Myanmar_Burma

Mine Ban Policy

Last updated: 17 November 2022

Policy

The Republic of the Union of Myanmar has not acceded to the Mine Ban Treaty.[1]

Following the military coup on 1 February 2021, the Myanmar Armed Forces created a provisional government, which has since struggled for recognition.[2] In April 2021, parliamentarians who had been elected in November 2020 formed an oppositional National Unity Government (NUG) from exile.[3] Myanmar did not take any steps during 2021 or the first half of 2022 to accede to the treaty.

Prior to the coup, Myanmar officials had expressed interest in the Mine Ban Treaty and welcomed its humanitarian provisions.[4] Myanmar often stated that it was studying the treaty with a view to joining in the future.[5] In November 2020, Myanmar stated that it “attentively” follows the work of the treaty, which it said plays “an important role in ending the human suffering and casualties caused by anti-personnel land mines.”[6]

Myanmar did not participate in the 1996–1997 Ottawa Process that created the Mine Ban Treaty.

Since then, it has participated as an observer at several meetings of the treaty, including the Fourth Review Conference in Oslo in November 2019.[7] Most recently, representatives from Myanmar’s army-led government, the State Administration Council (SAC), attended the Nineteenth Meeting of States Parties held virtually in November 2021, and the intersessional meetings held in Geneva in June 2022.

The NUG continues to hold Myanmar’s seat at the United Nations (UN) in New York. In December 2021, Myanmar abstained from voting on United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) Resolution 76/26, which promoted the universalization of the Mine Ban Treaty. Myanmar has abstained from voting on the annual UNGA resolution supporting the treaty since 1997.[8]

In December 2021, Mine-Free Myanmar held a press conference in Bangkok to launch Landmine Monitor 2021.[9] For the first time since 2010, a military censorship decree prevented the campaign from publishing within the country the Monitor’s annual country report on Myanmar.[10] During 2021, the UN’s Myanmar Information Management Unit (MIMU) produced an updated map of the country’s mine-affected areas and infographics showing the impact of landmines.[11]

Production, transfer, and stockpiling

State-owned enterprise Myanmar Defense Products Industries, known as Ka Pa Sa, produces at least five types of antipersonnel landmine: MM1, MM2, MM3, MM5, and MM6.[12]

Non-state armed groups (NSAGs) in Myanmar often publish photographs showing antipersonnel landmines produced by the state and held by frontline Myanmar Armed Forces units for use. For example, in May 2021, the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA) and Arakan National Council (ANC) displayed MM2 antipersonnel mines obtained after their forces seized a Myanmar Armed Forces military base in Kayin state.[13] In August 2021, the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA) displayed MM5 and MM6 antipersonnel mines captured after fighting with the Myanmar Armed Forces in eastern Muse township.[14] In November 2019, a NSAG in northern Shan state published photographs showing MM2 antipersonnel mines made by Myanmar Defense Products Industries with markings indicating that the mines were manufactured in 2018.[15]

Myanmar is not known to have exported antipersonnel landmines.[16] Myanmar previously imported or otherwise acquired and used antipersonnel mines manufactured in China, India, Italy, Russia or the former Soviet Union, and the United States (US).[17]

There is no publicly available information on the types or quantities of antipersonnel landmines stockpiled by the Myanmar Armed Forces.

Production, transfer, and stockpiling by non-state armed groups

Various NSAGs in Myanmar have produced improvised blast and fragmentation antipersonnel mines, including the Kachin Independence Army (KIA), the KNLA, and the Democratic Karen Benevolent Army (DKBA). Victim-activated explosive devices are comprehensively prohibited by the Mine Ban Treaty, regardless of whether they were manufactured in a factory or improvised from locally available materials. Some NSAGs in Myanmar have also produced Claymore-type directional fragmentation mines and antivehicle mines equipped with antihandling devices.

NSAGs in Myanmar continued to produce improvised antipersonnel mines in 2021–2022.[18] These groups have also acquired landmines by removing them from mined areas and obtaining them on the clandestine arms market.[19]

In 2022, NSAGs also seized or captured antipersonnel mines from the Myanmar Armed Forces. The Monitor has seen photographs of mines captured in 2022 by the Arakan Army, the KIA, the Karenni Army, the KNLA, the Karenni Nationalities Defense Force (KNDF), and several People’s Defense Force (PDF) groups in Shan, Kayin, and Kayah states, and in the Sagaing and Tanintharyi regions.[20]

Use

The Monitor has documented extensive use of antipersonnel landmines by the Myanmar Armed Forces, and by various NSAGs operating in Myanmar, since the first annual Landmine Monitor report was published in 1999.

New use by Myanmar Armed Forces

Myanmar’s Armed Forces have extensively used antipersonnel mines since the military coup in February 2021. This activity marks a significant increase in new use, including use around infrastructure such as mobile phone towers, extractive enterprises, and energy pipelines.

