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Category: ASEAN

Cambodia, Laos sack foreign ministers in preparation for more combative geopolitics

Editor04 mins

On Nov. 19, Sok Chenda Sophea, who was only brought in as Cambodia’s foreign minister last year, was given the in as secretary of state. Washington’s leading China hawk is expected to take a much tougher stance on Beijing’s partners in Asia, such as Cambodia, and on mainland Southeast Asia’s vast scam industry that is increasingly victimizing U.S. citizens. Unlike Sok Chenda Sophea, Prak is more of a ruling-party partisan who can push back against U.S. criticism. Presumably, Phnom Penh realizes it’ll soon have to wade into a new fight with Washington, making it even more important to be on the best terms with Beijing. Beijing won’t be displeased by Prak’s return. Attuned to Beijing China is believed to have grown weary with some of the princelings installed in Hu Manet’s cabinet during last year’s vast generational succession process. It has been lobbying for the return of Prak, an old-style politician who understands how Beijing prefers things to be done. In Vientiane, Saleumxay did a good job in recent years of pitching Laos to the rest of the world, including the West, and as the only fluent English speaker in the Politburo was key to securing some important development assistance packages from Japan, the U.S., and European states. Yet Laos’s dire economic situation, particularly its massive debts to China, isn’t improving, and only Beijing has the ability to assist meaningfully. A damning report by the IMF published last week noted that Laos’s economy “critically relies on the continued extension of debt relief from China.” Vientiane knows it must narrow its foreign relations again to focus squarely on China. Indeed, the communist party is eager to find a more senior role for pro-Beijing figures like Sommath Pholsena, currently a deputy president of the National Assembly and a childhood friend of Xi Jinping, China’s president. He’ll likely be the next National Assembly chair. Thongsavanh Phomvihane, the new foreign minister, started his career at Laos’s embassy in Beijing, has closer ties to the Chinese Communist Party, and is more of a party loyalist than Saleumxay. Like Prak, he’s an older, more traditional and safer pair of hands, someone who understands what Beijing wants and how to provide that. David Hutt is a research fellow at the Central European Institute of Asian Studies (CEIAS) and the Southeast Asia Columnist at the Diplomat. He writes the Watching Europe In Southeast Asia newsletter. The views expressed here are his own and do not reflect the position of RFA. We are : Investigative Journalism Reportika Investigative Reports Daily Reports Interviews Surveys Reportika

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Cambodian trafficking victim describes forced marriage, abuse in China

