Karen State

Despite the ceasefire between the government and Karen armed groups landmines are still a massive risk to people in Karen state. A Karen woman, Naw Ma Pain, 41-, who lives in Htee Kyar Mae village in Waw Lay area, Myawaddy Township, Karen State, stepped on the landmine on early May that resulted in the amputation of her leg. Naw Ma…

Two people were injured in two separate landmine incidents, in February and June 2013 in Mone Township, Nyaunglebin District, leading to fears that land mine areas have recently been laid. On February 2nd 2013, a 22-year-old man was walking home after collecting firewood in Maw Lay Forest when he stepped on a landmine, sustaining injuries to his leg. On June…

The Karen National Union’s armed wing, the Karen National Liberation Army’s 7th Brigade based in Hpa-an District, has entered a commercial venture – a trading and tour company. for the first time in its history earlier this month. The legally registered company is named as the Moe Ko San Travel and Tour Company Limited and Trading Company Limited and it…

The Karen National Union (KNU) has increased its efforts to destroy marijuana plantations and the selling of illegal drugs by villagers in northern Karen State. A spokesperson from the KNU’s Mutraw District office spoke to Karen News about the drug busting campaign. The KNU spokesperson explained that that the Mutraw District office has ordered local officials to search and eliminate…

Villagers from Hpa-an Township have appealed for the second time in a letter sent to President U Thein Sein for the government’s land confiscation commission to investigate claims that their lands were illegally taken by government authorities. The villagers, from Phakat, sent their latest letter to the President on June 11. Phakat villagers said that 79 plots of land were…

Mr. Yuki Nishimori, a consultant with the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) that is working on assessing the potential for development projects for the Japanese government in Mon and Karen State, met with officials from the Karen National Unions’s liaison office in Myawaddy to discuss opening an information center on issues related to refugee and internally displaced people. The meeting…

The Karen State Ministry of Transportation and Communication will ban, from this month, all unregistered vehicles from traveling between the towns of Hpa-an and Myawaddy. Saw Khaung Pan Htaw, a staff member of the Minister of Transportation and Communication, said that the ban is necessary as ASEAN countries will begin trading in Karen State in June, and it is inappropriate…

Government officials, from Nay Pyi Taw, working for the land confiscation investigation commission team and led by Dr. Htay Win were in Hpa-an last week on a fact finding mission. The investigation team met with landowners who alleged their land had been confiscated. Local farmers confirmed that the Nay Pyi Taw investigation officials called them to the Hap-an District administration…

Journalists working in Karen State claim that officials are stopping them from covering news stories, attending meeting or news events held by government departments. In the latest incident, journalists claim that on June 1 they were barred, while they were gathering news, from a meeting traffic rules and regulations held by the Karen State Land Transportation Department (Ka Nya Na)…

Karen State government officials, representatives from Burma based civil society organizations and border based community based organizations met for two days in Hpa-an on 21-22 May and reached an agreement to work together to help Karen communities that have been affected by six decades of conflict. The meeting agreed to five points to enable building a peaceful and a developed…