News, Personal Accounts, Report & Analysis on
Human Rights Situation in Mon Territory and Other Areas Southern Part of Burma
The
Mon Forum
Issue No. 9/99 September 30, 1999
The Publication of Human Rights Foundation of Monland
(BURMA)
Contents
News:
(1) Government's
Agricultural Products Trade Department is busy in forcing farmers to give
promise for selling paddy,
(2) Student
numbers drop in government schools in Mon State due to more expenses,
(3) More
security beefed up in Mon State due to fear of 9-9-99 uprising,
Report:
(1) Conscription
of forced labour, looting of villagers' belongings and tax collection continues
in Mon State and Tenasserim Division
Some Acronyms in This Issue
SPDC: State
Peace and Development Council,
SLORC: State Law and Order Restoration Council,
IB: Infantry
Battalion (of Burmese Army),
LIB: Light Infantry Battalion (of Burmese
Army),
USDA: Union Solidarity and Development
Association,
KNU: Karen National Union,
ABSDF: All
Burma Students' Democratic Front,
NMSP: New Mon State Party,
News
Government's
Agricultural Products Trade Department is Busy in Forcing Farmers to Give
Promise for Selling Paddy
(September, 1999)
In September, 1999, when the paddy crops are not properly
produced in the rice-growing farmers' farms, a main government department,
Agricultural Products Trade Department in Mon State has tried to lend or pay
advance of some fund to farmers and forced them to give promise to sell the set
amount of paddy to government paddy-buying center when their crops are produced
in December. By the help of Myanma Agriculture Bank, the authorities from the
department has forced the farmers to take advance payment lent from bank and
sign the contract to sell their paddy at low price.
According to village headmen source from rural villages, the government's Agricultural Products Trade Department have formed a paddy-buying managing committees and informed the headmen and village farmers that they would lend 2, 000 Kyat for one acre of land. Every farmer must have to take this advance payment and they must have to sell 15 baskets of paddy per acre with price 350 Kyat in average per basket.
Before the Department started to arrange lending money and
force the farmers to sign the contracts, the Township authorities also decided
to create paddy-buying centers in the townships and appointed the purchasing
manager for each center. Then paddy-buying managing committee was formed with
authority of the Department. In Mudon Township, there are 4 Town sections and
42 villages totally in administrative area and the authorities set up 11
paddy-buying centers. The managing committee is led by Second Manager of Mudon
Township Agricultural Products Trade Department, U San Hlaing, and formed with
11 managers from all centers. This managing committee plans to buy about 1.3
millions baskets of paddy from this township alone.
Similarly, in Thanbyuzayat Township, there are 4 Town
sections and 38 villages totally in administrative area and the authorities
decided to set up 6 paddy buying centers. The managing committee is led by
Thanbyuzayat Township Agricultural Products Trade Department’s Manager, U Shwe
Yin, and formed with 6 managers from 6 paddy-buying centers. This managing
committee plans to buy 800,000 baskets of paddy from this township alone.
Likewise, other Townships' Agriculture Products Trade
Departments are similarly managing to force the farmers to accept their lending
money and to sign the promised contract to sell 15 baskets of paddy per acre of
land. Majority farmers would not. like to take any
advance payment and they like to sell all crops in the
markets. They lost about 550-750
Kyat per basket when they sell their paddy crops to government paddy-buying
center, because they receive only 350 Kyat per basket while the paddy price in
the market is 800-1,000 Kyat per basket. However, since the farmers in Burma
lose economic rights and the selling of their crops at low price to government
is likely they have to serve for tax to the government.
In July, 1999, because of heavy rain and flood in Mon
State and Karen State, some thousands acres paddy-fields were sunk under water
and the paddy plants died. Thus, many farmers lost the crops. The government
authorities have not examined this situation and made a decision to buy 15
baskets of paddy per acre from farmers. If those farmers could not sell the set
amount of paddy to paddy-buying centers, they would be accused that they have
not completed selling the set amount of paddy or failing to give yearly paddy
tax. Then, the punishments to those farmers are detention and confiscation of
their belongings like the authorities had committed in the previous years.
Student Numbers Drop in Government Schools in Mon
State Due to More Expenses
(September, 1999)
According to educational servant source of the government,
the student numbers in most schools in Mon State have been gradually lessen and
nearly 12% of students are less than estimated numbers who are expected
attending schools in this 1999-2000 school year. Since the student joined
schools in June, because of various types of expenses to get access to
education, about 5% of students have left from schools.
