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New report highlights abuses in eastern Myanmar

A young ethnic Karen refugee looks up from a newly erected bamboo hut in a displaced persons camp just inside Myanmar along the Myanmar-Thai border. The Karen, who have been involved in a civil war against Burmese government since 1946, continue to resist David Longstreath/IRIN
    BANGKOK
    Human rights violations by the Burmese army in Myanmar’s eastern Karen State are continuing, says a new report by Physicians for Human Rights (PHR).

    “This survey demonstrates that even with political reforms and discussions of a ceasefire, human rights violations by the Burmese army remain a constant threat for many families of Karen State,” Bill Davis, PHR Burma project director, told IRIN on 28 August at the report’s release in Bangkok. 

    “The international community must be made aware of this,” said Khu Khu Ju of the Karen Human Rights Group. 

    According to the report, 30 percent of 665 ethnic families surveyed reported experiencing human rights violations, including being forcibly evicted from their homes, forced to work for the army, and physically attacked - sometimes even tortured or raped. Karen State, also known as Kayin State, has been hit by a decades-long ethnic insurgency which has left more than 300,000 internally displaced, say aid groups.

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    This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions

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