Rape and death on Valentines

Rape and death on Valentines's Day
Human Rights 

An army officer has been named by villagers who recently fled to Thailand for rape and murder of a Shan girl just before her marriage.

According to the refugee seekers, Captain Kyaw Myint, Company 4, LIB 515 (Laikha) had raped and murdered Nang Liengsa, 18, of Wan-khai village, Panghsang Tract, Laikha Township, on 14 February in the woods outside the town. Her body was found two days later after a soldier from the unit tipped off her relatives.

"The captain, during his patrol on that day, came across her picking vegetables in the woods, raped her and beat her to death because of her resistance," one villager quoted the soldier as saying.

A few days after the incident, the said officer and his men passed through the village and he was pointed out to her brother, Sai Mon, and sister-in-law, Nang Lu. One of the members of the patrol then overheard them talking about Liengsa's death in connection with Capt Kyaw Myint and took them to him. He beat them and sentenced them to a 3-month imprisonment.

"She was already engaged to be married to Sai Awng Myint, one of our own villagers, this month," said one, "Her death broke his heart".

Liengsa was one of those thousands of people who were forcibly moved to Laikha from her home village in 1997, when the massive 4 cuts campaign was launched by Rangoon against the Shan State Army of Yawdserk.
According to the Shan Human Rights Foundation, 27 cases of rape involving 43 victims were recorded in the year 2001.