In Burma, the basic education schools for children less than 16 years old, started in June while most universities collages and institutions were closed for several months. Soon the students joined the schools, the government authorities collected school fund, which may have to pay SPDC authorities in Townships, the different grades of students have to pay different amount of fund. The 5 years old new students who joined the schools had to pay 1, 000 Kyat fund, while Standard One to Standard Two had to pay 300 Kyat, Standard Three and Standard Four had to pay 400 Kyat, Standard Five and Standard Six had to pay 500 Kyat, Standard Seven and Standard Eight had to pay 700 Kyat and Standard Nine and Standard Ten had. to pay 800 Kyat respectively. These were school entry costs and the teachers explained to students that they would give the fund to Township authorities and the fund will be used in education service.
Besides the entry fund at the beginning of school year,
the government teachers also collected fund for Student Sport, which is planned
to be held in December, 1999 in Moulmein, the capital of Mon State. In July and
August, every student whether they were at low grades or high grades, they had
to give fund with 300 Kyat per head. This fund collection was made by teachers
and Township authorities also collected another 300 Kyat from every house in
every township in Mon State for this Sport.
Since the government has used little budget in education,
the school construction and materials are not much provided by SPDC education
departments and the schools have remained on "self-help" situation.
Whenever the school buildings or materials in schools are damaged, the teachers
have to collect funds from civilians or students. If the school building was
damaged, the civilians in the school area had to provide large amount of fund
to teachers. Depending on how large of the schools, one family had to provide
at least 1, 000 Kyat. If the school materials such as blackboards, chairs,
tables, desks and others are damaged in schools, the students have to provide
fund to repair them or to make them new. Depending on how many types and
numbers of school materials are damaged, the students have to provide fund at
least 100 Kyat. It is a burden for poor students and parents to provide this
amount of fund.
Other main expense for student is the costs for special
classes. The creation of special classes in the whole country is also occurred
because of the government's low monthly salary paid to teachers. A primary
schools teacher received only 1,200 Kyat (about 3.5 US Dollar) and this amount
of salary could buy only 25 pound of polished rice which is not enough to eat
for one month. Thus, the school teachers have found the ways to get outside
income besides government salary. Since 1990, many teachers in both urban and
rural areas have opened special classes and organize their students in schools
to attend these special classes. The teachers work in government from 8:00 a.m.
to 3:00 p.m. and open the special classes in evening time continuously after
schooling time. The students who attend the special classes receive more favors
from the teachers in school classes or in monthly exam or final exams. Without
attending these special classes, the students are hard to pass the final exams.
Thus, many students try to join the special classes. The students has to pay
200-300 Kyat for one subject in special class and one student who would like to
join the special classes of all subjects according to curriculum has to pay
about 1500-2000 Kyat per month. The students' parents also have to support all
these costs.
Later, because of such expenses to give various funds to
schools and costs for special classes, the poor parents are unable to support
their students and at the end, they had to take their children from schools.
The more higher education their children reached, the more expenses the parents
had to pay and so over 40% of students left from schools before they passed the
primary schools (Standard Four) because their parents could not pay the
expenses. For Middle School and High School students, they are always forced to
attend government's sham ceremonies very regularly and
forced to join USDA. Without
attending these ceremonies and participating as an USDA member, the students
could not easily pass the exams. In this disappointed situation and no
education institutions after they passed high schools, some students in middle
schools and high schools also left from schools. In conclusion, the education
for new generation has been slowly deteriorated in Mon State alike the whole
country.
Besides some students left from schools due to high expenses, some students also moved to Mon National Schools in Mon State where they have to spend less. Since NMSP-SLORC ceasefire in 1995, the Mon community in Mon State created many Mon National Schools and have provided Mon National Education. After the Mon parents could not pay for much expenses for their children in government schools, they also moved them to Mon schools. The community itself supports the Mon education and the system is gradually grown in the recent years. The Mon students do not have to join the special classes and the teachers provided full time teaching to students. Although their salary slightly higher than the government teachers, the community provides all necessary foods for them.
After more Mon schools are operated in Mon areas, the
authorities also tried to close down Mon schools and prohibited the running of
Mon education. Such oppression against the Mon national schools and education,
such as closing down Mon schools, arresting Mon teachers and pressuring the
students' parents to withdraw their children from Mon schools, have been regularly
happened in areas where the Mon schools are operated.
