Nearly two hundred civilians were killed in the KNU territories at the hands of the military council in two years
According to a report by the KNU Human Rights Committee, 192 civilians were killed and 485 injured due to the military's human rights violations in the 7 areas controlled by the Karen National Union (KNU). On March 27, a report entitled "Human Lives Lost Due to War Crimes of the Myanmar Army" was published, which summarised the human rights violations committed by the Military Council Army in the KNU-controlled areas during the two years after the military coup. According to the report, the army committed 19 types of human rights violations in the areas under the control of the Karen National Union, 1,493 times. There are 19 forms of killing, shooting with large weapons, Air and bombing incidents are the most involved including air strikes shooting with large/small arms, forcible arrest, sexual violence, use as a human shield, torture arrest and demand money. "I understand that their (Military Council Army's) aim is to win the war and control the territory, and the main thing is to win the war," said KNU Central News and Information Officer Pado Saw Ka Lal Sae. He said that the military council's human rights violations in KNU-controlled areas have increased in 2023. The current report of the KNU Human Rights Committee only lists the events from 2021 to 2022. According to the report, there are more than 1,300 civilians who have been arrested and unjustly detained or forced to act as human shields in two years, and there are many people who have not been released and who have not heard any news.
According to the report, more than 50 hospitals and religious buildings were destroyed, and more than 880 civilian homes were damaged due to aerial bombardment.
In addition, more than 360,000 civilians in seven KNU-controlled areas have fled their homes, and the number has increased this year, according to the KNU-Central News and Information Officer. "There are requests from international organizations and ASEAN countries for the civilian population. It is to support the people who are fleeing," he said.
International governments and organizations, including the United Nations, the Thai government and ASEAN member countries to set a no-fly zone which is to help and support those fleeing the war. KNU's human rights report calls for 18 points to take action on human rights violations by military leaders. “I want to say that everything that is included in the report is what we want to say and what actually happened on the ground. International organizations, international governments, and the United Nations should pay attention to what we say," said KNU- Central News and Information Officer Pado Saw Ka Lal Sae.
According to the report, more than 7,200 clashes took place in KNU-controlled areas in two years, including 230 airstrikes and more than 750 artillery fire. ISP Myanmar, a data-based research organization, claims that in the two years following the military coup, there have been a total of more than 8,000 battles in more than 190 townships across the country, more than half of which were between ethnic armed forces and the military council.
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