawet village, Mudon township, he
explained:
In this dry season literacy
training, there are more students than the last year. Their parents agree to
bring their children to the monasteries. Here, in the training, the monks teach
them how to read and write Mon language and in the evening, college students
also teach the children about the traditional Mon dancing. They are happy to
come to the training.
We started teaching of Mon
language for about 8 years already. Before that we just taught the boys,
novices, monks who stayed with us and later more children came and the training
was begun, while the government school was closed. Last three years ago, we had
chance to use the government primary schools for dry season training.
These schools were built
by the villagers but the government came and put their sign-boards. When the
student numbers grew up in the training, they stopped us not to use the schools
as training center. Then we moved into monasteries' compound and arranged for
the training. But in the monasteries,
we had no desks, chairs and other materials like for a smooth
training and prepared for the best as we can. Anyhow, we could provide the
students who have strong desire to study the Mon language.
In this dry season, after
we started the training for one week, the authorities from Mudon also came and
opened a Buddhist Cultural Training, which is taught in Burmese. They forced
the village leaders and security forces to conduct this training and thus
village leaders and members of security forces send their children to that
training. They also encourage their closest friends to send their children to
that training. This is the way they challenge our training. But very few number left from our training.
By using several kinds of
tactics the SLORC has always tried to stop the promotion of the Mon literature
and culture in its controlled area. This Mon literacy training is remained as
an important activity for the survival of the century-long Mon literature and
the identity of the Mon people. According to their Burmanization policy, the
successive government have attempted to assimilate the Mon people to became Burman and forced the Mon children to learn Burmese
only in their schools.
Moreover, the suppression
against the Mon Education System is continuous in rural area. In the rural Mon
villages, where there are no government school, have created the Mon National
Schools and run the Mon Education System. In the schools, all subjects are
taught by Mon language except Burmese and English. This education system was
invented by NMSP for two decades and the community leaders in the area
maintained the system. Since NMSP-SLORC ceasefire in 1995, the SLORC has
constantly attempted to stop this education system.
In 1996, the SLORC troops
also forced many Mon teachers to leave from these schools and forced the
villagers to build the new schools to put the government education system. In
1997, the Mon villagers were still under the pressure to abandon the Mon
teaching system and accept the government system.
For instance,
In Thaung Pyin village of
Ye township, although the villagers have accepted the Mon education system for
over 10 years, but the authorities came and pressured the village headman to
build a government school. They forced the village headman to collect cash from
the villagers in March and April, to build a new government school which costs
about 2 million Kyat.
In Kya-Inn-Seikyi township
area, many Mon teachers were, threatened to leave the Mon schools and if not,
they must be arrested. Many teachers left the schools and sought other jobs. It
was similarly in Yebyu township. In some villages in
both townships, after the Mon teachers left from the schools, there were still no government school. The village children lost
to continue their education.
Under this circumstance, the
Mon people have tried hard for the survival of the Mon literature, culture and
identity. The successive governments have continuously restricted all
activities and the related killings, arrests, detentions, torturings and other
maltreatments were always committed by the government officials and soldiers.