More Security Beefed Up In Mon State Due to Fear of
9-9-99 Uprising
(September, 1999)
In August and September, in order to halt the uprising or
due to the fear among the SPDC authorities of the possible pro-democracy
uprising on September 9, which is known as 9-9-99, the Mon State PDC
authorities have beefed up security and conscripted the civilians to provide
the security or to serve as informers for them. Although the uprising has not
occurred until the end of September, the local civilians are constantly
instructed to participate as unpaid labourers working for authorities for many
days as a result.
It is shown that the authorities are in fear of that the
uprising must be initiated by students. Thus, since the second week of August,
the teachers are called by authorities and asked for promise that they would
not participate in or encourage the uprising and additionally to keep their
students to not participate in any uprising against the government. The
government teachers were asked for a signed promise from the authorities and
they also received two months food supplies ration in advance.
At the same time, since August, the government beefed up
more security forces in towns in Mon State and closed the towns by setting up
check-points in every entrance to towns. Inside the towns, the Township
authorities also instructed the town section leaders to conscript the civilians
in their own section and
to set up security outposts
respectively to watch the activities of civilians and students in town sections
closely for 24 hours a day. Normally, those security members had to walk around
in their responsible sections and watched who were putting posters for 9-9-99
uprising and distributing documents encouraging for uprising. Similarly, the
authorities also ordered the villages close to towns to set up security outpost
like in the town sections. As the SPDC authorities believed that KNU and ABSDF
members would bring the documents and declarations for 9-9-99 uprising, all
roads were also blocked and the local military battalions also made checking
along the roads. The authorities declared for curfew orders and had not allowed
anyone to walk on roads at night time. In August, some civilians were arrested
due to their late return to homes from their rice-farms or plantations at night
time.
The members from USDA, Myanma Red Cross Society and Fire
Departments were also instructed by Township PDC authorities to supervise the
closest security outposts and to watch around the Town section or village areas
to check the situation of the civilians and civilians. In August, authorities
arrested many former student leaders and ordinary NLD members already to keep
them to not lead the uprising.
On August 14, the Ye Township PDC authorities ordered the
respective town section leaders to set up 3 security outposts in the town and
another 4 outposts in villages close to town. According to civilian source,
each three town sections had to set up one outpost, such as Yan Gyi Aung, Yan
Myo Aung, Thiri Nanda sections set up the security outpost No.1, Thiri Zayar,
Thiri Mingala, Aung Mingala sections set up the security outpost No. 2, Thiri
Khayma, Thiri Mala, Aung Thukha sections set up the
security outpost No. 3 respectively. Similarly, the nearer two village tracts,
Duya village tract and Tu-Myaung village tract also set up the security outpost
No. 4 and outpost No. 5 respectively. And, LIB No. 343 also had to take
security along Ye-Tavoy railway road in the part belonged to Mon State while IB
No. 106 also takes security in area along Thanbyuzayat-Ye Motor road.
The similar conscription of civilians into security forces
and in watching the activities the residents and students also took place in
other township areas. According the civilians in Paung Township, each family
had to provide one person to be security member in outpost and stayed for at
least two days each round and had to go and stay at outposts at least two
rounds within one month. In Thaton township, IB No. 24
battalion had taken the civilians together with them such as putting them in
security outposts and bringing them as porters when they went and checked
security along railway and motor roads. The other townships in Mon State also
did the same to prevent the pro-democracy uprising during August and September.
Report
Conscription of Forced Labour, Looting of Villagers' Belongings and Tax
Collection Continues in Mon State and Tenasserim Division
I. Introduction
In the earlier of this year, 1999's dry season, from
January to May, some thousands of local villagers in Yebyu township area have
been conscripted into unpaid labourers in building the widening Ye-Tavoy road
by Burmese army or SPDC local battalions.
This road is a strategic road for SPDC troops in the area to get better
communication between Mon State and Tenasserim Division. The better communication could provide the
troops in the area to move easily from one place to another and could provide
more safety for foreign investment.
(The Conscription forced labour in Ye-Tavoy motor wad widening
construction was already described in The Mon Forum No. 5/99, May 1999).
Besides the conscription of forced labour in this motor
road, the local villagers in this area of Ye and Yebyu
township are continuously suffered from other types of forced labour such as
contribution of free labour in dike construction, farming of paddy crops and
permanent or front-line porters for the army.
