| Shot villager being treated in Kanchanaburi hospital |
| Friday, October 2, 2009 |
IMNA , Rai Maraoh
A Maezarli villager shot and seriously injured by the Burmese army is being treated at Kanchanaburi Hospital in Thailand’s Kanchanaburi Province.
On September 28th, a soldier from battalion (LBI) No.356 column 2 shot Oo Kyaw Hla, who works with the Maezarli Village Peace and Devolvement Council as a quarter headmen. The victim was sent to the Three Pagoda Pass (TPP) hospital. However, the hospital was unable to handle the severity of his wounds, and Oo Kyaw Hla was sent to Sangkhlaburi hospital, where he was again turned away due to the severity of his wounds. Oo Kyaw Hla is now hospitalized Kanchanaburi hospital.
“Not a good situation for injury, the doctors from Sangkhlaburi said maybe his left leg will have to be cut off, but now we don’t know the situation,” said friends of Oo Kyaw Hla’s family.
Battalion No.356 column 2 is made up of over 40 soldiers, and based temporarily in the Oo Kyaw Hla’s home village of Maerzali. On the night of September 28th, soldiers of column 2 were reportedly worried about a potential Karen National Union (KNU) ambush, and ordered Oo Kyaw Hla to accompany their nighttime patrols, due to his knowledge of the area.
“Oo Kyaw Hla had to help the night duty soldiers. They switched sentry duty every hour. At about 2 am when the rain had started, Oo Kyaw Hla tried to switch his place, and the soldier on duty did not recognize him and shot him four times,” a KNU officer said.
The captain of column 2 paid 20,000 kyat to cover Oo Kyaw Hla’s injury, and his fellow villagers claim to have sent him to Three Pagoda Pass hospital on September 28 about at about 4 pm. He was later sent to Kanchanaburi hospital as an emergency case.
Earlier this month, IMNA published a story in Burmese reporting on the KNU ambush of the Burmese Army Battalion No.356, which was based in a KNU controlled area. Battalion No.355 marched to combine with Burmese Army Battalion No.356, and on the night of September 28th column 2 of Battalion No.356 was marching back toward their home base, and was stopping for the night in Maezarli village.
Fighting between the KNU, the Burmese Army, and the Karen Democratic Buddhist Army (DKBA) in the Three Pagoda Pass region has been sporadic over the last few months since the formers’ invasion of the traditionally KNU controlled area.
IMNA also published a Burmese report detailing a skirmish between Battalion No.356’s column 1 and the KNU on September 28th. The battle was located between A Plone village and Myain Tar Yar village and reportedly lasted ten minutes, but a KNU source insists that no injuries were sustained.Labels: Villagers shot on site |
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 4:32 AM   |
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