September 15th, 2022
Myanmar’s military council troops stationed in Bawapin village in Dawei Township, Tanintharyi Region since September 6th set fire to an IDP camp in the west of the village, fired indiscriminately with small and heavy weapons and made threats as they left, according to residents.
Junta troops arrested more than 100 villagers but released them around 9:00 p.m. on September 13th. After releasing the villagers, they fired small and heavy weapons indiscriminately and set fire to the IDP camp. The junta troops also broke into the village’s houses and looted them, a resident said.
“They started leaving the village last night around 9:00 pm. They also attacked the village with small and heavy weapons and set fire to an IDP camp in the west of Bawapin village. They broke into almost all the houses in the village. Our house was one of the first houses to be destroyed. It was torn to pieces. There is nothing left,” he told Karen Information Center (KIC).
The military council troops not only looted the houses, but also threatened the villages that they would come back and torch the village again and kill them if they took photos of the destroyed houses and IDP camp. They also forced some Buddhist monks in the village to sign a promise not to do so.
“The monks of the village had to sign. If we took photos of the destroyed houses, they would come and burn the whole village again. They [the junta troops] threatened to kill the villages as well if they did not comply,” a villager who did not want to be named told KIC.
There are about 585 houses in Bawapin village, where most of the residents are Karen. The military council troops were stationed in the village after clashes with local People’s Defense Forces (PDF), residents said.
Sent by KIC.