Myanmar Spring Chronicle – April 06 Scenes
MoeMaKa, April 07 2023
Fighting in Shwe Koke Ko continues; Fighting increases in Karen State; Fighting between the PDF and military council in Naungcho, Shan State
The fighting that started early in the morning on April 5 near Shwe Koke Ko Village in Myawaddy Township, Karen State, is still going on, and more war refugees are fleeing to Thailand, according to news reports. In the first 2 days, there were only more than 2,000 people fleeing the war, and in the latest news, there have been 5,000 people fleeing the war.
According to news reports, the clashes started when the Karen armed Border Guard Force shot 3 PDFs who were arrested by Thailand and handed over back to Myanmar, claiming they had escaped, recaptured them, and handed them over to the military council.
The KNLA joint forces attacked Shwe Koke Ko Village, which is the main base and business center of the border guard forces operating under the command of the military council. That village is also known for its casinos and transnational online scam businesses. These illegal, semi-criminal businesses, approved by the Border Guard Forces and the military, which have existed since the previous government regimes, are gaining notoriety in Southeast Asia.
There were clashes between the military council and the Karen armed forces in other villages and areas in Myawaddy Township, but there were no incidents in this area. This time, this is the first battle that took place in the Shwe Koke Ko Village areas, where the Border Guard Forces are based. Base camps of Karen armed groups and the military council are often attacked, but the Karen armed forces do not normally attack each other’s bases. It can be concluded that the attack was due to the handing over of 3 PDF members to the military council.
In Karen State, in addition to the fighting near the village of Shwe Koke Ko, there are reports of fighting happening near the town of Kawkareik today. On the 5th and 6th of April, fighting was going on around the area where the offices were opened collectively in Kawkareik, and there were reports that some civilians were injured due to the heavy weapons fired back by the military council battalion.
A notice with the signatures of some of the commanders of the Karen armed groups was also found on social media, asking the civilians not to use the Myawaddy-Kawkareik road on today’s date.
This month, we have seen that the fighting in Karen State is increasing rapidly. Some military posts on the border were attacked and captured, and a second attack on Kawkareik and Kyondoe took place. The number of refugees fleeing the war is also increasing.
After the news of the battle in Karen State, we also saw reports of PDF forces and military council forces fighting in Naungcho Township in northern Shan State. It was reported in the news that some civilians were hit by bullets during the fighting near Than Bo Village in Naungcho Township, and 2 people, including a child, were killed.
At the end of last year, there were clashes in Naungcho Township, Shan State. We haven’t heard any news about the fighting for a long time after that, but now it’s happening again. Shan State, which is the largest in terms of territory in Myanmar, is the area where the fighting between the military council forces and the Kokang armed forces takes place around Monekoe Muse, where the clashes with the TNLA forces often occur in Namhsan Township, Kutkai, areas bordering the Karenni region in southern Shan State, and sometimes it happens in the Naungcho region. In some parts of the eastern, central, and southern Shan States, they maintain the ceasefire agreement with the military council.
The military and armed forces of SAC continue to commit violent killings in the Anyar Region, Karen, Kayah, and Tanintharyi regions. It is said that the military group aims to crush the revolutionary war before the rainy season. Supporters also say that the Spring Revolution forces are waging wars of defense and resistance, as well as wars of supremacy and footholds. The military council has only committed violence and torture against civilians in the past four months. If they can’t get the upper hand militarily, in the next four months, we will have to wait and see if the people who are surrounded by resentment and heartfelt pain on the part of the Spring Revolution will be able to respond, prevent and take action against the military council based on their strength.
Within 4 months, the military council has taken steps to destroy the people’s lives and property through military means. In addition, political parties that do not follow the military council have been dissolved, so it can be said that the path to an inclusive political solution has also been abolished. If the military agrees to leave the political area permanently, the NUG government has opened the door to discuss and find a solution through political means, but it is already clear that the military group has chosen no other way than to defeat the revolutionaries violently using military force.