As the southern part of Thanbyuzayat township area, most part of Ye and
Yebyu area are recognized as "Black Area", the SPDC soldiers have
opportunity to loot the villagers belongings and
collect various types of tax or fund from the town residents and rural
villagers. Such collection of tax and
fund by the local army battalions are not described in laws and regulations of
the government or the constitution, but this violation has been a habit of
local military battalions in enjoying in corruption. These conscription
of forced labour, looting and tax collecting have make the village communities
to be more poorer and additional population displacement.
II. The Continued Conscription of Forced Labour
Under the command of military command from Operational
Control Division No. 8, the local military battalions in Yebyu township are encouraged to create fruit plantations and
paddy farms to get crops and to be able support themselves. After this encouragement, thousands of
villagers in Yebyu township areas have been regularly forced by the military
battalions in exploring new lands for paddy farms and fruit plantations.
Generally, the local military battalions in Yebyu township of LIB No. 410 to
410, LIB No. 273 and LIB No. 282 has partly or. fully
participated in conscripting the villagers to explore the new lands.
Since nearly one year, the local military battalions shared the forest lands in east part of Ye-Tavoy motor road in the area between Yapu and Kalein-aung-villages (see in the map). Under the command of Operational Control Division No. 8, about 4, 000 acres of lands were taken by the battalions. As the military division or command could not provide enough food rations to their soldiers and have ordered the respective battalion commanders to find the required foods by themselves to feed the soldiers. For the battalion commanders, if they failed to manage according to order or if the soldiers in the battalions have no foods, those commanders must be dismissed from their position. As the punishment to the commanders is quite hard, all commanders tried to find lands to grow paddy or find cash from the villagers to buy foods. Whether a battalion explore the land and grow paddy or collect tax or fund, the local villagers are always instructed to contribute unpaid labour.
After the lands were taken by battalions, the commanders
had planned to prepare the lands to create them as paddy growing farms or fruit
plantation. As the lands are far from
the coastal area and some lands are in hilly area, the army planned to create
most parts as fruit plantations. They
could grow rubber, betel-nut, cashew nut, lime and other types of fruits. These are the big plan for the local
battalions to raise funds for long-term.
Therefore, in the whole rainy season (from June to
September of 1999), the local military battalions forced the local villagers to
clear the lands in "Layin-gwin" area which is close to Yapu village
(see in the map). The villagers from
over 20 villages of three village tracts of Yapu, Mintha and Kalein-aung have
been forced to work in clearing the trees, bushes and grasses in new lands to
be ready to grow fruit trees. Estimatedly,
about 25% households in each village had to send at least one person from one
house to work in clearing and preparing the lands in Layin-gwin area. According to a villager in the area, nearly
2,000 acres (half of the total) of lands have been cleared roughly. The rough clearance of the forest is
normally to cut all small and big trees, take bamboo groves, and clear all
small trees. After the rough clearance
of the lands, the villagers will be instructed again to take out all tree
roots.
An experienced villager, who have forced by army to work in exploring the lands said to our human rights worker that:
"We had to work for 7 days in August (1999) and
another 7 days in the next month (in September) for LIB No. 406's land
exploration to grow rubber in Layin-gwin area.
The main works in the work-places are to cut down some trees, clear the
small bushes and bamboo groves. It is
quite hard work when we cut big trees and cut all bamboo trees.
"The soldiers did not guard us, but sometime they
came and looked around the situation of land exploration. Sometimes they talked and shouted to village
headmen. The work-duties are shared to
headmen by battalion commander. Before
we were asked to work in this land clearance work, the village chairman and one
village committee went and met with LIB No. 406 commander in a meeting and then
the commander shared work-duties to our villagers. In each round, about 50 villagers went to
work-places together with a village headman and he showed which place we might
have to clear the lands. A group of our
villagers must have to complete about 10 acres of land spaces to be cleared
within 7 days."
During the rainy season, the villagers were however busy
with their own works in rice farms or fruit plantations, but they could not
refuse the works instructed by army.
The village headmen who asked for the reduction or work-duties were
always shout or beaten by commanders or junior officers. The army commanders always would not listen
to any complaint or argument by village headmen or villagers.
Besides conscription of forced labour in farming and
creating of fruit plantations in the area, the local villagers are always permanently
used as "permanent labourers" in the battalions mainly to help
working every thing for soldiers. All
battalions in Yebyu township took such permanent
labourers in the battalion headquarters or military outposts by demanding the
local village headmen.
