Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
10RANGOON53
2010-01-28 10:25:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Rangoon
Cable title:
KARENS REPORTEDLY FLEE ATTACKS BY BURMA ARMY
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C O N F I D E N T I A L RANGOON 000053
C O R R E C T E D COPY (SUBJECT)
SIPDIS
DEPT FOR EAP/MLS, DRL, AND IO
PACOM FOR FPA
E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/27/2020
TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM BM
SUBJECT: KARENS REPORTEDLY FLEE ATTACKS BY BURMA ARMY
Classified By: Political Officer Marc Shaw for Reasons 1.4 (b) & (d)
C O N F I D E N T I A L RANGOON 000053
C O R R E C T E D COPY (SUBJECT)
SIPDIS
DEPT FOR EAP/MLS, DRL, AND IO
PACOM FOR FPA
E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/27/2020
TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM BM
SUBJECT: KARENS REPORTEDLY FLEE ATTACKS BY BURMA ARMY
Classified By: Political Officer Marc Shaw for Reasons 1.4 (b) & (d)
1. (C) Alan Saw U, coordinator of the Karen Development
Network (an unregistered NGO in Rangoon working to promote
Karen interests) said he could verify several recent reports
that 2,000 ethnic Karens have been displaced as a result of
clashes between the Burma Army -- and its proxy the
Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA)-- and the Karen
National Union (KNU). Although reports suggest these
incidents occurred in Karen State, Alan Saw U told us January
28 the attacks actually occurred in Bago Division, adjacent
to Karen State. A January 21 account by the Free Burma
Rangers detailed how the Burma Army reportedly burned
villages, murdered inhabitants, and looted and destroyed
other property. For now, observers believe villagers are
hiding in the jungle, waiting until it is safe to return home.
2. (C) Intermittent skirmishes are common between the
BA/DKBA and the KNU, particularly during Burma's
November--April dry season. The last large displacement
occurred in June 2009 when an estimated 2,000 villagers fled
into refugee camps in neighboring Thailand.
DINGER
C O R R E C T E D COPY (SUBJECT)
SIPDIS
DEPT FOR EAP/MLS, DRL, AND IO
PACOM FOR FPA
E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/27/2020
TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM BM
SUBJECT: KARENS REPORTEDLY FLEE ATTACKS BY BURMA ARMY
Classified By: Political Officer Marc Shaw for Reasons 1.4 (b) & (d)
1. (C) Alan Saw U, coordinator of the Karen Development
Network (an unregistered NGO in Rangoon working to promote
Karen interests) said he could verify several recent reports
that 2,000 ethnic Karens have been displaced as a result of
clashes between the Burma Army -- and its proxy the
Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA)-- and the Karen
National Union (KNU). Although reports suggest these
incidents occurred in Karen State, Alan Saw U told us January
28 the attacks actually occurred in Bago Division, adjacent
to Karen State. A January 21 account by the Free Burma
Rangers detailed how the Burma Army reportedly burned
villages, murdered inhabitants, and looted and destroyed
other property. For now, observers believe villagers are
hiding in the jungle, waiting until it is safe to return home.
2. (C) Intermittent skirmishes are common between the
BA/DKBA and the KNU, particularly during Burma's
November--April dry season. The last large displacement
occurred in June 2009 when an estimated 2,000 villagers fled
into refugee camps in neighboring Thailand.
DINGER