By Kantarawaddy Times.
A 14-year-old child was killed by a landmine in Pupa Village, Dee Maw Hso Township. The incident occurred around 11:30 am yesterday, on April 28th, while the boy was herding cattle, according to U Banyar, founder of the Karenni Human Rights Group.
“He stepped on a mine, a 14 mine. His leg was injured, and some fragments hit or penetrated his body, as far as we know. He died from that. Since he was herding cattle, it was difficult for us to immediately rescue him. Additionally, we can roughly say that excessive blood loss caused his death,” said U Banyar.
U Banyar continued, explaining that around 30 people have been injured by landmines since locals started returning to villages like Pupa and Tin So Leh village in Dee Maw Hso Township.
Although there have been efforts to clear landmines within the villages, a systematic demining process has not yet been implemented.
“This area was primarily occupied by the Military Council troops, so they planted mines everywhere. Some houses and roads have been cleared individually, but no systematic demining has been carried out anywhere. In some places, only areas that the resistance force absolutely need to clear have been addressed. They cannot clear every location. In this case, since he was a cattle herder, we can say that he stepped on a mine while following the cattle,” said U Banyar.
On March 11th, 2024, in the eastern part of Demawso Township, a 29-year-old man also lost his right leg after stepping on a landmine while returning to his village.
According to a statement released on April 1st by the Progressive Karenni People Force (PKPF), 24 civilians have died from various causes in Karenni State since the beginning of 2024 until April 1st.”