Editor011 mins

Sok Suosdey had always worked hard to help support her family in Cambodia’s Oddar Meanchey province, on the border with Thailand, but no matter what she did, they remained poor. In 2016, things became even more dire when her family was saddled with repayment of a loan to a local bank. So when a neighbor approached her that year with the opportunity to make a higher salary in China, Sok Suosdey – who asked to use a pseudonym for this report to protect her privacy – leapt at the chance. After making the necessary preparations, she departed to the bustling city of Shanghai, excited with the prospect of becoming financially independent in China and helping her family get free from debt back home. But around a month after her arrival, the woman who had promised her a job told her she would have to marry a deaf Chinese man and if she refused, she would be on the hook for the costs associated with her relocation to China – a sum far beyond her ability to pay. Sok Suosdey agreed, but said that after her marriage, she was reduced to “a slave” in her husband’s home. She was made to take a job to earn money for the family, but her mother-in-law also forced her to do household chores whenever she had a break, and subjected her to relentless physical and mental abuse, she said. “Every day, my mother-in-law chased me to work from 10 am-11 pm, sometimes until 2 am,” she told RFA Khmer. “I only slept three hours a night, and I worked very hard. When I was at home, I also worked as a seamstress, sometimes as a laborer, or putting springs into children’s water guns.” Sok Suosdey said that if she needed new clothes, she was made to buy them with her own money. Her mother-in-law also refused to let her communicate with Cambodian friends she made or with family members back home, as “she was afraid I would run away from home.” “My Chinese mother-in-law insulted me and made me hurtful and fed up,” she said. Things were no different after having a child with her husband. “The most painful thing was that after I gave birth to a son, my mother-in-law kept me away from him and didn’t let him know who I was,” she said. “She wouldn’t let me take care of him and would even call the police when I tried to take him to school.” Trafficking to China According to a report by the human rights group Adhoc, in the first nine months of 2024, at least 29 Cambodian women were trafficked to China. Of the trafficked women, 28 were forced to marry Chinese men. According to the same source, in 2023, 28 Cambodian women were rescued from human trafficking in China. The NGO said that some of the women who married Chinese men were beaten, abused and forced to work as slaves by their husbands and families. In addition to physically and mentally abusing the women, some families also forced them into sex work, leaving them traumatized, it said. RELATED STORIES Trafficked Cambodian teenage girl returns from China Cambodian teen rescued from family home in China after Facebook plea ‘He told me that if I ran away he would report me to the Chinese police’ Sok Suosdey told RFA that, because she could no longer endure the abuse, she saved enough money to buy a mobile phone and started to seek help via social media. She started a group on Facebook for Cambodians in China and spent time searching for people she knew lived close to her parents back home. It was through these sources that she was able to contact her mother and get authorities at the Cambodian Consulate to intervene on her behalf. On July 16, 2024 – seven years after being trafficked to China – Sok Suosdey finally returned home to her family in Cambodia. Now 35, things have not been easy for Sok Suosdey back home, according to Sun Maly, the head of Adhoc’s Women’s Unit. She is the sole breadwinner of a household with an elderly mother, a father who was blinded during Cambodia’s civil war, and a younger brother with a mental disorder. But despite the challenges, Sok Suosdey is thankful for her rescue and overjoyed to be reunited with her loved ones, she said. Assisting victims When victims of human trafficking return to Cambodia, they receive assistance from the Ministry of Social Affairs’ Veterans and Youth Rehabilitation agency, which provides them with mental health treatment and rehabilitation. However, the assistance is only temporary, and many victims face a long road to recovery. A Cambodian victim of trafficking (c) hugs her parents after she returns home from being rescued in China, in an undated photo. Once a victim is released from the Ministry of Social Affairs, humanitarian groups such as Adhoc step in to provide additional help. Adhoc’s Sun Maly said that her NGO now provides victims with sewing machines to help them achieve financial stability by starting their own business following their rescue. “My case manager has helped to find skilled trainers who can help women victims in tailoring,” she said. “Most villages have tailors, but as they age out, a victim with the ability to sew can replace them by setting up their own garment business.” Some victims told RFA that the Cambodian government needs to do more to pressure Chinese authorities to investigate claims of trafficking inside China. Chou Bun Eng, the permanent deputy chair of the Ministry of Interior’s Anti-Trafficking Committee, told RFA that she has met with Chinese authorities in the past to highlight the need to investigate such claims. However, she said that her Chinese counterparts regularly deny that there are any cases of Cambodian women being trafficked and forced into marriage in China – only consensual marriages. Domestic violence they classify as a “family dispute,” she said. “I’m not saying that all cases involve trafficking –…

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Vietnam’s Politburo disciplines former parliament chairman

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Vietnam’s Politburo has disciplined former National Assembly Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue for violations in office, the Tuoi Tre news site reported on Friday. The Communist Party’s top body ruled that Hue violated party and state regulations, particularly in the “blazing furnace” fight against corruption and failed to set an example while head of parliament, as a Politburo member, and as secretary of the National Assembly’s party unit. The Politburo also sanctioned former Transport Minister Nguyen Van The for violations in office. It said former President Vo Van Thuong was also at fault but wouldn’t be disciplined while undergoing medical treatment. Thuong was forced to step down as president in March. Hue was made to resign the National Assembly chairmanship in May. The stepped down as transport minister in Oct. 2022. Some political analysts argue that the “blazing furnace,” spearheaded by former Communist Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong – and taken up by his successor, To Lam, on Trong’s death on July 19 – is a way for Vietnam’s top leader to get rid of potential competitors. The general secretary is considered the most powerful of the “four pillars” which include the president, prime minister and parliament chairperson. Lam filled a dual role as general secretary and president until Luong Cuong became president on Oct. 21. Cuong is seen by some analysts as a “place filler” president ahead of the 2026 National Congress, which selects Politburo members, effectively deciding who will be elected to the four top government positions. Edited by Mike Firn. RELATED STORIES Activists call on Vietnam’s top leader to honor rights commitment Vietnam land scandal involved government leaders, former minister says Vietnam’s parliament names Luong Cuong president We are : Investigative Journalism Reportika Investigative Reports Daily Reports Interviews Surveys Reportika

