FROM THE DVB NEWSROOM

Dozens killed in junta airstrike on Kachin Independence Organization ceremony 

The Burma Army launched a surprise airstrike on a ceremony organized by the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO) in Hpakant Township, causing at least 50 casualties including officials of the KIO’s armed wing the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) and civilian artists. Read more here.

Experts call on UN and ASEAN to take greater action against junta

The Special Advisory Council for Myanmar (SAC-M), a group of former UN experts on Burma, urged the United Nations and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations to take urgent action against the junta for “atrocities committed against school children and teachers.” Marzuki Darusman, a member of SAC-M, said that “the junta is escalating its barbaric attacks against children and teachers in a vain attempt to break the morale of the population who steadfastly reject it and for whom education is a pillar of the society they are sacrificing so much to create.” The group condemned the recent beheading of a school teacher by junta forces in Magway. “Beheading someone and putting the body on display for the public to see is a clearly defined act of terror,” Chris Sidoti, another member of SAC-M, stated. 

ASEAN members to meet to discuss Burma this week

Southeast Asian foreign ministers are poised to hold a special meeting in Indonesia on Oct. 27 to discuss Burma’s political crisis, according to Reuters. The talks will be held at the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Secretariat in Jakarta and will discuss the implementation of the Five-Point Consensus that Burma’s junta agreed to in 2021. Cambodian diplomat Chum Sounry claimed that recommendations of how to move Burma’s peace process forward would be discussed. ASEAN has been criticized for its inability to reign in the junta as it continues to commit mass atrocities against civilian populations resisting military rule. 

Burmese kyat strengthens but remains volatile

The U.S dollar exchange rate has dropped to around K3,000. As of Oct. 21, the exchange rate was stable at around K2,900 per $1 USD, but the exchange rate fluctuated heavily after the Financial Action Task Force’s (FATK) announcement that Burma would be blacklisted. “It is said that the exchange rate was K5,000 to 6,000 per $1 USD on social media today. [But] it was actually around K3,200 per $1 USD,” a local said. The price of palm oil, which is imported from abroad, has decreased about 20 percent in recent weeks.

Another shell fired from Burma lands in Bangladesh

Another shell fired from Burma landed in Bangladesh territory on Oct. 22, according to the New Age, a Bangladesh media outlet. Local authorities evacuated 30 families living near the Burma border. A local said that the Arakan Army (AA), which is currently fighting the Burma Army in Rakhine State, took over posts near the Bangladesh border. Last month, a Rohingya teen was killed when a Burma Army shell landed in Bangladesh. Several others were injured. Bangladesh has repeatedly summoned Burma’s ambassador to protest the incursions. 

News by Region

KARENNI—A refugee was killed and two others, including a child, were injured attempting to flee the Burma Army shelling of Loikaw Township on Oct. 23. “A [man] was killed. His wife and son were injured,” a local who assisted them told DVB.

SAGAING—A 12-year-old girl was killed and another person was injured in Katha Township by Burma Army shells fired from a vessel in the Ayeyarwady River on Oct. 23. “It is said that the [Burma] Army fired indiscriminately. She was killed just after her family came out of a bomb shelter,” a local told DVB.

TANINTHARYI—A school principal, her husband, and two others were killed in Yebyu Township’s Kya Khata Pin Inn village on Oct. 22. Another villager was wounded and is in critical condition at a local hospital. “It happened at night. Villagers found out about it in the morning,” a local said.

YANGON—Two people were injured in an explosion in Shwepyitha Township on Oct. 24. The Salvation Revolters, a local resistance group, claimed responsibility for the attack. It stated the two injured were alleged military informants that they had warned to stop. There have been 18 people killed and 36 injured by explosions and gunfire in Yangon this month.

FROM THE DVB NEWSROOM

Financial Action Task Force blacklists Burma

As expected, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has blacklisted Burma from the global monetary system. The Paris-based international money laundering and terrorist financing watchdog confirmed Burma will join the likes of North Korea and Iran on its list of states failing to halt illicit financial flows. FATF President Raja Kumar stated that humanitarian aid and non-profit organizations’ activities will not be affected.

The junta’s Central Bank responded to the FATF announcement on Oct. 22 stating that it’s not a situation that concerns the country. The bank then promised that it has planned projects to get it off the blacklist within one year. Burma had been banned by the FATF from 2011 to 2016. The bank warned citizens not to conduct “any fraudulent activities” until reinstated. The FATF meeting was held on Oct. 20 and 21 in at its headquarters in Paris, France. A delegation from the junta attended the meeting. 

UN refugee agency urges ASEAN members to discontinue refoulement

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) urged Burma’s neighboring countries not to continue with refoulement. The Assistant High Commissioner for Protection at UNHCR, Gillian Triggs, said the lives of those being forcefully repatriated to Burma may be in danger. “I demand again to the countries to continue to protect Burmese nationals who fled from their country for their life security. And I also request an end to the arrest and detention of asylum seekers and refugees from Burma,” Triggs stated. The UNHCR is deeply concerned over the news of legitimate asylum seekers from Burma, who fled the country since the military coup, being sent back from neighboring countries like Thailand and Malaysia. One hundred and fifty Burma nationals were sent back from Malaysia to Burma. A total of 100 Karen asylum seekers who fled across the border to Thailand were also forcibly returned to Burma on Sept. 30.

