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When
Treated like Wild Animals by the Burmese Troops….Karen Women
in Terror
My parents were natives of Ameh Hta village in Tenasserim Riverside.
I grew up and got married in my village. We made our livelihood
on plantation and farming. I never was away from my home village
since I was a child and got four children. Now, we are forced to
leave our village and forced to live in fear and worries. We have
to abandon our native village that we inherited from our forefathers
and flee to other country. Long ago before this, we lived quite
peacefully in our village and never heard of or saw Burmese Army.
They never arrived to our village. We had our own village elder
that we chose and we had a school in our village. It was a free
area and governed by our Karen elders and leaders. We were poor
but we lived with happiness and peace, traveled and worked freely.
In a sudden, our lives turned to a nightmare - full of dangers,
worries, and we were terrified since the beginning of 1997.
February
1997, I heard the Burmese Army entered Myitta village in the north
of Tenasserim River. And we heard that fighting broke out between
the Burmese troops and the Karen soldiers. The Karen soldiers could
not fight against the Burmese troops and retreated to the south.
At the same time, the villagers along Tenasserim River were also
forced to abandon their village, homes, and flee to Thailand as
the Karen soldiers could no longer defend them. Some villagers did
not flee to Thailand; instead, they fled to the jungle up against
the stream. Villages from Ameh Hta fled to the border and some fled
to Thailand. but 12 families of us were hiding by a stream behind
our village. We also ways moved from one place to another and did
our paddy plantation secretly throughout the years since the Burmese
Army invaded our land in 1997. We have since then been living in
fear and with difficulties throughout the years.
In
February 2000, the Burmese troops started 'search to destroy and
kill' operation targeting villagers who were already displaced and
hiding in the jungle. They patrolled closer to our hiding site,
so we had to move to another place. This time we were going to cross
to Thailand, but the Burmese troops were at the Thai border blocking
our way and also the Thai army were stationed on the border so we
could not cross the border. We had to turn back to Tenasserim River
and cross the west of the bank and hide nearby another stream called
Hsgeh Kler Hkee. We started preparing paddy plantation for the coming
year to survive. We had been hiding in this site for a few months.
On the morning of August 11, my husband was gone to paddy field
and I reaped paddy in the farm. About mid-day, I returned to my
hut and dried some paddy. I was carrying my baby sucking my breast
while my other three children were in the huts.
Suddenly,
I heard two gunshots. Then I heard a storm of gunfire and also heard
the shouting and knew that this was the Burmese Army. They shot
at my hut, I ran and picked up my children in the hut through the
bullets and saw that my daughter was crying. I did not know she
was hurt, I shout at her and she calmed down. I picked her up, carried
her on my back with my little baby and another of my child, and
I ran from the hut and my elder son ran after me. Several gunfire
came to my direction but without hitting me. We ran to the stream
and then ran up. I carried my three children, let the elder walk
in from of me, and followed up the stream. After a while, we took
a rest, I put down my daughter from my back, and then I knew she
was wounded, She was thirsty, and asked for water but I did not
give her. I heard people said not to give water to a person wounded
by gun. I thought that my daughter would be alive. Then I heard
the burning, and I knew that the Burmese troops burnt down my hut.
I
sat and listened for a while, and I was aware that I had to look
for my husband and other people. I carried my children and followed
down the stream. About in the evening, I still did not find anybody.
My children were hungry. They asked from food and water, but I could
not feed them. I walked and tried to find other people for the whole
evening. At about 5 o' clock in the evening, my daughter who was
wounded that I carried on my back was still hanging on my back.
When I put her down, I found that she was not alive. I laid her
down beside the stream on the sand. I left her there.
I
picked up my two younger children, let the elder one walk, and we
started walking again. My children were crying, for they were hungry
and exhausted and asked me to rest and sleep in the forest. But
fearing that it would be dark soon without find any body, I did
not rest. I kept walking and when it got dark, I finally found a
group of villagers. They got some food. I got some rice from them
and fed my children. I could not take any rice with me, because
I was in hurried and also worrying. That night we slept with those
villagers. I could not sleep for the whole night as I worried from
my husband, and I was very sad for my daughter. Next morning, I
decided to look for my husband. But, the Burmese troops arrived
to our place found us again and we had to move further. After we
moved and at about mid day I found my husband with a few other villages.
The
Burmese troops discovered us in a sudden and attacked us so we could
not carry any of our belongings including food. My family got only
clothes that we were wearing. We only got some food when we met
with other villagers who managed to take along their little food
and shared with us. I did not know where we would get food from
for the coming time. We do not know yet. Now our friends here share
their little food with us, so we survive. Our lives are like wild
animals for the Burmese troops. They hunt our place and shoot us.
They killed my daughter Naw Say Lay. She was innocent and had nothing
against them. Even though I do not want to revenge, I could not
forget the whole thing that happened to my life. I do not want to
experience this in my life again. I miss my daughter and I always
remember that I had to leave her body with out a chance to bury
her. My mother and mother's mother faced the same fate like me.
Many people from other places in this country also may face hardships.
I only hope that other mothers do not experience and face the kind
I have.
From
CIDKP newsletter |
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