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Children make up nearly 40% of Myanmar’s 3.4 million displaced: UN

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Read RFA coverage of this topic in Burmese. Children make up nearly 40% of the more than 3.4 million people displaced in Myanmar due to the civil war, UNICEF said Thursday. The findings from United Nations Children’s Fund came as an organization that monitors conflict in Myanmar said the ruling junta and affiliated groups have killed more than 670 children since the military seized power in a February 2021 coup d’etat, sparking the conflict. In a statement on Thursday — a day after World Children’s Day — UNICEF Deputy Executive Director Ted Chaiban said that the humanitarian crisis in Myanmar is “reaching a critical inflection point,” with escalating conflict and climate shocks “putting children and families at unprecedented risk.” He said that approximately 1 million people have been affected by the country’s war, which was sparked amid public opposition to the military takeover, and devastation caused by late September’s Cyclone Yagi — Southeast Asia’s worst storm of the year. Chaiban said that during a recent trip to Myanmar’s embattled Kachin state, he saw children “cut off from vital services, including healthcare and education, and suffering from the effects of violence and displacement.” “[I] saw firsthand how vulnerable children and other civilians are in conflict-affected areas and the urgent need to uphold international humanitarian law to protect them from such brutal attacks,” he said. RELATED STORIES Myanmar junta airstrike kills children playing by a church, group says Over a dozen children missing after Myanmar boat accident Myanmar tops grim world ranking of landmine victims Chaiban noted that minors account for 32% of the more than 1,000 people injured and killed by landmines and other explosive devices since the start of the conflict. “The increasing use of deadly weapons in civilian areas, including airstrikes and landmines hitting homes, hospitals, and schools, has severely restricted the already limited safe spaces for children, robbing them of their right to safety and security,” he said, adding that “the situation is dire.” Chaiban called for all stakeholders in Myanmar to guarantee safe and unhindered aid, especially for children and families in conflict zones, to remove administrative barriers and ensure minimum operating standards and to protect children from grave violations. “International humanitarian law must be upheld, with a focus on protecting civilians and civilian infrastructure – including schools and hospitals – and ensuring safe passage for those fleeing from violence,” he said. Additionally, he urged the international community to increase its support for the country’s children through funding and advocacy. “The cost of inaction is far too high — Myanmar’s children cannot afford to wait,” he said. Hundreds of children killed Also on Thursday, the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners – Burma reported that, as of Nov. 20, the junta and its affiliate groups had killed at least 671 children in Myanmar since the coup nearly four years ago. The group said that the number showed a year-on-year increase in child mortality rates, attributable to the conflict. In 2021, AAPP said, 101 children under the age of 18 were reported killed, followed by 136 the following year. By 2023, the number had increased to 208 and, by the end of 2024, had reached 226 child fatalities. In one of the worst incidents since the coup, the junta bombed Konlaw village in Kachin state’s Momauk township on Nov. 15, killing nine displaced people, including seven children, the group said. Amid an escalating toll of child casualties caused by airstrikes, Naw Susanna Hla Hla Soe, the shadow National Unity Government’s Minister of Women, Youth, and Children’s Affairs, called for urgent measures to ban the sale of aviation fuel to Myanmar’s military. “We urgently request the cessation of aircraft fuel sales to the military regime, as it is being used to carry out brutal attacks that result in the killing of children,” she said during remarks delivered at a World Children’s Day event in Myanmar on Wednesday. Attempts by RFA to reach junta spokesperson Major General Zaw Min Tun for comment on the situation facing children in Myanmar went unanswered Thursday. According to the AAPP, junta authorities have killed at least 5,974 civilians since the military coup. Translated by Kalyar Lwin. Edited by Joshua Lipes and Malcolm Foster. We are : Investigative Journalism Reportika Investigative Reports Daily Reports Interviews Surveys Reportika

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Myanmar’s Kachin insurgents take control of their border with China

