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Myanmar: Conflicts and Human Rights Violations Continue to Cause Displacement

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Myanmar: Conflicts and Human Rights Violations Continue to Cause Displacement 5 March 2009 Myanmar: Conflicts and human rights violations continue to cause displacement Displacement as a result of conflict and human rights violations continued in Myanmar in 2008. An estimated 66,000 people from ethnic minority communities in eastern Myanmar were forced to become displaced in order to avoid the effects of armed conflict and human rights abuses. As of October 2008, there were at least 451,000 people reported to be inter- nally displaced in the rural areas of eastern Myanmar. This is however a conservative fig- ure, and there is no information available on figures for internally displaced people (IDPs) in several parts of the country. In 2008, the displacement crisis continued to be most acute in Kayin (Karen) State in the east of the country where an intense offensive by the Myanmar army against ethnic insur- gent groups had been ongoing since late 2005. As of October 2008, there were reportedly over 100,000 IDPs in the state. New displacement was also reported in 2008 in western Myanmar’s Chin State as a result of human rights violations and severe food insecurity. People also continued to be displaced in some parts of the country due to a combination of coercive measures such as forced la- bour and land confiscation that left them with no choice but to migrate, often in the context of state-sponsored development initiatives. IDPs living in the areas of Myanmar still affected by armed conflict between the army and insurgent groups remained the most vulnerable, with their priority needs tending to be re- lated to physical security, food, shelter, health and education. Humanitarian access to this population continued to be very restricted. An unprecedented level of access for humanitarian workers was permitted in response to Cyclone Nargis which struck the Ayeyarwady (Irrawaddy) Delta in May 2008, but govern- ment restrictions on humanitarian access continued elsewhere in Myanmar and frustrated efforts to reach conflict-affected IDPs. Additionally, the awareness of the international community of the nature and extent of conflict-displacement in Myanmar continued to be limited. www.internal-displacement.org Map of Myanmar Source: United Nations Cartographic Section More maps are available on http://www.internal-displacement.org/ 2 Myanmar: Conflicts and human rights violations continue to cause displacement 5 March 2009 Background Party of Burma collapsed, allowing the army to concentrate its forces on ethnic Intense international attention focused on insurgencies which by this time were Myanmar in May 2008 due to the hu- mostly confined to the northern and east- manitarian crisis created by Cyclone ern border areas (University of Oxford Nargis that struck the Ayeyarwady (Ir- RSC, February 2007, p.3). rawaddy) Delta region. The cyclone se- verely affected 2.4 million people and led Between 1989 and 1995, ceasefires were to the initial displacement of 800,000 agreed between the government and a people. After it became clear that the majority of the armed ethnic groups. Cur- military government, currently known as rently only two significant insurgent or- the State Peace and Development Council ganisations remain in armed conflict with (SPDC), was not immediately opening up the SPDC. However, the number of peo- international access to affected areas, in- ple displaced because of these or earlier ternational pressure increased and after a conflicts for whom no durable solution series of diplomatic initiatives, a meeting has been found must be calculated in the between UN Secretary-General Ban Ki- millions, and includes vulnerable com- moon and Senior General Than Shwe led munities that have been living in dis- to a commitment to allow access to af- placement for decades (University of fected areas. The international assistance Oxford RSC, February 2007, pp.3-6). was to be facilitated through a coordina- The most acutely vulnerable internally tion mechanism led by the Association of displaced people (IDPs) live in those ar- South-East Asian Nations or ASEAN eas of the country still affected by sig- (Belanger and Horsey, ODI-HPN, De- nificant levels of armed conflict cember 2008, pp.3-4). Aid agencies have (University of Oxford RSC, February subsequently delivered assistance thanks 2007, p.4). to an unprecedented level of access and mobility in the Delta, and international There continues to be limited awareness organisations have reported access to any among the international community about requested part, including ethnic minority the scale of this conflict and related dis- areas, and the ability to send international placement crisis, even as at least half a staff to train, implement and