Photographs reviewed by the Monitor indicate that antipersonnel landmines manufactured by Myanmar were captured from the Myanmar Armed Forces by NSAGs every month from January to September 2022, in virtually every part of the country. In August 2022, antipersonnel mines manufactured by and in the possession of the Myanmar Army were captured in both the northwest and southwest of the country, indicating extensive mine use by the armed forces.[21]

An investigation by Amnesty International documented civilian casualties from MM2 and MM6 antipersonnel landmines laid by the Myanmar Armed Forces in the townships of Demoso, Hpruso, and Loikaw, in Kayah state, between February and June 2022.[22]

Examples of specific reports and allegations of new antipersonnel landmine use by the Myanmar Armed Forces since February 2021 are detailed below.

In September 2022, a local NSAG claimed that the Myanmar Armed Forces had laid antipersonnel mines around a church in Moybe, in Pekon township, Shan state.[23]

In August 2022, a local militia discovered MM6 antipersonnel landmines laid around the perimeter of Letpadaung Copper Mine in Salingyi township, Sagaing region. The copper mine is a joint venture by the Myanmar military’s Myanmar Economic Holdings Ltd. and China’s state-owned Norinco Industries.[24]

In July 2022:

  • Two civilians returning after fleeing their village in Kawlin township, Sagaing region, were injured by a landmine allegedly emplaced by the Myanmar Armed Forces.[25]
  • There were multiple incidents of people being injured by landmines near the perimeter of Myanmar Armed Forces camps in Mrauk-U township, Rakhine state.[26]
  • Two Myanmar Armed Forces soldiers accompanied a villager to recover the body of his son, who had stepped on a mine in Zu Kaing village, in Ann township, Rakhine state. They removed two mines on the way which they said had been laid by a unit of the Myanmar Armed Forces.[27]
  • The Myanmar Armed Forces allegedly closed a ferry service in Kyaukkyi township, Bago region, and laid mines around it to prevent KNLA fighters from using it.[28]

In June 2022, three mines were found in a church compound in Daw Nye Ku, in Demoso township, Kayah state that Myanmar Armed Forces had left earlier that day, while a fourth mine injured a boy.[29] Landmine use attributed to the Myanmar Armed Forces the previous month in Kayah state caused casualties among KNDF fighters.[30]

In May 2022, in Puangde township, Bago Region, the Myanmar Armed Forces allegedly laid mines at a Buddhist monastery that they had occupied.[31]

In April 2022:

  • A police officer who had defected to PDF resistance groups stated that the Myanmar Army had ordered the laying directional and other antipersonnel mines at police posts.[32]
  • A mine allegedly laid by the Myanmar Armed Forces at the base of a mobile phone tower in Mahlaing township, Mandalay region, injured a civilian.[33]
  • Civilians were injured by landmines upon returning to their village in Loikaw township, Kayah state after the departure of Myanmar Armed Forces troops.[34]

In March 2022:

  • Civilians in Mhan Taw village, Khin U township, Sagaing region, reported that the Myanmar Armed Forces had left mines around the bodies of people killed during a raid.[35]
  • Locals alleged that the Myanmar Armed Forces had emplaced landmines at a checkpoint at the entrance to a bridge in Dawei township, Tanintharyi region.[36]

In February 2022:

  • A civilian returning to Kinsanpya village, Kani township, Sagaing region was killed by a mine allegedly laid by the Myanmar Armed Forces during a raid.[37]
  • A youth was injured by a mine laid by Myanmar Armed Forces Infantry Brigade 284 in Kyat Ka Chaung village tract, in Kyainseikgyi township, Kayin state.[38]

In January 2022, a man was severely injured after stepping on a landmine near Nang Khing village, in Demoso township, Kayah State. KNDF alleged that the Myanmar Armed Forces had laid the mine, as well as other mines in the area which had claimed ten victims.[39]

In December 2021, two villagers were injured by a mine when they returned home after their village in Mingin township, Sagaing region was occupied by the military.[40]

In November 2021:

  • Local media reported that the Myanmar Armed Forces had laid antipersonnel mines near the base of mobile phone towers in at least 48 townships across the country, causing casualties among mobile phone company engineers.[41]
  • Residents of Hsipaw township, Shan state, were warned of mines being laid by the Myanmar Armed Forces around a pumping station for an energy pipeline.[42]

In September 2021:

  • A civilian was killed and two were injured in Kayah state after they returned to a village following a raid by the Myanmar Armed Forces. A local militia group said it had found 30 landmines left by the military.[43]
  • An employee from a military-owned telecommunications company was seriously injured after stepping on a mine placed outside a cell phone tower near Nant Hwe village, Muse township. It was alleged that the Myanmar Armed Forces had mined the bases of mobile phone towers in response to attacks by local militia groups.[44]

In August 2021:

  • A farmer was injured by a landmine outside a Myanmar Armed Forces base in Usoungtaung village, Kyauktaw township, Rakhine state. According to locals, the area was commonly used by farmers and there had been no previous mine incidents.[45]
  • A child tending cows was killed by a mine laid near the perimeter of a Myanmar Armed Forces base in Myi Tung Mare village, Bhamo township, Kachin state.[46]

During 2021, residents of Ruktha village, in Kyauktaw township, Rakhine state were given warnings by the Myanmar Armed Forces not to come near their base as it was mined.[47]

It is often difficult to assign responsibility for specific incidents in Myanmar to either the Myanmar Armed Forces, or a particular NSAG. Yet villagers often report landmine casualties in areas where armed conflict had recently occurred.

