MYANMAR: KAYAH STATE: REBELS & TROOPS CLASH

(8 May 2000) Natural Sound

Rebels fighting for independence in Myanmar, also known as Burma, have smuggled video footage of a fierce battle with government troops across the border with Thailand.

The dramatic footage shows the destruction of a village, said to have taken place last February during an intense fight between government troops and the rebels of the Karenni National Progressive Party (K-N-P-P).

The fighters captured a number of soldiers during the battle and claim to have executed them not long after these images were filmed.

The K-N-P-P have been battling Yangon for greater autonomy ever since Myanmar won its independence from Britain after the Second World War.

A village on fire in Myanmar's Kayah State.

It was attacked by the government back in February, according to one source within the anti-government Karenni National Progressive Party (K-N-P-P).

Due to the remoteness of the location the pictures have only just been obtained.

Members of the K-N-P-P managed to smuggle he pictures out to the Thai border.

It's claimed that two villagers were killed and three wounded during the fighting.

A nearby detachment of K-N-P-P rebels fought back.

A mobile medical unit operating with them came upon the action and filmed what happened.

In the course of the battle three Yangon soldiers were captured.

One of them was said to be just seventeen years old.

Their fear is obvious.

They were interrogated about the movement of troops and also, it's claimed, about opium plantations in the area.
K-N-P-P sources conflict on the fate of the prisoners.

One suggests they were sent to a refugee camp on the Thai border.

Another says the men were executed.

Though the conflict is low-level it is also bitter and often brutal.

The K-N-P-P say that twenty homes were burnt down in the clash.

The destruction of villages is commonplace along the border as government troops seek to deprive rebel forces of shelter, food and support.

It isn't clear, though, whether the captured men were part of a government offensive or part of a squad protecting nearby opium fields.

One K-N-P-P source claims Myanmar forces are spreading the drug into the Karenni area, and this was the cause of the battle.

They claim to have destroyed 200 acres out of a total area of 2000 acres.

The K-N-P-P have declared themselves to be against drug production and use.

Yangon has always denied being involved in the trade.

A rebel force of around one hundred was involved in the incident.

As well as patrolling their rugged, remote state, they were bringing medical aid to villagers who have little chance to get attention.

The armed wing of the K-N-P-P is one of a handful of ethnic forces still fighting against central control from Yangon.

They claim that they were promised independence in the wake of the end of colonialism after World War Two but were betrayed.

They signed a ceasefire with the government in the mid-1990s but the agreement broke down shortly afterwards.

It's thought the Karennis currently have no more than fifteen hundred men under arms.

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