The junta has been attempting to collect census data in villages controlled by revolutionary forces in Hpa-An District in Kayin (Karen) State.
Hpa-An District is under the mixed control of the revolutionary forces of the Karen National Union (KNU) and its allies, the junta and its allies, the Karen Border Guard Force (BGF) and the Karen National Liberation Army-Peace Council (KNLA/PC). Hpa-An Township is controlled by the KNU and its allies but Hpa-An Town is controlled by the junta.
According to a member of a local civil society organisation (CSO) that is monitoring the junta’s collection of census data, the junta is trying to negotiate with leaders of the KNU and revolutionary groups that control territory in Hpa-An District.
He said: “The junta has negotiated with Mon ethnic armed groups and conducted a census in Mon villages in the Kawt Bein and Kyondoe areas,” in Kawkareik Township, Hpa-An District.
A resident of Taung Kalay Village in KNU controlled Hpa-An Township, said that villagers from the Hpa-An Township villages of Hkalauk Noi, Naung Long, Eindu, Taung Kalay, and Mizan are being called to gatherings at village administrative offices, monasteries where census data is collected from them.
He said: “The junta coordinates with monks and community leaders in the villages controlled by the KNU in Hpa-An Township. The Border Guard Force(BGF) and KNLA/PC are providing security for the census teams. Both Taung Kalay and Eindu, are included. In addition to Htilon, Pata, and Nabuu villages [in Hpa-An Township], the census is also being conducted in Painggyon and Hlaingbwe towns [both in Hlaingbwe Township, Hpa-An District]. While some people answer questions, others do not, so the census data may not be completely accurate.”
A youth who wanted to remain anonymous said: “Taung Kalay village in Hpa-An Township and Thilone Township [in Hpa-An District] are part of the area under KNU administration, but it does not fully control the area. In [Hlaingbwe Township] Kaso village, the BGF is responsible for security. In areas like Hti Pho Kain and Nhaung Myaw Lwe villages, [also in Hlaingbwe Township] security is shared between the junta and the BGF. Due to the presence of security forces, people are afraid and tend to cooperate.”
The junta's attempts at collecting census data in areas of Karen State controlled by revolutionary forces have not always gone completely to plan.
Three junta soldiers protecting census data collectors were killed in Hpa-An Township on 10 October.
In Hpapun Township, to the north of Hpa-An District in Hpapun District, a BGF member guarding census data collectors was injured, also on 10 October.
In Kyainseikgyi Township, to the south of Hpa-An District in Kyainseikgyi District junta administration officers helping with the census were hit by a drone attack whilst in the courtyard of a police station.
Despite such casualties, the junta is continuing to conduct the census in Karen State. To do so they have enlisted the help of the Karen ethnic armed organisations (EAOs) other than the KNU who signed the 2015 Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA), members of the USDP (Union Solidarity and Development Party), the Pyu Saw Htee junta-aligned militia members, people’s militia members, military informants, and military-appointed administrators.
The junta is carrying out the census from 1 to 15 October 2024 and claims it is essential to draw up voter lists for its planned 2025 elections, which critics have said will not be free or fair.
