“The events of the past week are part of the inhumanity and immorality of the army.”
So says Michael Isherwood, president of the Burma Humanitarian Mission and program director for Backpack Medics, after the Myanmar junta massacred more than 35 people, including two Save the Children workers, on Christmas Eve. At the time, the attack made international headlines, with the children’s charity calling it “absolutely horrifying” and the UN called for an investigation.
However, Isherwood says attacks like the one on December 24 are not isolated, describing an army that is “randomly shooting unarmed men, women and children, stealing livestock and burning houses, using rape as a weapon.” .
The doctors he works with recognize the risks and “understand that the Burmese military has no morals, character or anything close to civilized decency and demeanor,” he says.
Myanmar has seen assassinations, imprisonments and chaos since the military seized power from the elected government headed by Aung San Suu Kyi in February last year.
Resistance groups have emerged, but anyone who considers himself to be contrary to the military regime runs the risk of being arrested, sentenced to forced labor or assassinated. More than 1,300 people have been killed by security forces, according to a local watchdog group.
Another aid worker, who preferred not to be identified, says: “This incident in Kayah does not mark a new level of violence. It is not a change in the pattern of approach of the security forces. It is not unusual in this context. This is a normal tactic. “
She believes the attack was intended to “oppress the civilian population out of fear” rather than specifically target humanitarian workers.
“Given that they blatantly, egregiously and frequently target civilians in such a way, and since that will happen often in areas where relief activities are needed, then of course that increases collateral risks for actors in it helps her, ”she says.
His organization would continue his work regardless, he says.
The crackdown on the national media has made the details of the alleged atrocities difficult to confirm, he says, but the link to an international charity in the Christmas Eve attack has offered a grim view of the risks facing the people of Myanmar. faces habitually.
According to the Karen Human Rights Group, in the Sagaing region, 11 civilians were burned alive on December 7 and 40 people were killed in three different attacks in July.
Inger Ashing, Executive Director of Save the Children, issued a statement saying: “The people of Myanmar continue to be the target of increasing violence and these events demand an immediate response.”
‘It happened quite suddenly’
On Christmas Eve, women, children and two Save the Children staff, both new parents, aged 32 and 28, were among the victims found on a road outside the village of Moso in the state of Kayah, in eastern Myanmar, where pro-democracy rebels have been. fighting the military. Save the Children says its staff were returning to the office after working nearby when they were involved in the attack.
According to state media, the Myanmar military said it killed several “terrorists with weapons” after people in seven vehicles refused to stop. Images from the scene show the blackened remains of several bodies inside burned trucks.
An international staff member living in Myanmar, who requested anonymity for security reasons, says: “In this case, I don’t think there is a particular feeling that the road was risky. It happened suddenly. Doing it on Christmas Eve was probably not accidental. “Many in Kayah state identify as Christian.
The aid worker says that when it comes to their operations, they will stay in close contact with staff in Kayah state and continue their travels.
“We are trying to do everything we can to advise people where it is safe to go and where it is not, but you really can’t tell. It’s so widespread. “
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George is Digismak’s reported cum editor with 13 years of experience in Journalism