monitor million people are estimated to be cur- programmes without obstruction (RI, 5 rently living as IDPs in eastern Myanmar. September 2008). Despite concessions made in the Ayeyarwady Delta after Cyclone Nargis, The situation, however, remains very dif- restrictions on humanitarian access have ferent for those internally displaced as a continued elsewhere in Myanmar and result of conflict between government frustrated efforts to reach conflict- forces and ethnic insurgent groups in affected IDPs (TBBC, FMR, December Myanmar, and by associated human rights 2008, p.14). violations. Since independence from Brit- ain in 1948, Myanmar has been subject to Causes of displacement armed conflicts, in the form of a commu- nist insurgency and a series of inter-linked The scale of internal displacement in ethnic rebellions. In 1989, the Communist Myanmar remains difficult to accurately 3 Myanmar: Conflicts and human rights violations continue to cause displacement 5 March 2009 assess due to the political sensitivities of cuts” counter-insurgency strategy which the government and impossible to assess aims to prevent the armed opposition in areas under the government’s control groups’ access to supplies, information, (TBBC, October 2008, p.8). The impact recruits and food (ANU, June 2007). of the conflicts, and government policies including counter-insurgency strategies, According to Amnesty International, on the enjoyment of human rights of ci- since at least the early 1980s, civilians in vilians and IDPs in particular have been areas of ongoing conflict in Myanmar documented in areas of eastern Myanmar. have been relocated to fenced settlements known as relocation sites. Villagers are According to Refugees International in characteristically given short notice peri- May 2007, the SPDC has been the ods prior to relocation, and villages may biggest perpetrator of human rights be burned down and mined in order to violations in the country, while to a lesser prevent return. Members of the army have extent abuses have been carried out by in many reported cases shot and killed ethnic insurgent groups. These groups people found in their villages after the have positioned themselves as the expiry of the notice period. Villagers have defenders of minority populations against reported being told that they would be the aggression of state forces. However killed if they fail to comply with reloca- they have been unable to defend civilians tion orders, and that anyone who re- against government action in retaliation mained would be taken to be supporters to their guerilla tactics. Since the 1960s, of armed oppositions groups and therefore in response to protracted insurgencies in treated as a legitimate military target dur- most ethnic minority areas, the army or ing counter-insurgency operations or Tatmadaw has often pursued brutal combat (AI, June 2008, p.26). counter-insurgency strategies, including the forced relocation of civilian In order to avoid going to relocation sites, populations (ANU, June 2007). some villagers have fled into the jungle, sometimes to hiding places prepared in The Karen National Union (KNU) and advance. They flee with only what they other insurgent groups have an interest in can carry, such as infant children, uten- controlling, or at least maintaining, sils, blankets, plastic sheeting, and a few civilian populations in traditional ethnic days’ supply of rice. Once the offensive lands, as a source of legitimacy, and of is over and troops have returned to their food, intelligence, soldiers and porters. camps, some villagers have tried to return On this basis they bear some to or near their fields and villages, while responsibility for the plight of civilians in others have remained displaced in hiding areas where they operate. For nearly 60 for longer periods (Eubank, FMR, April years, they have fought an armed conflict 2008, p.11). against the central government although the possibility of any military victory Besides direct relocation or eviction or- ended several years ago. Nevertheless ders issued by the military and civil au- most forms of displacement and thorities, internal displacement in associated human rights abuses still occur Myanmar results from a combination of in the context of the Tatmadaw’s “four coercive measures, such as forced labour, 4 Myanmar: Conflicts and human rights violations continue to cause displacement 5 March 2009 extortion and land confiscation, which drive down incomes to the point that According to TBBC, while the total num- people have no choice but to leave their ber of IDPs in eastern Myanmar’s Kayin homes (UN Special Rapporteur on the State, Kayah (Karenni) State, Shan State, situation of human rights in Myanmar, 7 Mon State, Tanintharyi (Tenasserim) Di- March 2008, p.17). Displacement has vision and Bago Division was likely to be also occurred in the context of state-
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