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Read RFA coverage of this topic in Burmese. The most powerful insurgent group in northern Myanmar had captured the last crossing in its region on the border with China in defiance of Chinese efforts to press it and other Myanmar rebel forces to make peace with the junta that seized power in 2021. The Kachin Independence Army, or KIA, has been fighting for self-determination in Myanmar’s northernmost Kachin state on and off for decades and has made significant advances against the military over the past year. KIA and allied fighters launched a final push for Kan Paik Ti town, 75 kilometers (46 miles) east of the state capital, Myitkyina, early on Wednesday and captured it by around 7 p.m., a resident and a source close to the KIA said. “The junta soldiers fled to the border fence or to the Chinese side,” said a town resident who declined to be identified for safety reasons. “Employees of the junta administration have also been fleeing from the border gate to China.” Junta forces initially sent an aircraft to fire at insurgent positions but the town was quiet on Thursday, the resident said. The source close to the KIA said junta forces had launched attacks in other areas after the fall of Kan Paik Ti. Residents had no information about casualties in the latest fighting. Kan Paik Ti town on the China-Myanmar border in Kachin state on Nov. 20, 2024. RFA tried to reach Kachin state’s junta spokesperson, Moe Min Thein, and the KIA’s information officer, Naw Bu, for information but neither responded by time of the publication. The KIA and allied forces in northeastern, western and eastern Myanmar have made stunning gains over the past year, putting the army under the most severe pressure it has faced since shortly after independence from Britain in 1948. But the insurgents’ success has alarmed giant neighbor China, which has extensive economic interests in Myanmar, including energy pipelines running up from the Indian Ocean and mining projects. RELATED STORIES Residents in Myanmar feel the crunch as trade with China shuts down Myanmar junta chief seeks China’s help on border stability Fresh Chinese support may not be enough to save Myanmar junta China has thrown its support behind the junta, promising to back an election next year that the junta hopes will bolster its legitimacy, and putting pressure on the KIA and other insurgent groups to respond positively to junta offers of talks. The junta leader, Sen. Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, renewed a call to insurgent forces to talk peace while on a visit to China on Nov. 6, telling Chinese Prime Minister Li Qiang that stability was crucial for economic development and trade. But the insurgents have dismissed the junta’s offer as a trick and reject the planned election as a sham when Myanmar’s most popular politician, Aung San Suu Kyi, and hundreds of other opponents of military rule are in prison. Over the past year, the KIA has captured jade and rare earth mines that export to China, and both sides have at different times sealed the border, partly to put economic pressure on the other side. China recently closed the border to civilians seeking shelter from fighting and has also shut off supplies reaching KIA-controlled areas leading to shortages of fuel and medicine. The KIA responded by suspending exports of rare earths to China, and the group now controls every border crossing through which the minerals vital to a range of Chinese manufacturing pass. Translated by Kiana Duncan. Edited by RFA Burmese. We are : Investigative Journalism Reportika Investigative Reports Daily Reports Interviews Surveys Reportika

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Briton, 2 Australians in intensive care after suspected alcohol poisoning in Laos

