Ethnic Armed KIA Again Attacks Myanmar Police Headquarters, Military Regime Interrogation Of Civilians

(Police station in Kyaukgyi Village, Shwegu Township. (Twitter / @ The74Media2019)

JAKARTA - The Kachin Independence Army (KIA), the ethnic armed wing of Kachin State, attacked a police station in Kyaukgyi Village, Shwegu Township, Kachin State, at around 3 am Wednesday.

A spokesman for the ethnic Kachin armed group said the attack was carried out because police were involved in a deadly crackdown on anti-military regime protesters.

“We have attacked police stations and people's militia posts because the area (Kyaukgyi) is quite strategic (militarily). The militias and the people's police there also went to the front lines and were also involved in the killings of civilians in the cities", KIA information officer Colonel Naw Bu told The Irrawaddy.

"Everything is part of the Tatmadaw (Myanmar military) and it is difficult for us to distinguish (them from military personnel). So we attacked [police posts]", he continued.

Details from the field are still unknown, Colonel Naw Bu said, because of communication problems. He did not confirm reports that the ethnic KIA armed forces confiscated ammunition and food stocks from the police station.

A police officer was reportedly injured in the KIA attack. Irrawaddy was unable to independently confirm the report, and could not reach the Shwegu Township police for comment.

More than 400 government employees, including police, participated in the civil disobedience movement (CDM) against the Myanmar military regime in Shwegu. According to information gathered, at least 40 policemen have joined the CDM in Kachin State and some have fled to areas controlled by KIA for fear of being arrested.

The KIA has refused to recognize the military regime and has carried out attacks on Myanmar military posts since March 11. The armed group also carried out an artillery attack on a police post in Hpakant on March 18.

In response, the military returned artillery fire and carried out airstrikes on KIA's 11 and 14 battalions in Namti and Tanai Townships on Monday.

Separately, eight Thayet Kone residents, located near the military's 54th Infantry Battalion (IB) based in the Bago region, were interrogated on Tuesday after the explosion at the base.

The explosion occurred at around 4 pm on Tuesday. Three men in their fifties and five youths were detained two hours later, according to local sources.

"At first the military said the residents were only being used as guides, and then they were arrested, a resident of Thayet Kone told Myanmar Now.

"The other thing is, the village has supported the (anti-coup Myanmar military) protest. They want to know who was involved in the protest and who has the stickers and signs. They also asked what we know about the explosion," the resident continued.

The detained villagers were released around 1 a.m. on Wednesday, but one of the older men had bruises all over his face, local sources said.

"We are all just farmers. We said we didn't know anything. And then they tortured us", he added.

Base IB 54 is located at a 39-mile marker on the Yangon - Mandalay highway, between the villages of Wingabaw and Bawnatgyi. Meanwhile, Thayet Kone, a predominantly Karen ethnic village, is the closest civilian settlement.

It is unclear what caused the explosion on Tuesday, but it is believed it was a non-lethal hand grenade or stun grenade. No casualties were reported. A similar attack took place on the base on March 18.

The majority of Thayet Kone residents actively participated in the anti-dictatorship protests held in Bago City and Phayargyi.

To note, at least 521 civilians have died in Myanmar's military anti-coup protests to 31 Marts, 141 of them on Saturday, the bloodiest day of the riots, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP).

Myanmar Coup. The VOI editorial team continues to monitor the political situation in one of the ASEAN member countries. Casualties from civilians continue to fall. Readers can follow the news surrounding the Myanmar military coup by tapping on this link.