FROM THE DVB NEWSROOM
Twenty-four workers forced to work at Yangon garment factory
Twenty-four workers from the Thukha Aung Garment Factory were locked inside after a work stoppage on Sept. 7. The 24 workers were not yet paid for August and stopped sewing garments and demanded payment from their supervisor. “Salaries need to be paid directly [to] them. It is not to be paid to the supervisor. The workers did not accept this and said they will make a complaint at the worker-employer mediation office. The employer then closed the door and said that the workers were not allowed to leave and forced them to sew until they were finished,” a source told DVB. The 24 garment workers have asked for help from a labor union regarding the violations. “We have met with the factory’s authorities. They said they would negotiate. We are monitoring this,” a labor activist representing the garment workers said. The Thukha Aung Garment Factory is located in Yangon’s Shwe Pyi Thar Industrial Zone. It employs more than 100 garment workers. More than one million people have lost their jobs since last year’s military coup, according to the International Labor Organization (ILO). Labor rights violations have increased as employers have taken advantage of Burma’s dwindling job opportunities, labor activists claimed.
Karenni National Progressive Party marks the anniversary of Karenni Martyrs Day
The Karenni National Progressive Party (KNPP) held the 74th anniversary of Karenni Martyrs Day on Sept. 8 at Nyamo (aka Tharle Duso). Nyamo is the headquarters of the KNPP and the Karenni Army, the armed wing of the KNPP. During the ceremony, salutations were made for the Karenni martyrs killed defending their people. This was done with letters read, prayers made, and wreaths laid. The KNPP stated that it is now the time to test the spirit of its resistance to dictatorship, and to make clear its commitment to truth and justice in its revolution. Karenni Martyr’s Day marks the death of Bee Tu Ree – the father of the Karenni nation – on Sept.8, 1948.
News by Region
KACHIN—A junta appointed 100-household administrator in Mogaung town was killed on Sept. 8. Unidentified gunmen fired six shots at the administrator from Zay Kone ward, according to locals. “He owned a guest house and restaurant. He was shot dead at about 4 a.m. We don’t know who did it,” a local told DVB. The administrator was claimed to be a member of the Burma Army-backed Pyusawhti militia, but DVB was unable to independently verify. Last July, several explosions took place in Mogaung Township. A police sergeant was killed after a bomb went off near the municipal market.
MON—A retired Burma Army major was shot dead in Bilin Township on Sept. 8. Hla Win Thein was killed in front of his home by two unidentified gunmen on a motorcycle. The retired major served as the chairman of the Bilin Township Security and Cooperation Committee, formed by the junta. He was also a vice chairman of the Bilin Township Veterans Association. According to residents, Hla Win Thein took part in the “arbitrary arrests” and “unfair charges” handed out to locals opposing the junta.
SAGAING—Tamu PDF Battalion-3 announced that it seized a shipment
of yaba pills (methamphetamine) in Tamu Township, located along the India-Burma border, on Sept. 6. “We do not know how large it is yet as the number of pills and their value is still being investigated,” a PDF member told DVB. The resistance group added that it would continue its investigation and take action against drug smugglers. On Aug. 30, the PDF confiscated 200 cartons of Dagon Beer, a Burma Army-linked beer company, being transported on the Asia Highway. The Tamu PDF Battalion-3 warned that it would take action against Burma Army-owned products, as well as smugglers transporting illegal drugs, gold or timber.