Editor08 mins

BANGKOK – One British and two Australian tourists are seriously ill after drinking alcohol suspected of being tainted with poisonous methanol in a tourist town in Laos, after two young Danish women died, hospital sources told Radio Free Asia on Wednesday. The British tourist is in intensive care in a hospital in the Lao capital, Vientiane, while the two Australians are in hospital in neighboring Thailand, the sources said. As many as nine other tourists were ill, media reported. All of them were believed to have been in the Lao town of Vang Vieng, a favorite destination for backpackers in Southeast Asia. The Lao government said it had not identified what killed the two Danish women and made the others sick. “We acknowledged the incident but we do not have the autopsy and investigation results yet,” said an official at the Ministry of Public Security who declined to be identified, given the sensitivity of the matter. RFA previously reported that tourists got sick after a late-night drinking session on Nov. 12, according to sources in Laos who declined to be identified. A member of staff at the Kasemrad International Hospital Vientiane, said a tourist was admitted to the hospital last week. “The British national is in ICU,” the female staff member told RFA, referring to the hospital’s intensive care unit. She declined to give further details about the condition or gender of the patient. Two Australians, Holly Bowles and her friend, Bianca Jones, both 19, were in serious condition in Thailand – one in hospital in Bangkok and the other in the town of Udon Thani, near the border with Laos, Australian media reported. A member of staff at the Bangkok hospital did not deny it was treating one of the tourists but declined to identify her or give details of her condition. Australia’s 9News quoted Bowles’ father, Shaun, as saying his daughter was still fighting for her life. “Our daughter remains in the intensive care unit, in a critical condition. She’s on life support,” he said. Jones’ family said in a statement carried by Australian networks on Wednesday that she remained in intensive care in Udon Thani and they had received no update on her condition. “This is every parent’s nightmare and we want to ensure no other family is forced to endure the anguish we are going through,” the family said. The two best friends had been on a “dream getaway,” the family said in an earlier statement. Nana Backpacker Hostel in Vang Vieng, Laos, Nov. 19, 2024. ‘Profit over lives’ An official at the No. 103 Military Hospital in Vientiane told RFA on Wednesday the two unidentified Danish women had died of severe poisoning. “The [first] woman passed away on the first day she was transferred from Vang Vieng, having breathing difficulties,” the official said. “The second woman was able to travel by herself in a car but finally succumbed.” She said many other patients were referred to hospital elsewhere. Most of the sick tourists – who included Danish and Swedish nationals – had been staying at the Nana Backpacker Hostel in the town, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, reported. RFA spoke to Duong Van Huan, an owner of the hostel, who said that the poisoning did not occur at his bar. “I don’t know much of what happened,” he said “They went to the bar and came back … I only sent them to the hospital … I don’t know which bar they went to – Vang Vieng has lots of them.” A foreign businessman in Vang Vieng told RFA he thought there needed to be an international inquiry. “From my opinion, this needs a lot of investigation by local and foreign officials,” he said. “The ones who are accountable will get what they deserve and send a very clear message to all bars and hostels that they should never make a small extra profit over lives.” Police told RFA Lao they are investigating whether the source of the illness was methanol, a clear liquid that is often illegally added to alcohol as a cheaper alternative to ethanol. Even a small amount of methanol can be fatal. A tourist took to a Laos Backpacker group on Facebook to post a warning. “Urgent – please avoid all local spirits,” the tourist said. “Our group stayed in Vang Vieng and we drank free shots offered by one of the bars. Just avoid them as so not worth it. 6 of us who drank from the same place are in hospital currently with methanol poisoning.” An official at the Australian Embassy in Bangkok declined to comment. Edited by Mike Firn We are : Investigative Journalism Reportika Investigative Reports Daily Reports Interviews Surveys Reportika

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Myanmar military steps up airstrikes in Shan state, Mandalay; dozens of casualties