As an example,
A military outpost of LIB No, 401 led by Lt. Col. Thakaman
that bases in Kalein-aung village always demands permanent about 20 labourers
from the near 8 villages to work in their battalion. Thus, the village headmen have to always
manage to send at least 2-3 villagers from each village to this outpost. The
main work in the outpost are varied. The villagers were instructed by a sergeant
in the outpost to mainly work growing vegetables and fruit trees, making
charcoals, making foods, carrying water and etc. Normally, the villagers were
instructed to grow vegetables in the outpost's compound and sometimes, the
soldiers brought the villagers to grow fruits in another places outside of outpost
where the battalion owns a piece of land.
These large amount and various types vegetables
grown by unpaid labour are not only providing for foods to the battalion's
soldiers but these are also sold by a responsible officer in Kalein-aung market
for battalion fund. Similarly, while
the villagers make a lot of charcoals, these are not all used by outpost, but
are sold for battalion fund also.
As mentioned above, some battalions also used some
hundreds of forced labourers in "Layin-gwin" area to clear the lands
and create fruit plantations. If these
plantations are completed, the battalions could get fund from selling fruits
from the plantations. Some fruit trees will take for five years to get fruits.
Another type of conscription of forced labour is to use
the villagers in clearing farmlands for soldiers near the newly built
dikes. There are four main dikes in
coastal area of Kwethonyima and Mintha village tracts and the military
battalions planned to clear the lands and create farms. Those four dikes were built with forced
labour since 1998 rainy season until the dry season of 1999. Some dikes took too long time,
the battalion used minimum 200 villagers in each round conscription for each
dike. The villagers built embankment
along the set routes and wooden walls in all streams to become a dike keeping
water in higher side of the land. While
the villagers were building the embankment, some parts of embankment were also
destroyed because of rainwater and flood in the last rainy season. Thus, in the last rainy season, the
villagers were forced to re-build some parts of embankment again.
After these dikes are built, the military battalions have
planned to clear the possible lands to use them as paddy growing farms. Thus, the villagers from about 30 villages
of Mintha, Eindayaza and Kwethonyima village tracts were forced to clear the
lands in this rainy season. After the
water is kept in dike, the battalion commanders instructed the village headmen
to clear the lands to explore the farmlands in lower pan or other side of the
dikes. According to instruction, the
lands in the lower part of the embankment are cleared and prepared them to be a
paddy growing farmlands. In exploring
these lands, the villagers are shared with a space of land to each family to be
cleared as a work-duty.
As an example of conscription of forced
labour in exploring paddy-growing lands is described about the land exploration
near Kwethonyima dike.
In exploring farmlands, the villagers from about 7
villages such as Kwethonyima, Chattaw, Mae-than-taung, Mae-taw, Chabone, Ahbyu
and Abyaik are conscripted to be labourers.
Those villagers are instructed to clear the lands for about four months
from June to September 1999, to complete clearing the lands. LIB No. 273 has taken responsibility in
conscripting the villagers to be unpaid labourers in exploring the lands. However, this battalions' soldiers have not
guard in the work places, and all work-duties are shared to the respectively
village headmen of the 7 villages.
Among 7 villages, Kwethonyima is the biggest village and it had more
work-duties than other villages.
However, the work-duty is shared to each family and the
army commanders did not set how many days that family must complete a piece of
work. But most families tried to
complete their pieces of works as quick as possible because they have jobs to
work in their farms or fruit plantation.
In Kwethonyima dike's land exploration, LIB No. 273 shared some work-duties
to the respective village headmen and those headmen have to share pieces of
work to their villagers. Each family
from the 7 villages received a piece of work with 35 meters in length and 20
meters in width space to complete clearance of the land. If a member from one
family went and worked clearing this space of land, they must have to spend for
15 days to 20 days. Therefore, after
the work-duties are shared, at least two members of each family went and worked
in the work-sites. The
'work-duties are shared village by village. After one village complete4 large space of
land clearance, another village was instructed to continue and work.
The main works in clearing the lands are to cut all small
trees, clear bushes and grasses, burn all rubbish to be ashes and level the
lands. The villagers have to dig and
take all tree roots and it is a hard work.
During rainy season, the burning of the garbages is impossible because of
wet and flow of water. So the villagers
had to bring them from the work-site to streams and rivers to throw them
away. It was also a hard work in the
rainy season to carry a large amount of garbages to rivers.
According to a village headman, LIB No. 273 expects they
will receive about 400 acres of farmlands after all designated in lower part of
Kwethonyima dike is totally cleared.
