Mon villagers flee from abuse to southern Ye Township

Mon villagers flee from abuse to southern Ye Township
by -
Mon Son
Widespread human rights violations, namely arbitrary arrests, torture and forced labour of adults and minors, are forcing Mon villagers to flee to more secure areas.
Widespread human rights violations, namely arbitrary arrests, torture and forced labour of adults and minors, are forcing Mon villagers to flee to more secure areas.
 
About 15 households in Toe Thet Ywar Thit Village of Kaw-Zar Sub Township have shifted to Hangan village in Ye Township, said sources in Toe Thet Ywar Thit.
 
The villagers were beaten and tortured almost every day by soldiers of the Burmese Army's Infantry Battalion No. 31, said a villager. Unable to live with the abuses, they moved to Hangan village and other places where they believe they will be more secure, added the villager.
 
The villagers do not have time to run their business ventures as they are forced to work in the military camp. They are made to collect timber and work in construction sites.
 
Many more people want to relocate, believing that bigger villages will offer better security and less abuse. Uncertainties about their survival in a new village prevent low income households from moving.
 
The vast majority of villagers depend on their plantations and farms in Kaw-Zar sub township.
 
Despite over 13 years of the ceasefire agreement between the New Mon State Party and the Burmese military junta, Human Rights violations continue in Mon State, especially in southern Ye Township.