On 29–30 April 2022, armed conflict between a Border Guard Force and the KNLA left at least one landmine, which injured a person the following week.[48]

In March 2022, three children were killed after playing with a landmine they found in Hko Kham village, in Lashio township, Shan state. It was allegedly left during conflict between the Myanmar Armed Forces and NSAGs affiliated to the Northern Alliance.[49]

In February 2022, in Minbya township, Rakhine state, a man was killed by a landmine at the site of recent clashes between the Myanmar Armed Forces and the Arakan Army.[50]

In January 2022:

  • A villager was killed by a mine in Li Hseng village, Mongkaing township, Shan state, which was blamed on recent fighting between two local NSAGs, the Shan State Progress Party (SSPP) and the Restoration Council of Shan State (RCSS).[51]
  • A villager was killed by a mine that had been recently laid near a mobile phone tower in Pauk Pin village, in Monywa township, Sagaing region.[52]

Prior to January 2022, the KNLA and the Myanmar Armed Forces had warned villagers in Meh Klaw village tract, Hpapun township, Kayin state, of landmines in the area which had caused the death of one villager.[53]

In August 2021, the Shan State Army-South (SSA-S) under the RCSS, and the Myanmar Armed Forces engaged in armed conflict in Shan state with three members of the Northern Alliance: the Arakan Army, MNDAA, and the Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA). New civilian landmine casualties were reported near the conflict areas after this fighting.[54]

In July 2021, a child was injured by a landmine in Ponnagyun township, Rakhine state, in an area where the Myanmar Armed Forces and the Arakan Army had recently clashed.[55]

Atrocity/forced labor mine clearance

The Monitor has found evidence that the Myanmar Armed Forces has continued the practice of using civilians as ‘guides’ to walk in front of its units in mine-affected areas, effectively to detonate landmines. This is a grave violation of international humanitarian and human rights law.[56] There were several examples of this heinous practice during the second half of 2021.

In November 2021, Myanmar Army soldiers reportedly arrested a 16-year-old Chin boy and two adults, and forced them to walk in front of soldiers to detect landmines.[57]

In September 2021:

  • Two farmers were reportedly forced to walk in front of a Myanmar Army column in Pekon, Shan state, in an area is known to be contaminated by mines.[58]
  • Myanmar Armed Forces soldiers seized a woman in Paing Kalan Done village tract, in Kawkareik township, Kayin state, and forced her to walk in front of them as they entered KNLA territory.[59]

In August 2021, Myanmar Armed Forces Light Infantry Battalions 341 and 410, from Ler Toh camp in Hkaw Poo village tract, in Hpapun township, Kayin State, seized three women and forced them to carry materials and equipment, using them as human shields.[60]

In May 2021, the Mindat People’s Administrative Council told the UN Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in Myanmar that “The military…arrested ten Mindat youth and they forced them to walk in front of them as a human shield…the ten were walking ahead with the soldiers behind them.”[61] The area, in Mindat township, Chin state, was previously documented by the Monitor as being contaminated by landmines.

Bangladesh border

New mine casualties continued to occur on Myanmar’s border with Bangladesh in 2022.[62] In 2017, the Monitor published evidence of Myanmar government forces using antipersonnel mines along the border.[63] A 2018 report by the Human Rights Council said there was “reasonable grounds to conclude that landmines were planted by the Myanmar Armed Forces, both in the border regions as well as in northern Rakhine state, as part of the ‘clearance operations’ with the intended or foreseeable effect of injuring or killing Rohingya civilians fleeing to Bangladesh.”[64]

Bangladesh condemned this landmine use and urged Myanmar to “impose [a] moratorium on the use, production and transfer of anti-personnel mines.”[65] In February 2021, two workers hired to repair the border fence between Bangladesh and Myanmar were injured by landmines.[66]

The Myanmar government denied using mines on the border with Bangladesh in a November 2018 statement, describing the evidence as “without merit.”[67] Myanmar again denied its involvement in mine use on the Bangladesh border in October 2020.[68]

Use by non-state armed groups

With at least 20 NSAGs fighting in Myanmar, it can be difficult to assign responsibility for use to a specific NSAG, but many have used landmines since the Monitor started reporting in 1999.

Since the military coup in February 2021, several local militia groups have been established, some of which identify as PDFs. PDF groups often declare allegiance to the NUG. Local media often report the use of “landmines” by such groups. Most of these are command-detonated roadside bombs, yet some are victim-activated landmines.[69] Pro-military militias, such as Pyusawhti, also operate in parts of the country.

The Monitor has reviewed the following incidents attributed to NSAGs since July 2021.