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Myanmar military airstrikes in northern Shan state and Mandalay region have killed about 30 civilians over the past week, an insurgent spokeswoman and residents said, as the military intensifies its attacks in a bid to re-capture territory lost over the past year. Ethnic minority guerrilla groups and their pro-democracy allies went on the offensive this time last year, achieving unprecedented gains against the military junta that seized power in an early 2021 coup and raising questions about the long-term sustainability of military rule. But the military has said it is intent on recovering lost territory and anti-junta forces are expecting offensives as the army takes advantage of the dry season now beginning, when it can send its trucks along dried-out roads into remote, rebel-held areas. At the same time, the air force is increasing its raids on areas under insurgent control. A spokeswoman for the Shan state-based Ta’ang National Liberation Army, or TNLA, ethnic minority insurgent force said Kutkai town in northern Shan state, about 260 kilometers (160 miles) northeast of the city of Mandalay, was among the towns hit hard in recent days. “Since November 12, military council airstrikes have killed over 30 civilians and injured 46,” said Lway Yay Oo, spokesperson for the TNLA. “More than 30 houses have been destroyed in the attacks. The military council has primarily targeted densely populated areas, including buildings such as shops where civilians tend to gather.” RFA tried to contact the main military spokesman, Maj. Gen. Zaw Min Tun, but he did not answer his telephone. Human rights groups and analysts say the Myanmar military has a long record of attacking civilians as part of its anti-insurgency strategy known as the “four cuts”, aimed at depriving rebel forces of food, funds, information and recruits. But a former military officer and political analyst said it was inevitable that the military would use its air power and it was not deliberately targeting civilians. “In war, unfortunately, casualties are inevitable. Cutting off the enemy’s communication lines is extremely challenging. The side with air superiority will naturally use it, that’s how it works… [but] we’ve never seen civilian casualties on this scale before,” said the analyst, who declined to be identified as talking to the media. ‘We’re not safe’ A Kutkai resident told Radio Free Asia that the air force dropped bombs near Yay Htwat Oo Garden Market and a church on Sunday night . “A two-month-old baby, his mother and an elderly grandmother were killed instantly,” said the Kutkai resident, who declined to be identified because of security fears. Ten people were wounded, seven of them critically, the resident said, adding: “The airstrike caused widespread destruction, with houses, shops and cars blown apart. The area targeted is densely populated.” “We’ve dug bunkers, but by the time we hear the sound of planes and try to get to the bunker, the bombs have already fallen. How can we feel safe? No matter how much we try to protect ourselves, they are deliberately targeting us. We’re not safe,” said the Kutkai resident. The TNLA-controlled towns of Nawnghkio and Mongngawt, in Shan state, and Mogoke, in the neighboring Mandalay region had also been attacked by the air force over the past week, residents there said. Captain Zin Yaw, a former military officer who has joined the opposition, told RFA that the military has been relentlessly bombing areas controlled by allied insurgent forces to keep them on the back foot, while the army had set its sites on retaking the town of Lashio, which allied rebel fighters captured on Aug. 3 in one of their most significant victories. “The military council is attempting to advance into Lashio from Mongyai and Tangyan,” said Zin Yaw. Mongyai is about 65 kilometers (40 miles) south of Lashio and Tangyan is about 85 kilometers (53 miles) m to the southeast. “It appears they are trying to hinder the Kokang and Ta’ang forces from preparing for further military action, aiming to render them incapable of mounting an offensive,” he said, referring to another rebel force, the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army, or MNDAA, by the name of the Kokang region where it is based. The MNDAA holds Lashio. Edited by RFA Staff and Kiana Duncan. RELATED STORIES Perhaps it would be better if Myanmar’s civil war became a ‘forgotten conflict’ Fresh Chinese support may not be enough to save Myanmar junta Nearly 200 schools in Myanmar hit by junta air strikes since military coup We are : Investigative Journalism Reportika Investigative Reports Daily Reports Interviews Surveys Reportika

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Leader of rebel army detained in China’s Yunnan province

Editor02 mins

The leader of an ethnic rebel army was being held under house arrest in China’s Yunnan province in the latest move by Beijing to pressure it to withdraw from Lashio, northern Shan state’s biggest city, a source close to the army told Radio Free Asia. The insurgent Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army, or MNDAA, captured the junta’s without incident after MNDAA forces had taken over most of the city. China has also cut off shipments of fuel, medicine and food items through its border into the MNDAA-controlled areas in Shan state. In September, the MNDAA said it had cut ties with Myanmar’s shadow National Unity Government. It said it would work with China to bring peace, but days later the junta bombed Lashio and peace talks never took place. Beijing has recently stepped up its support for the military junta, and earlier this month, junta leader Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing traveled to Kunming – the capital of Yunnan – for talks with provincial officials. RFA has reached out via email to the Chinese Embassy in Yangon and the MNDAA’s information team for comments but neither immediately responded. Translated by Aung Naing. Edited by Matt Reed. We are : Investigative Journalism Reportika Investigative Reports Daily Reports Interviews Surveys Reportika

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Myanmar junta airstrike kills children playing by a church, group says