Similar to Kwethonyima dike's land exploration, other villagers from
Mintha and Eindayaza village tracts also suffered the same. Near Mintha, Singu and Hmawgyi dikes, the
military battalions also forced the local villagers to clear the lands for
paddy growing farms. The local military
battalions from LIB No. 406, 409 and 410 have respectively supervised the
exploration of lands near these three dikes and have used forced labourers like
Kwethonyima dike.
According to villagers' source, LIB No. 273 also plans to
build another dike near Chabone village {see map) and explores the new
farmlands. The commanders have looked
and make a survey in this area and after an embankment and a dike are built, the
battalion could receive another 200 acres of farmlands and the villagers must
be used as unpaid labourers again in building embankment, dike and clearing the
lands. Now, the villagers are still
worrying about the conscription of forced labour in the building of new dikes.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
The order in
Burmese version and its Translation: This is the official request for fund for
Paung Township and the army in township
(Translation)
To
Township Peace and Development Council
Paung Town (Mon State)
Letter No. 5/1-1/U 6
Date: April 12,1999
Town Section/ Village PDC (All) Paung Township
SUBJECT: Informing to collect and give monthly social
fund.
1. As the
subject mentioned above, due to expenses in the Township area for social case,
that we have instructed you to collect, and meanwhile, we have used both some
your fund and other fund which is not collected by you. So the Township expenditures show the deficit
fund every month.
2. Thus, to
provide monthly expense for all matters, you must collect the following amount
of fund and give it in the monthly meeting of Township PDC. We inform you this according to Township PDC
meeting held on April 1, 1999, the meeting no. 6/99, and decision 15/J.
The names of town section/ village The amount of fund to give: 13,000 Kyat
Signed/Chairman, Paung Township PDC
III. Cash Collection for Battalions' Fund and Looting Cases
Following the order to support themselves in the battalions,
the collection of fund from the civilians have been gradually grown in both
"white" and "black" areas.
During from August to September, Mon State Peace and Development Council
(Mon State PDC) and Southeast Military Command also ordered the respective
Township PDC and the local battalion to collect fund from the civilians by any
way they could to support the battalion fund and the planned "Student
Sports" which is to be held in Moulmein, the capital of Mon State.
Thus, the military battalions such as IB No 210, IB No.
31, IB No. 32 which bases in Mudon, Thanbyuzayat and Ye township areas had
staged some concerts and boxing the respective town halls and managed selling
tickets to civilians. The township instructed town ward and village leaders to
sell these tickets to every family in the township area whether the civilians
would like to watch the concerts and boxing or not. The civilians have to buy 100 Kyat or 200
Kyat for each tickets and they could not refuse even they would not like to
watch stages. From these staging
concerts and boxing, the above mentioned battalions could raise about 10
millions Kyat fund from these three township areas.
In other townships, sometimes Township PDC authorities
directly order the village headmen, government servants including school
teachers and health workers to collect fund for battalions or for townships. On
September 22, Paung Township PDC orders the village headmen to collect and send
40, 000 Kyat fund in average from each village to Township. Therefore, some small village had to provide
fund about 20,000 while some big village had to provide about 200, 000
Kyat. Besides this instruction, the
village headmen also collected fund from the families who owned TV set. Depending on the sizes of TV, the owners
have to pay fund or tax 1, 500 Kyat, 2, 000 Kyat, 3, 000 Kyat and 4, 500 Kyat
respectively. The township also showed
the reason about collecting fund as supporting Township Buddhist Association
and Union Solidarity and Development Association (USDA). From this fund collection, the Township PDC
could get fund about 3 million Kyat.
For the regular tax collection, the Township issued an
order to every village and town section that to regularly send these types of
tax. Depending on how many population in a village or a town section, the demanded
regular fund or tax is different.
Although they put the name of the tax is as social fund, these funds are
used for the expenses of army and SPDC authorities. In Paung Township, even a
small village with 100 households, it has to give tax with amount 15, 000 Kyat
per month. (See the order in Paung
Township, issued by Township PDC in April and the villages are still giving the
requested amount of fund as monthly tax.)
In Thaton Township area, Township PDC instructed the
village headmen to collect 250 Kyat from each family. The fund collection was started on September
25. Thaton Township has about 59
villages and some villages have over 1, 000 households. The Township PDC authorities had shown that
they have required some fund to support the military training of village
militias and the fund must come from town sections and villages'
civilians. At the same time, the
township authorities also collected fund from the houses in villages to pay 2,
000, 3, 000, 4, 000 Kyat respectively by showing the reason they will connect
electric wires and set the poles in the villages. From this fund collection, the Township PDC
received about 2.5 millions Kyat from the civilians.
