March 15th, 2022
The military council troops are committing genocide as they are burning more houses and carrying out targeted attacks on civilians in Karenni State, the Karenni Human Rights Group says.
U Banyar, Director of the Karenni Human Rights Group said: “The military council troops are burning houses and have planted landmines. They are also carrying out the arrests and killings of those who return to their homes to take rations. The people may face hunger if this situation continues. It amounts to committing genocide against Karenni races.”
Daw Thein Swe whose house was burned down in Demawsoe Township said: “I want fighting to end in a short period of time. I want to return to my home. It is not convenient to stay in another region. I had to put a lot of effort into building a house. I feel hurt as the military council troops burned my house for no apparent reason. I will build a hut in my compound after the war. As our village has not experienced it before, we really feel hurt.”
After the military coup, ten religious buildings and 649 houses were destroyed in Karenni State, according to the statement by the Progressive Karenni People’s Force on March 2nd.
As the military council troops are conducting an offensive on the ground in addition to the heavy shelling, the use of rockets and airstrikes in the fighting in Demawsoe Township, the locals have fled to safer places.
Now the total number of the IDPs has exceeded 170,000.
A Demawsoe local whose house was burned down said: “The military council burned our village. They also killed the villagers. I don’t want them to be on the Myanmar soil and Karenni soil. I want the dictatorship to end in our era. Only then, will our future life be okay.”
On the morning of March 14th, the military council troops carried out indiscriminate firing of heavy weapons to the civilian targets in the east of Demawsoe.
Heavy shelling injured the people and destroyed houses and a village clinic.
The Karenni Human Rights Group has criticized that the military council troops are carrying out targeted attacks on civilians.
Sent by Myaw Oo Myar (Kantarawaddy Times).