Editor06 mins

Read RFA coverage of this topic in Burmese. Myanmar’s air force bombed a church where displaced people were sheltering near the border with China killing nine of them including children, days after the junta chief reiterated a call for peace talks, an insurgent group official told Radio Free Asia. Fighting in Myanmar is expected to intensify in coming weeks as forces of the junta that seized power in 2021 take advantage of the dry season to try to recapture territory lost to guerrilla groups over the past year, and despite efforts by neighboring China to promote dialogue. In northern Myanmar’s Kachin state, fighters from the Kachin Independence Army, or KIA, have made significant gains this year, capturing numerous military positions as well as jade and rare earth mines and most crossings on the border with China. The military has responded with airstrikes, which insurgents and rights groups say are often targeted at civilians in a bid by the military to scare off support for the rebels. A junta plane dropped a bomb on a church in Kachin state’s Konlaw village on Friday, next to a camp for people displaced by fighting, killing nine of them, said a KIA information officer, Naw Bu said. “It hit kids from the camp who were playing in the area at the time, the camp itself and the church,” Naw Bu said. “In just one family, the father, the mother, and all their kids, six people in total, died,” he said, adding that nine people were killed in all. He said there was no instigation for the attack, adding that an attack on displaced civilians and a religious building was a war crime. Eleven people were wounded, seven critically, and were being treated at a hospital near Lai Zar on the Chinese border, he said. RFA tried to telephone military spokesperson Maj. Gen. Zaw Min Tun for comment but he did not answer. Many Kachin people are Christian as are members of some of the other ethnic minorities in predominantly Buddhist Myanmar’s hilly border lands. The KIA captured Kung Law, which is to the east of the town of Bhamo, in late March in fighting that displaced about 3,000 people. The deadly bombing comes days after the junta chief, Sen. Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, reiterated during a visit to China a call for peace talks with the rebel forces fighting for self-determination and to end military rule. Anti-junta forces have dismissed Min Aung Hlaing’s call as aimed at appeasing China, which is pressing for an end to the bloody turmoil in its south neighbor that threatens its economic interests there, including energy pipelines running up from the Indian Ocean and mining projects. Insurgents say they expect offensives against them in different parts of the country this dry season, which usually begins in November and enables the military to advance with its heavy vehicles over poor roads. Naw Bu identified those killed in the airstrike as Sut Zai Li, 5, May Sen Pan, 7, Gum Seng Maw, 9, Tsawm San, 10, Mung Htoi Awng, 11, Sa Ra Seng, 11 Myu Jet Awn, 13, Lazum Lung Wa, 35 and Mun Mai 36. From January to October, airstrikes killed 540 people nationwide, the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners human rights group said in a report on Nov. 6. RELATED STORIES China denies entry to Myanmar nationals trapped by battle Residents in Myanmar feel the crunch as trade with China shuts down Fresh Chinese support may not be enough to save Myanmar junta Translated by Kiana Duncan. Edited by RFA staff. We are : Investigative Journalism Reportika Investigative Reports Daily Reports Interviews Surveys Reportika

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Fresh Chinese support may not be enough to save Myanmar junta

Editor04 mins

Myanmar’s military dictator, Min Aung Hlaing, returned from a five-day trip to China, his first since the February 2021 coup, with promises of further on border trade. As of now only one of five official border posts, Mongla, is open. China has not restored electricity and internet service to many of the border towns as punishment. Under Chinese pressure, the Myanmar National Defense Alliance Army (MNDAA), had to publicly distance themselves from the National Unity Government (NUG), the shadow opposition government. And yet they continue to defy Beijing, both continuing their military operations and coordination with the NUG. People gather around a destroyed building following an airstrike in Namhkham township in Myanmar’s northern Shan state, Sept. 6, 2024. The military is increasingly reliant on air power, which has led to the death of over 540 civilians and 200 schools in the first 10 months of 2024, alone. The most recent strike targeted the ruby-mining town of Mogoke, which the TNLA seized in July. But opposition gains have put those airbases in range. On November 5, a drone dropped a bomb at the airport in Naypyidaw soon after Min Aung Hlaing and his delegation departed for Kunming. On November 11, opposition forces fired rockets into the Shan Te airbase in Meiktila township. Meiktila is a major military hub with several bases and defense industries, and the airbase is the hub of Air Force operations in northern Shan, Kachin, Sagaing and Sagaing regions. There is now satellite evidence that the military is making improvements to a small airfield in Pakokku, just across the Irrawaddy River to the southwest of Myingyan, a major logistic and energy transit hub in Mandalay province where opposition forces have stepped up attacks. The regime appears to be moving to smaller airfields in strongholds, which would allow it to save fuel in operations. It also suggests that they are increasingly reliant on riverine transportation to get jet fuel safely delivered. Now in the dry season, the military sees a window of opportunity to regain territory lost since Operation 1027 began a year ago. Min Aung Hlaing has secured additional Chinese assistance, despite Beijing’s misgiving about his competence. But that support may be insufficient across so many distinct battlefields, against an opposition that has demonstrated their refusal to kowtow to Beijing. Zachary Abuza is a professor at the National War College in Washington and an adjunct at Georgetown University. The views expressed here are his own and do not reflect the position of the U.S. Department of Defense, the National War College, Georgetown University or Radio Free Asia. We are : Investigative Journalism Reportika Investigative Reports Daily Reports Interviews Surveys Reportika

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