In August 2022:

  • The PDF in Tabayin township, Sagaing region, stated that landmines laid around its camp had caused several Myanmar Armed Forces casualties.[70]
  • In Hpakant township, Kachin State, the KIA allegedly laid mines which caused two Myanmar Armed Forces casualties.[71]

In June 2022:

  • The Phaung Pyin PDF stated that it had laid landmines which caused several Myanmar Armed Forces casualties in Paungbyin township, Sagaing region.[72]
  • An anti-military militia said that a Myanmar Armed Forces soldier they had captured was killed by mines laid around the group’s camp in Bago region as he attempted to escape.[73]
  • The Jahtu Zup People’s Militia Force in Hpakant township, Kachin State, allegedly laid mines to block access to a gold mine.[74]
  • Landmines laid around a Yaw PDF camp in Gangaw township, in Magway region, reportedly caused several Myanmar Armed Forces casualties during a raid.[75]

In May 2022, landmines laid on a path by a PDF reportedly caused casualties to a Myanmar Armed Forces patrol in Mingin township, Sagaing region.[76]

In March 2022, mines laid by the KNLA killed one person and injured another in Meh Klaw village tract, in Hpapun township, Kayin state.[77]

In January 2022:

  • A villager was killed by a mine planted by the KNLA in Kyaukkyi, Bago region.[78]
  • Armed conflict between the RCSS, SSPP, and members of the Northern Alliance in Kyaukme township, Shan state, allegedly involved the laying of mines which caused civilian injuries in February–March 2022.[79]

In December 2021, locals blamed the Border Guard Force for laying a mine which caused civilian injuries near Kyaw Kayt Kee village, in Hpaan township, Kayin state.[80]

In August 2021, a PDF group claimed that its use of landmines in Pekon township, Shan state had caused several Myanmar Armed Forces casualties.[81]

In July 2021:

  • Villagers claimed the TNLA was responsible for laying mines in Lwe Kwe village tract, in Namhsan township, Shan state which denied access to agricultural lands.[82]
  • A mine reportedly laid by KNLA Battalion 102 killed one person in Hpapun township, Kayin state.[83]
  • A combined Katha PDF and KIA force claimed that its use of landmines had caused Myanmar Armed Forces casualties.[84]

The use of antivehicle landmines by groups opposed to the military also caused civilian casualties in 2021.[85]

The SAC claims to have recovered a variety of improvised mines during operations against armed groups opposed to the military coup.[86]

There were several incidents between May and December 2021 involved the use of bombs or booby-traps in urban areas. In most cases, the victims were engaged in the removal of rubbish, and the explosive device was contained in a black plastic bag.[87]

Previously, in 2011, Myanmar’s government announced its intent to conclude peace agreements with NSAGs. On 15 October 2015, eight ethnic armed groups signed the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA) with the government, committing to “end planting of mines” and “cooperate on the process of clearing all landmines.” Since the February 2021 military coup, this commitment no longer appears to be operational.

In past years, some NSAGs and former NSAGs in Myanmar unilaterally renounced antipersonnel mine use by signing the Deed of Commitment, administered by Geneva Call, a Switzerland-based non-governmental organization (NGO).[88] The Palaung State Liberation Front (PSLF) signed it in 2007 and its armed wing, the TNLA, has previously promised to refrain from mine use.[89] In June 2017, the TNLA denied allegations of new use and affirmed that it had not used landmines since signing the Deed of Commitment.[90] In July 2022, the Arakan Army stated that it used solely command-detonated landmines, but gave no indication as to the status of large numbers of antipersonnel mines that it has captured from the Myanmar Armed Forces.[91]

Responses to new landmine use

Previously, various Myanmar government officials have admitted or denied that government forces use antipersonnel landmines.[92]

In June 2022, an officer of the Myanmar Armed Forces told the Monitor that Myanmar does not lay antipersonnel mines.[93] In October 2020, Myanmar denied reports that the Myanmar Armed Forces had laid mines on the border with Bangladesh.[94]

In July 2019, an official at the Union Minister Office for Defence told the Monitor that landmines were still used by the Myanmar Armed Forces in border areas and around infrastructure.[95] In September 2016, the Deputy Minister of Defense, Major General Myint Nwe, told the Myanmar parliament that the army continued to use landmines in internal armed conflicts.[96]

NSAGs active in Myanmar often blame government forces, or each other, for using antipersonnel mines.[97]

In July 2022, Amnesty International condemned antipersonnel mine use by the Myanmar Armed Forces as a war crime, and documented use occurring in early 2022 in Karenni (Kayah) state.[98]

In June 2022, the UN Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in Myanmar documented casualties due to antipersonnel mines, focusing in particular on the impact on children and recommending that a future civilian government accede to the Mine Ban Treaty.[99]

In November 2021, at the Nineteenth Meeting of States Parties to the Mine Ban Treaty, the ICBL condemned new use of antipersonnel mines in Myanmar, and called on all governments to strongly condemn this use.[100]


[1] The military junta that previously ruled the country changed its name from Burma to Myanmar. Many ethnic groups in Myanmar, and a number of other countries, still refer to the country as Burma. Internal state and region names are given in their various forms as per local usage, for example, Karenni (Kayah) state. Since 2009, the Monitor has used township names according to those used by the United Nations (UN) Myanmar Information Management Unit (MIMU). For more information, see the MIMU website.

[2] The Myanmar Armed Forces refer to themselves as the Tatmadaw.

[3] The Provisional Government of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar was formed on 1 August 2021 by the State Administration Council (SAC), with the Commander-in-Chief of the Myanmar Armed Forces, Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, as its chair.

