DKBA soldier takes hostage outside UNHCR office

Tuesday, 04 January 2011 23:02 Ko Wild

Chiang Mai (Mizzima) - A Democratic Karen Buddhist Association (DKBA) soldier armed with two hand grenades held a Thai citizen hostage this morning in Mae Sot, Tak province, making demands for democratic reforms in Burma, according to local residents.

The soldier, Saw Thanmaneet, also known as Saw Htein Lin, 36, is from DKBA Battalion 4 made.

DKBA Battalion 4, under the command of Brigade 999 is currently led by Colonel Saw Chit Thu. Brigade 999 was officially transformed as the Burmese junta’s Border Guard Force in August 2010.

“The soldier came across from Myawaddy this morning”, a local Mae Sot resident told Mizzima.

“When he arrived in Mae Sot, he took a motorcycle taxi to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) office. He took his motorcycle taxi driver hostage when he arrived, before removing the pins of two hand grenades”, he said.

Another resident said, “UNHCR officials kept away. The Royal Thai police were preparing to end the situation by force, but the Mae Sot district chief wanted to avoid bloodshed and was able to negotiate with the soldier. He surrendered to police without incident”.

The DKBA soldier was taken into police custody and is being detained at a local jail where he is expected to be charged with possessing illegal weapons, the source said.

Burmese refugees have staged numerous peaceful protests in front of the UNHCR office in Mae Sot, but this was the first incidence of violence.

The DKBA made demands for self-determination in ethnic areas and urged the United Nations to press the junta to respect the rights of ethnic minorities, according to witnesses.

He said that recent elections were ‘unfair’ and Burma’s controversial 2008 constitution was ‘unacceptable’, according to sources.

The DKBA is s a breakaway group of the Karen National Union (KNU). After splitting from the KNU in 1994, they signed a ceasefire agreement with Burmese military. The DKBA has largely been transformed into a Border Guard Force under the formal administration of the Burmese authorities.

DKBA Brigade 5 led by Colonel Saw La Pwe (aka) Bo Moustache rejected the junta’s Border Guard Force plan and in recent weeks has launched numerous guerrilla attacks against Burmese army outposts.

Continued fighting between the DKBA breakaway faction and Burma army in Karen State has displaced more than 8,200 people who have sought refuge in Mae Sot, according to local relief organisations.

“Some refugees are staying with friends and relatives in Mae Sot, while many others are being housed unofficially in self-made temporary shelters on farmlands surrounding the town.

As a result of the prolonged conflict in Burma more than 100,000 refugees have been forced to take refuge in nine camps along the Thailand-Burma border, according to non-government organisation, the Thailand Burma Border Consortium (TBBC), a consortium of 12 international non-governmental organisations (NGOs) from ten countries.