Besides fund collection, sometimes the local authorities
including police, custom officers also looted the villagers' belongings for
their own organization fund or private income.
The police and custom officials have rights to search every thing in
trains, trucks, passengers and boat ferries.
In most situations, whenever they met illegal materials or unofficial
goods from Thailand, they seize those goods without sending the traders to
trails according to existed laws. They
took those goods and sold them for their organization fund or share the cash
among the officers and staff.
As an example,
On February 4, 1999, when a group of Mon traders returned
from a border town with Thailand, Myawaddy, they also took goldwares from
Thailand for sales. The group of
traders, of 4 men and 11 women, came by truck from the border to Kya Inn Seikyi
town, a small town in Karen State. They
hired a boat ferry and flew from Kya Inn Seikyi to Moulmein. When they arrived near Moulmein, a group of
police and custom officers stopped their boat ferry and their whole bodies were
searched. The authorities met about-15 kilograms of gold-wares from those
traders and looted them all. Those
traders were accused by the police that they were participating in illegal
business and that was why they confiscated all of their gold-wares. Actually, they must be brought to a court
for a trail. However, the authorities
did not follow according to law procedures and looted their belongings.
The looting of villagers' belongings including foods and
demand of tax from the villages in the "Black Area" like Yebyu
Township area of Tenasserim Division have been more brutal and have been
remained as a common case. The problems of intensive looting
of villagers' foods is also related to "self-support" policy
adopted among the military battalions that take base in rural area. According to reliable source, the military
battalions from LIB No. 401 to 410, LIB No. 273 and LIB No. 282 that base in
Yebyu Township area have to find fund to support their own soldiers. If the battalion commanders could not manage
to support themselves, they must be dismissed from their position and replaced
with second commander. Thus, the battalion commanders have to try hard to get
enough fund to feed their soldiers. Each battalion must try to get about 200,
000 Kyat funds each month to be enough supporting their soldiers, military
services and general expenses. For the
whole year each battalion must have to stockpile about 4, 000 baskets of paddy
to feed the soldiers and their families.
Due to this instruction from Operational
Military Command. No. 8, whenever the battalion soldiers went into
villages, they always to collect the lots amount of fund from the villagers by
showing various reasons such as porter fees, security fees, border area
development fund and others.
Furthermore, those battalions also looted paddy from the local farmers
by saying they would buy it, during dry season while all village farmers
stockpiled their crops at houses to be eaten for the whole rainy season. Sometimes, one village's paddy was looted by
two battalions or three battalions.
The examples of
looting foods by battalions are:
On January 19, 1999, a column of LIB No. 410 troops led by Captain. Thaw Min went into Chabone village and looted about 250 baskets of paddy totally from paddy growing farmer families. They said they would buy the paddy and pay 400 Kyat per basket, the villagers have not received any payment later. In addition, the troops also collected fund from the villagers who have no farms. Then, on January 21, 1999, the same troops led by the same commander went into Kwethonyima village and looted about 270 baskets of paddy without payment. As a conclusion, LIB No. 410's battalion commander also gave restricted duty to Maj. Thaw Min and his column to loot the villagers' paddy for battalion foods.
Similarly, on February 9, 1999, two columns of LIB No. 273
troops led by battalion second commander Maj. Kyaw Soe went into Chabone
village and looted 120 baskets of paddy from farmers.
For the porter fees, the big or small villages are
collected as a normal tax to pay the battalions. In some rural areas, there are two or three
battalions have come into their villages and asked porters or porter fees. The
headmen always have to manage for porters to provide the battalions, which arrived
to their village and if they delayed in managing, they must be beaten or
receive a harsh punishment. Some
battalions also demanded both porters and porter fees. For example, a battalion requires totally 3
porters from a village, but when the battalion actually takes them, just takes
two and asked for cash for remaining one porter. Depending on how many days that the porters
have to stay the battalion to serve porter works, the headmen may have to pay
2, 000-5,000 Kyat per one porter. The
battalions always calculate that for the fees of hiring a porter is to pay 500
Kyat per day. The battalions show the
reason of collecting porter fees is that they will have to hire substitute
porters for the ones whom they do not take from the villages. Actually, no battalion
hire any substitute labourers.