[4] In November 2019, Myanmar’s former Union Minister for Social Welfare, Relief and Resettlement, Win Myat Aye, stated, “Myanmar recognizes the importance of the Anti-personnel Mine Ban Convention in putting an end to the suffering and human casualties caused by anti-personnel mines, in saving lives and in returning hope and human dignity. We also believe that universalization of the convention is vital in reducing humanitarian harms. Building lasting peace is the most fundamental and important task in the process of stopping future use of anti-personnel mines.” Statement of Myanmar, Mine Ban Treaty Fourth Review Conference, Oslo, 26 November 2019.

[5] Myanmar Explanation of Vote on Resolution L.45, United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) First Committee, New York, 6 November 2019. UNGA, Official Records, A/C.1/74/PV25, p. 1. This is virtually the same as its statement the previous year. Myanmar Explanation of Vote on Resolution L.53/rev.1, 73rd Session, UNGA First Committee, Audio Record of 31st Meeting (at 19 mins.), New York, 8 November 2018. See also, Myanmar Explanation of Vote on Resolution L.40, 72nd Session, UNGA First Committee, New York, 31 October 2017. UNGA, Official Records, A/C.1/72/PV26, pp. 18–19 and 29.

[6] Statement of Myanmar, Mine Ban Treaty Eighteenth Meeting of States Parties, held virtually, 16 November 2020.

[7] Myanmar previously attended Meetings of States Parties in 2003, 2006, and 2011–2013. It did not participate in the Review Conferences held in 2004, 2009, or 2014. Myanmar participated in intersessional meetings in Geneva in 2013–2014, 2016, 2019, and 2021.

[8] “Implementation of the Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on Their Destruction,” UNGA Resolution 76/26, 6 December 2021. In 1996, Myanmar voted in favor of a UNGA resolution calling on governments to pursue an international agreement banning antipersonnel landmines, but abstained once the Mine Ban Treaty opened for signature in 1997.

[9] The Mine-Free Myanmar initiative was initially known as “Halt Mine Use in Burma/Myanmar.” See, Mine-Free Myanmar website.

[10] From 2010, when previous censorship laws were repealed, until 2020, the Monitor’s annual country profile on Myanmar/Burma was printed and distributed, in the Burmese language, in the country every year. The 2021 profile in Burmese is available online.

[11] MIMU, “Townships with Suspected Landmine/ERW Contamination (1999–2021) and Landmine/ERW Casualties in Myanmar (2020),” 3 November 2021. MIMU reports that the infographic is one of their most requested products.

[12] The MM1 is modeled on the Chinese Type-59 stake-mounted fragmentation mine; the MM2 is similar to the Chinese Type-58 blast mine; the MM3 is a bounding mine; the MM5 is a Claymore-type directional fragmentation mine; and the MM6 is a copy of the United States (US) M14 low metal content antipersonnel mine. Myanmar also produces the MM4 antivehicle mine.

[14] “15 Myanmar Junta Soldiers Reported Killed in Shan State,” TheIrrawaddy, 31 August 2021. While these mines were captured before use, they were reportedly stored in a lightly-armed frontline military base. This is the type of situation where the Myanmar Armed Forces has stated to the Monitor that it uses landmines.

[15] The allegation and photographs were published on a Facebook page associated with the Restoration Council of Shan State (RCSS), 3 December 2019. Photographs since that time rarely show production markings, but when they do, they are all prior to 2018 so it is unclear how much production is ongoing.

[16] In 1999, Myanmar’s representative to the UN stated that the country supported banning exports of antipersonnel mines. Yet no formal moratorium or export ban has been proclaimed. See, ICBL, Landmine Monitor Report 2000: Toward a Mine-Free World (New York: Human Rights Watch [HRW], August 2000), p. 469.

[17] ICBL, Landmine Monitor Report 2004: Toward a Mine-Free World (New York: HRW, October 2004), p. 938. The mines include Chinese Types-58, -59, -69, and -72A; Soviet POMZ-2, POMZ-2M, PMN-1, and PMD-6; US M14, M16A1, and M18; and Indian/British LTM-73 and LTM-76.

[18] Photographs in June 2022 showed improvised antipersonnel landmines, among other weapons, reportedly made by the Launglon People’s Defense Force (LLPDF) in the Tanintharyi region. See, “Junta troops raid Launglon PDF camp,” Burma News International (BNI)/Mizzima, 6 July 2022.

[19] Landmine Monitor 2009 identified the presence of US-made M26 bounding antipersonnel mines in Myanmar but could not identify the source or the user. In 2010, a confidential source indicated that the KNLA had received many M26 mines from the Royal Thai Army in the past, before Thailand joined the Mine Ban Treaty. See, Landmine Monitor Report 2009: Toward a Mine-Free World (Ottawa: Mines Action Canada, October 2009), p. 1,013.

[20] The Monitor found from January–September 2022, in a non-exhaustive survey of media photographs, over 25 instances of mines being captured from the Myanmar Armed Forces, amounting to hundreds of antipersonnel mines of types MM1, MM2, MM5 and MM6, in Chin, Kayah, Kayin, Rakhine, and Shan states, and in the Sagaing and Tanintharyi regions. The mines were captured by Ethnic Armed Organizations (EAOs) or NUG-affiliated PDFs in those areas after overrunning Myanmar Armed Forces outposts, or after capturing or ambushing a military patrol.