News by Region

KAREN—The founder of the Kawthoolei (Karen) Army, Brigadier General Saw Nerdah Mya, said his fight against the junta will proceed after Friday’s attempt to seize Kawkareik from its grasp. “We already have a lot of success. Now, we need to gather and have courage. It is our responsibility to bring down this military council. We will succeed soon if we are united,” Saw Nerdah Mya said. The Karen National Union (KNU) dismissed Saw Nerdah Mya from his position as Commander-in-Chief of the Karen National Defense Organization (KNDO) after he founded the Kawthoolei Army on July 17. Read about the efforts to wrest control of Kawkareik here.

YANGON—More than 100 Rohingya were arrested during a home inspection in Myothit Township on Oct. 20, a local told DVB. “They took the vehicles as well as the drivers,” he said. Junta forces surrounded the home and arrested 121 Rohingya and four others – including the home owner and drivers. Around 300 Rohingya have been arrested in Twante, South Dagon, North Dagon and Shwe Pyi Thar Townships so far this year.

A 100-household administrator, his wife, and another man were killed in Hlaing township on Oct. 22, according to locals. Unidentified gunmen entered the home, located on Thiri 5th Street in No. 2 ward. “His wife was a clerk. I don’t know if his nephew worked but all three of them were shot and killed. Now, the security is really tight as there were shootings the previous days,” a local told DVB. Their bodies were later sent to Yangon General Hospital. The security forces blocked Thiri 5th street for its investigation. Last week, three senior military officers and a soldier were killed in the area.

A husband and wife were shot by gunmen at U Kyin U market in North Dagon Township on Oct. 22.  “A motorcycle stopped near them and fired ten rounds of shots. The man was killed at the place and the woman seriously wounded,” a local told DVB. Ground News Coverage (GNC), an urban guerrilla group, claimed responsibility for the murder.

TANINTHARYI—Junta officials have given three months for the owners of 37 stalls in front of Myoma Football stadium in Myeik town to vacate the premises. The Department of Sports and Physical Education of Myeik District rented out the stalls under a 30-year contract to the vendors but on Oct. 14, authorities forced them to sign statements giving up that right. The current value of a vendor stall is around K30 million ($14,200 USD). Following the coup, the military council has forcibly removed shops and buildings under long-term lease agreements.

RAKHINE—The United League of Arakan (ULA) announced that it handed a 20-year prison sentence, along with 30 lashes, to two Arakan Army (AA) troops found guilty of rape. A complaint was filed in Buthidaung Township to the Arakan Army (AA) – the military wing of the ULA – about two AA troops who raped a woman from Kyaung Daw village on Oct. 1, 2022. The ULA court handed its verdict in accordance with military law with the victim’s family as witnesses, as well as local religious leaders, reported Narinjara News. 

The AA captured a Rohingya Solidarity Organization ( RSO ) outpost near Bandula village, Maungdaw Township, on Oct. 22. “We lost 7 cows from Bandhula village. We had experienced such things [missing cows] many times. The villagers reported to the AA about this. After that, I learned that the AA found the outpost while searching for the missing cows and seized it. It is known that the missing cows have been sent to Bangladesh,” a local told DVB. A local military analyst said that the AA forces have taken over northern Maungdaw, areas where Rohingya armed groups such as ARSA and RSO have been active in the past. “After the AA had dominated the areas, the [Burma] military’s strategy changed. ARSA and RSO are being forced [by the Burma Army] to reactivate in the Maungdaw region,” the analyst said.

SAGAING—Witnesses claimed that the Burma Army beheaded two People’s Defense Force (PDF) members in Yin Baung Taing village, Yinmabin Township, on Oct. 20. The Burma Army arrested 37 locals sheltering inside a monastery the previous day, according to a man released by the junta troops. “We were brought to Yin Baung Taing village after they arrested us. We were then brought to the Pale region and were told to carry their bags on the way there. On the way, they arrested two PDF members and beheaded them alive. They held up and showed us the heads and warned us not to join PDFs if we do not wish to have this fate,” the local told DVB. The Yoma Fighter, a local resistance force, confirmed that two of its members went missing. Over 80 Burma Army troops launched an offensive on Pale from Yinmabin Township.

The Burma Army destroyed at least 10 houses and killed farm animals along the bank of Ayeyarwaddy River in Katha Township on Oct.20. Seven vessels traveling from Tigyaing to Katha town fired at buildings on the river bank, a spokesperson of Katha People’s Defense Force (PDF) told DVB. “They shot at everything including religious buildings. We don’t know what the casualties are,” he said. The Katha PDF announced that villagers should protect themselves and their livestock ahead of potential clashes. The announcement stated that locals should report damages, losses and injuries to the National Unity Government (NUG) through the Katha Township People’s Administration.

An estimated 10 PDF members were killed at Yinmarpin’s Shwehlan village on Oct. 21. According to local news reports, the dead bodies of the PDF members were found burned. “The [Burma Army] entered and shot while the PDF were sleeping in a house in the village,” a local told DVB.

In Myaung Township, five civilians from Shwephappin village are missing after Burma Army shells hit a boat traveling up the Irrawaddy River on Oct. 22. “The weapon fell straight on the motorboat and sank. There are 6 people on the boat. One escaped. 5 are missing in the Irrawaddy River,” said a local PDF.