DKBA threatens Mae La refugee camp

Posted on July 1, 2009
Filed Under Burma news, Karen news | Comments Off

Mae La

Mae La camp

Tensions are high this evening in Mae La refugee camp, after the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA) threatened to attack the camp.
The Irrawaddy quotes the camp’s vice chairman, Htun Htun as saying the DKBA said they will destroy our camp.
The threat follows an ambush on a DKBA flotilla that killed DKBA Colonel Soe Myint.
About an hour’s drive from Mae Sot, Mae La is home to some 37,000 mostly Karen refugees.  It is only about another hour’s drive from the camp to the site of the ambush.
The Irrawaddy reports many refugees have packed their belongings, ready for an assault, while camp authorities have imposed a curfew of 9 pm on all residents.
The DKBA have attacked the camp in the past, and almost every year there are rumours of another attack. However, with intense fighting in recent weeks just across the border, the latest threat has raised concern among refugees.
The DKBA and other pro-junta groups have in the past called for refugee camps in Thailand to be closed down. They claim the Karen National Union is using the camps for shelter while they plan military actions in Karen State.
The recent fighting has caused over 3,000 Karen villagers to flee across the border into Thailand. The new arrivals are being housed at several staging areas along the border.

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