[21] On 31 August, the Arakan Army displayed captured MM2 and MM5 antipersonnel landmines, among other weapons, from the remaining arsenal in a camp it overran at Border Post 40 in Maungdaw township, Rakhine state. See, “Arakan Army says it has captured Myanmar military camp near Bangladesh border,” Development Media Group, 31 August 2022. On 16 August, KIA rebels and PDF fighters captured 11 MM6 antipersonnel mines from captured Myanmar Armed Forces soldiers in Pinlaebu township, Sagaing region, according to the BBC Burmese Facebook post. On 15 August, the Arakan Army captured seven MM6 (M14) antipersonnel landmines, among other weapons from captured Myanmar Armed Forces soldiers in Paletwa township, Chin state. On 25 August, the Kantbalu PDF captured five MM6 (M14) antipersonnel landmines among other weapons from captured Myanmar Armed Forces soldiers in Kantbalu township, Sagaing region. See, Lungekhit News Facebook post.

[23] The Mobye PDF warned returning local people they should avoid the grounds of the church as it had been mined. “Junta weapons seized from Catholic church in Shan State’s Mobye Township,” Mizzima, 15 September 2022.

[24] North Yamar PDF lifted 78 MM6 antipersonnel landmines which it stated had been planted by the Myanmar Armed Forces around the copper mine. See, The Irrawaddy (Irrawaddy News), “North Yamar People’s Defense Force defused 78 landmines planted by the regime to protect the China-backed Letpadaung copper mine in Salingyi Township, Sagaing Region. Photo- North Yamar PDF.” 19 August 2022, 09:09 UTC. Tweet.

[25] Aung Aung, “Villagers stepped on Junta’s planted landmines in Sagaing,” Tha Din News and Radio, 1 August 2022.

[27] The man’s 14-year-old son had been killed the day before and he wished to retrieve the body. After removing two mines, which the soldiers said had been laid by the 66th Division of the Myanmar Armed Forces, they prevented the man from traveling further. See, “Six killed, 11 injured by landmines amid renewed tensions in Myanmar’s Rakhine state,” Radio Free Asia, 12 July 2022.

[28] “Locals worry about junta’s landmines in Kyaukgyi,” Than Lwin Times, 27 July 2022. On different dates, one child was killed, and another person injured by these landmines.

[29] Monitor interview with David Eubank, Founder, Free Burma Rangers, 15 July 2022. According to Eubank, when the Myanmar Armed Forces left an area after armed conflict with the KNDF, the Free Burma Rangers discovered three mines in the compound of a church, and another four mines, including one that a 16-year-old boy had stepped on. He noted that bags or baskets left by departing soldiers each had between one and six landmines in them. These mines were reported to still be in their factory packaging.

[30] David Boi, “Two KNDF comrades had their legs amputated because of the junta’s landmines,” Tha Din News and Radio, 23 May 2022; Aung Aung, “A comrade from KNDF B-10 killed after stepping on a mine,” Tha Din News and Radio, 15 May 2022; and Aung Aung, “One comrade stepped on mine during clearance operation, lost both legs,” Tha Din News and Radio, 24 April 2022.

[31] Allegation made by Paungde PDF who said they had found the mines after the Myanmar Armed Forces departed. Aung Aung, “The junta soldiers stationed at the monastery planted mines after they retreated,” Tha Din News and Radio, 10 May 2022.

[32] The officer stated that the military council ordered the installation of landmines at police station entrances and exits to prevent PDFs from easily raiding them. “Claymore and anti-personal mines planted at police stations,” Than Lwin Times, 23 April 2022.

[33] The Myanmar Armed Forces were reported to be fencing and mining the base of mobile phone towers. See, Aung Aung, “15-year-old girl’s leg amputated due to a mine planted by Junta troops in Mahlaing,” Tha Din News and Radio, 3 May 2022.

[34] Karenni Human Rights Group (KHRG), “Quarterly Briefing,” Vol. 1, Issue 2, 13 July 2022, p. 3. The KHRG alleges that the casualties were the result of antipersonnel mines recently laid by the Myanmar Armed Forces.

[36] David Boi, “The Junta’s forces planted landmines in front of Ka Myaw Kin Bridge in Dawei,” Tha Din News and Radio, 2 April 2022.

[37] David Boi, “A junta’s mine exploded in Kani Township, killing one civilian,” Tha Din News and Radio, 6 February 2022.

[38] KHRG, “KHRG Submission to Landmine Monitor,” September 2022. The Myanmar Armed Forces had issued verbal warnings to villagers not to enter the area, but the youth had just come to the area as his school elsewhere had been closed. It is uncertain when this minefield was first laid.

[39] “Near Nang Khing Village citizen loses leg after stepping on a mine,” Kantarawaddy Times, 16 January 2022.