Similar to porter fees, the battalions also demand for
labourer fees to pay. Like mentioned
above, when a battalion conscripted civilians as unpaid labourers in
construction sites such as motor road, railway and dikes, and as permanent
labourers to do works in battalions, they also demanded labourer fees from the
villages. When LIB No. 401 conscripts
permanent labourers in its outpost in Kalein-aung, which bases mainly to take
security Yatana gas-pipeline, it always requests 2-3 porters from each
village. When the headman from a
village could not the requested number of permanent labourer, that headman has
to pay labourer fee with 3,000 Kyat per head.
However, the battalion commander Lt. Col. Tha Kaman never hires any
substitute labourers and uses only the labourers he has in the outpost.
Now, the new existed tax collection is development fund.
When some battalions in Yebyu township built dikes and
explore farmlands, or the government rebuild the Ye-Tavoy motor road, these are
named under the border area development program, and the rural villagers also
have responsibility to provide some fund for these construction projects. As an example when LIB No. 273 built a dike
with forced labour near Kwethonyima village, the battalion has collected 4, 000
Kyat fund as development fund from the whole village of Kwethonyima.
Not only for the building of motor road, railway and dikes
in the area, when the SPDC deployed a new military battalion, LIB No. 299 in
southern part of Ye township, the Ye Township SPDC authorities and IB No. 61
also collected about 30 million Kyat from the whole Ye
Township area. The Mon people in both
villages and town sections have to pay a burden of fund for this new battalion
deployment. Some big village over 1,000
households have to pay about 0.5 million Kyat for this fund.
Besides the requested fund by the battalions, the local
troops who regularly go into village are also depending on food supplies
provided by villagers. According to
villagers, whenever the SPDC troops, a small number or even a battalion, went
into villages, the commanders always ordered the headmen to find foods
especially rice and curry for their troops.
And the headmen also have to provide liquor, cigarettes, and beer. After
the troops left from villages, the headmen collected fund from the
villagers. The commanders say the
villagers may have to provide such foods and others to soldiers, because they
believe their troops provide security for villagers.
The other type, of cash extortion is related to accusation
of rebel-supporters. Some villagers
were brutally beaten because of this accusation and later the army commanders
always demanded a ransom for release of the arrested people. There have been many incidents happened in
southern part of Ye Town after a Mon armed group has launched military
activities in the area or other robbery cases.
The examples were:
On January 13, 1999, after a passenger bus was robbed by a group of robbers near Koe-mile village (look in map). After robbery incident, some villagers from Koe-mile village who were accused by the army as relatives or friends of the robbers were arrested and tortured. LIB No. 343 arrested six villagers including one woman and detained them in a battalion outpost detention near the village. They were inhumanely and brutally tortured by soldiers for 5 days to admit they had cooperated with robbers to commit a robbery. After five days detention, the outpost commander of LIB No. 343 also demanded 20, 000 Kyat ransom per head. Then the relatives of those arrested villagers gathered 120, 000 Kyat and gave cash to army commander as ransom. After the commander received ransom, all villagers were released.
Whenever a Mon troops came close to a village, the
villagers were always accused as rebel-supporters and the headmen were always
tortured and sometimes they were brought to SPDC battalion and were asked ransom
for a release. If the SPDC troops lost
arms or soldiers died in the fighting, the villagers had to pay the costs for
the loss of arms and soldiers.
Normally, the army asked about 100, 000 Kyat ransom for an arm and about
500, 000 Kyat for a soldier from the nearest villages if they lost in the
fighting.
IV. Conclusion
After NMSP-SLORC ceasefire agreement in 1995, although the
majority Mon people in rural area have been less suffered from the gross human
rights violations such as killing, torturing, forced relocation and
displacement, sexual harassment and other abuses related to accusation of
NMSP-supporters, but have been still suffered by other types of abuses
including conscription of forced labour, tax collection or cash extortion,
unlawful looting and others. As a
racial discrimination, the government authorities or their troops have always
tried to close down Mon schools established by Mon community and prohibited Mon
education system.
Since NMSP and the current military regime SPDC have not agreed
on any political solution from a dialogue, the NMSP officials could not protect
the civilians from violations committed by government soldiers. Or, sometimes when the NMSP officials argued
about human rights- situation of the Mon people, SPDC authorities ignored about
the cases and never gave promise to change their behaviour or their local
troops' abuses against the people.