Gunshots and resignations disrupt militia elections
Gunshots disrupted the elections of the political wing of the armed militia, the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army, when a former village head disagreed with the result.
As a result of the election fiasco, General Saw Ler Pwe (also known as Bo Na Kham Mwe), the patron of the DKBA’s political wing, the KloHtooBaw Karen Organisation, released an official statement to announce the suspension of the organization’s chairman and general secretary starting from September 11.
General Ler Pwe confirmed to Karen News that the decision to suspend the two officials was based upon the KKO’s policy and to solve the election disagreement issue, as both Mahn Robert Bazan (the chairman) and Saw Gon Aung (the general secretary) are illegible as they are both foreign citizens.
“We made the decision based on our rules and regulations. No one can bend the rules. Civilians have the same view as us.”
The KKO statement said some gunshots were fired during the election organized by Mahn Robert Bazan and Saw Gon Aung, to choose a new village head.
A member of the KKO executive committee (who requested his name not be used) explained to Karen News.
“The former village head didn’t agree with the election result to assign a new village head. The former village head owned weapons that were provided to him for the village security and he used the weapons because he still wanted to take the village head position.”
According to the KKO statement, Mahn Robert Bazan and Saw Gon Aung broke the organization rules by attending an ethnic meeting in the Thai city of Chiang Mai on September 9. The KKO’s statement points out that the two officials broke the organisation’s rules by attending a meeting in a foreign country.
In response to the KKO statement, Mahn Robert Bazan told Karen News.
“Thanks for my retirement, as I am in old age. I asked Major Saw Moshe (deputy chairman) not to just suspend me from duty, but to make it permanent. I never had a strong desire for the chairman’s position but just accepted the role because Bo Na Kham Mwe requested me to do so.”
Mahn Robert Bazan said he has yet to get a direct phone call from General Saw Ler Pwe about his duty suspension.
The Democratic Karen Buddhist Army’s political wing, the KKO, was founded in April 2012.