[41] New antipersonnel mines were laid near mobile phone towers across 48 townships in Chin, Kayin, Mon, and Shan states, and in the Ayawaddy, Bago, Magway, Mandalay, Sagaing, Tanintharyi, and Yangon regions. Some of these areas, such as Ayawaddy and Yangon, had never previously been found to have antipersonnel mine contamination. See, “Telecoms tower sites mined by Myanmar military,” Myanmar Now, 5 November 2021.

[43] “Myanmar Junta Accused of Targeting Civilians with Landmines,” The Irrawaddy, 29 September 2021.

[47] The date the mines were placed is unclear, yet the villagers lost livestock to the mines in early 2022 and still could not access the adjacent cemetery as of May 2022. See, Myint Zaw, “A 75-year-old woman was killed when she stepped on a landmine in Kyauk Taw Township,” Tha Din News and Radio, 3 June 2022.

[48] David Boi, “A citizen accidentally stepped on a landmine,” Tha Din News and Radio, 6 May 2022.

[49] “Landmine Kills Children In Northern Shan State Village,” Shan Herald Agency for News, 8 March 2022.

[51] “Landmine Victim Left To Rot In Mong Kung Township,” Shan Herald Agency for News, 10 January 2022.

[52] The Myanmar Armed Forces began laying mines around mobile phone towers after November 2021. See, David Boi, “A farmer dies after stepping on a landmine in Monywa,” Tha Din News and Radio, 14 January 2022.

[53] KHRG, “KHRG Submission to Landmine Monitor,” September 2022. Although both parties had issued verbal warnings, it is unclear which actor laid the mines in the area. The villagers stated that there was no marking to make known precisely which areas were dangerous. Other villagers interviewed said the mines were laid by the KNLA.

[54] For example, in August 2021, two internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Kyaukme township stepped on a mine after leaving an IDP camp to forage for food. RCSS, TNLA, and SSPP forces had all previously fought in the area. See, “IDPs Wounded By Landmine In Kyaukme Township,” BNI, 18 August 2021.

[56] Over the past two decades, the Monitor has reported disturbing evidence that the Myanmar military has forced civilians to clear antipersonnel mines without training or protective equipment, or forced civilians to guide or carry equipment for the Tatmadaw in mined areas. Such activities constitute a threat to the right to life, liberty, and security of person. During Myanmar’s first Universal Periodic Review of its human rights record, in 2011, the ICBL provided a submission detailing the use of human minesweepers. See Human Rights Council, Working Group on the Universal Periodic Review, Tenth Session, “Summary prepared by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in accordance with paragraph 15(c) of the annex to Human Rights Council resolution 5/1,” 18 October 2010.

[57] Human Rights Council, “Losing a generation: how the military junta is devastating Myanmar’s children and undermining Myanmar’s future: Conference room paper of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar,” A/HRC/50/CRP.1, 14 June 2022, p. 18, para. 63.

[58] “Burma Army Uses Farmers as Human Shields In Pekon Township,” Shan Herald Agency for News, 7 September 2021. “The soldiers used the farming couple as human shields. People try to flee their villages as soon as the soldiers arrive, because this kind of thing is common in our area,” a villager told the news agency.

[59] Karen Women’s Organization (KWO) and KHRG press release, “The Karen Women’s Organization and the Karen Human Rights Group Condemn the Burmese Junta’s Use of Women as Human Shields,” 3 September 2021.

[60] Ibid. The women were forced to march until they reached Kyaw Hta Loh river, where they were released after sustaining injuries.

[61] Human Rights Council, “Losing a generation: how the military junta is devastating Myanmar’s children and undermining Myanmar’s future: Conference room paper of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar,” A/HRC/50/CRP.1, 14 June 2022, p. 18, para. 63.

[63] According to the Monitor, local researchers interviewing and assisting displaced Rohingya civilians as they crossed into Bangladesh on 28 August 2017 saw an army truck arrive on the Myanmar side of the border from which they witnessed Myanmar government soldiers unloading three crates. They said the soldiers removed antipersonnel landmines from the crates and placed them in the ground, later returning at night to place more mines. According to the researchers, mines were emplaced in Taung Pyo Let Yar village tract, in Maungdaw township, adjacent to border pillar No. 31 in Bangladesh, an area that demarcates the start of the land border between Bangladesh and Myanmar. Monitor email and phone interviews with non-governmental organization (NGO) researchers, who asked to remain anonymous, 17 September 2017.

[64] Human Rights Council, “Report of the detailed findings of the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Myanmar,” A/HRC/39/CRP.2, 17 September 2018, p. 288.

[65] Statement of Bangladesh, Mine Ban Treaty Fourth Review Conference, Oslo, 27 November 2019.

[66] Kyaw Myo Aung, “Workers at border fence repair site in Maungdaw severely injured in landmine encounter,” Development Media Group (DMG), 23 February 2021.

[67] Statement of Myanmar, Mine Ban Treaty Seventeenth Meeting of States Parties, Geneva, 30 November 2018. The statement said “...the security forces of Myanmar and Bangladesh have been conducting coordinated patrol along the border in the west of Myanmar. Coordinated patrol has been made for 19 times so far since August of this year. No incidents of landmines casualty have been reported in the area. Such accusation without concrete evidence will not help facilitate countries to join the convention.”

