Two KNDF fighters sentenced in killing of Free Burma Rangers member

The Karenni Nationalities Defense Force (KNDF) reported that it had imprisoned two of its members to 20 years and one month in prison on Sunday for their involvement in killing a civilian aid worker. Having tried the two fighters under sections 22 and 30 of the Military Act, the KNDF’s central military court found the two fighters guilty for the murder of a 27-year-old man, according to a statement issued by the KNDF’s central committee. The KNDF statement said that the victim, who was shot dead by KNDF fighters on the night of February 21, was a civilian from Pi Kinn Kaw Khu village, Loikaw Township. The Free Burma Rangers (FBR), an international civil society organisation that specialises in rescuing civilians trapped in conflict zones and providing medical treatment to the injured, told Myanmar Now that the victim was one of their members. “That was one of our rangers… He was a very good man, and the people that murdered him made a big mistake,” FBR founder David Eubank said, adding that the victim was an official of the organisation’s Good Life Club Programme, which renders aid to children in Karenni State. “It makes us really sad,” he added. Cause of death Further details about the victim’s identity or the exact circumstances of his death remain unconfirmed. According to the KNDF’s statement, he was shot while being detained “on charges of substance abuse in the community.” However, a civilian resident of Karenni State, who requested anonymity for security reasons, told Myanmar Now that the victim was not detained for alcohol or drug offences but rather died during a confrontation with KNDF troops. David Eubank said the FBR supported of the KNDF court’s verdict and sentencing. “We are grateful for some justice, and we support that decision,” he said. “We pray for all the families.” Maui, the deputy Commander-in-Chief of the KNDF, said that appropriate action will be taken against any of its fighters who engage in offences against the public. “Here, we don't distinguish between friends and strangers. There is no distinction by rank or position. If a crime is committed, it will be investigated and prosecuted appropriately. However, we must acknowledge that there may be some cases beyond our reach," Maui said. He added that in future, the KNDF will investigate any crimes perpetrated by its members at the request of the victims. In December of 2022, members of KNDF Battalion 21 and the Karenni Army (KA) ambushed a group of people that included fighters of the Karenni National People’s Liberation Front (KNPLF) as well as some civilians. Six KNPLF members and two civilians were initially killed in the attack. The KNDF and KA fighters also pursued three surviving KNPLF fighters who had fled the scene and hidden in a nearby village, then killed them, according to a member of the KNPLF’s central committee. At the time, the KNPLF had not publicly defected to the resistance side and was regarded as a junta ally by other ethnic armed organisations active in Karenni State. The KNDF and KA did not release subsequent statements about any punitive action taken against the KNPLF members’ killers. When asked to comment on the incident involving the killing of civilians and KNPLF fighters, the KNDF’s deputy commander-in-chief Maui said the relevant groups had reached a mutually agreeable reconciliation. “At that time, we punished the people involved appropriately. In short, the case was resolved as amicably as possible, taking into consideration the good and bad deeds done, and the truths and falsehoods heard from the perpetrators and the victims," Maui said. Since its establishment on May 31, 2021—five months after the coup in which the Myanmar military ousted civilian leaders and fired on peaceful protesters opposed to its rule—the KNDF has substantially expanded its strength in Karenni State and nearby areas, forming six armed divisions and 21 battalions. In an alliance with other Karenni armed groups, it has succeeded in taking control of a few towns from junta forces in the state since last November, when resistance forces launched an offensive against the military in Karenni State in coordination with other anti-junta offensives by ethnic armed groups in Rakhine and northern Shan states.

Two KNDF fighters sentenced in killing of Free Burma Rangers member

A KNDF statement referred to the victim only as a ‘civilian’ but the Free Burma Rangers, an international civil society organisation that provides aid to civilians in combat zones, confirmed that he was one of their members

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