[68] Statement of Myanmar, UNGA First Committee on Disarmament and International Security, New York, 19 October 2020.

[69] For example, in Monywa township, Sagaing region, three local militias stated that they attacked junta soldiers coming to clear mines. See, Aung Aung, “Revolutionaries attack junta forces with mines in Monywa,” Tha Din News and Radio, 23 August 2022. In Ye-U township, Sagaing region, a coalition of local militias stated that when the Myanmar Armed Forces entered an area, they detonated the mines. See, Aung Aung, “Ten killed and many injured as junta troops mined in Ye-U,” Tha Din News and Radio, 14 August 2022. The Taze People’s Comrades in Taze township, Sagaing region, claimed that military vehicles triggered landmines they had laid near Doukgyi village. See, “More Than 40 Junta Troops Killed Across Myanmar,” The Irrawaddy, 16 August 2021. Mines laid by the Southern Pauk Guerrilla Force in Pauk township, Magway region, killed 17 Myanmar Army troops. See, “Armed resistance replaces anti-coup protests in Pauk township,” Frontier Myanmar, 31 August 2021.

[70] Aung Aung, “Ten junta soldiers mined and killed at a PDF camp,” Tha Din News and Radio, 13 August 2022.

[71] “KIA Landmine Injuries Burma Army In Hpakant,” BNI/Kachin News Group, 16 August 2022.

[72] Aung Aung, “At least 10 Junta soldiers killed in Phaungpyin during a landmine attack by the PDF,” Tha Din News and Radio, 24 June 2022.

[73] Aung Aung, “Landmine killed a junta soldier who ran away,” Tha Din News and Radio, 12 June 2022.

[74] “Landmines Injures Civilians Near Hpakant Goldmine,” BNI/Kachin News Group, 29 June 2022. The Jahtu Zup People’s Militia Force are a pro-military militia.

[76] Myint Zaw, “Mines cut off 4 junta soldiers’ legs near Taegyi Village, MinKin Township,” Tha Din News and Radio, 25 May 2022.

[77] KHRG, “KHRG Submission to Landmine Monitor,” September 2022. It is uncertain when the KNLA laid these landmines.

[78] KHRG, “KHRG Submission to Landmine Monitor,” September 2022. Villagers stated that the mine was laid by Karen National Union (KNU) fighters, but did not indicate when.

[79] “Father Of Six Injured By Landmine In Northern Shan State,” Shan Herald Agency for News, 18 March 2022.

[80] David Boi, “Villager injured in landmine explosion in Hpa An Township,” Tha Din News and Radio, 11 December 2021.

[83] KHRG, “KHRG Submission to Landmine Monitor,” August 2021. KHRG researchers were told that no warning by the KNLA was issued. Nearby, another landmine caused minor injuries to two other people on the same day.

[85] “Mines exploded on the Monywa - Naunggyi Ai - Shwebo road and 2 cars were damaged and there were injuries,” Voice of Myanmar News, 30 November 2021; “Rescue vehicle runs over mines, hurting crew member,” BNI/Than Lwin Times, 12 September 2022; and David Boi, “POV overtook junta convoy, blasted by landmine, 6 killed,” Tha Din News and Radio, 10 April 2022.

[86] “Information Team of State Administration Council holds press conference 4/2021,” Global New Light of Myanmar, 10 April 2021, p. 5. From the photographs, it was not possible to determine the technical characteristics of the mines.

[87] The Monitor recorded at least 25 injuries or deaths among rubbish collectors in towns in Kayin and Shan states, and in the Magway, Sagaing, and Yangon regions betweeen May and December 2021.

[88] In the past, a few armed groups and former armed groups operating in Myanmar unilaterally renounced use of antipersonnel mines by signing the Deed of Commitment. The Chin National Front/Chin National Army (CNF/CNA) renounced use in July 2006. The Arakan Rohingya National Organization (ARNO) and the National United Party of Arakan (NUPA), both now militarily defunct, renounced use in October 2003. The Lahu Democratic Front (LDF), the Palaung State Liberation Army (PSLA), and the Pa-O People’s Liberation Organization/Pa-O People’s Liberation Army (PPLO/PPLA) renounced use in April 2007. In June 2010, Geneva Call noted that the LDF and the PPLA had disbanded.

[89] Since 2014, Geneva Call has been pursuing inquiries about allegations of mine use made against the TNLA. See, Geneva Call, “Burma/Myanmar: Geneva Call urges an end to mine use in northern Shan State,” 14 July 2016.

[92] For example, in 2018, Myanmar stated that “the Myanmar Armed Forces is no longer using the landmines while safeguarding the life and property of its people in internal conflicts.” Statement of Myanmar, Mine Ban Treaty Sixteenth Meeting of States Parties, Vienna, 21 December 2017.

[93] The officer requested anonymity as he had no permission to speak on the issue.

[94] Statement of Myanmar, UNGA First Committee on Disarmament and International Security, New York, 19 October 2020.

[95] The official said: “In border areas, if the number of Tatmadaw is small, they will lay mines around where they reside, but only if their numbers are small. Mines are also laid around infrastructure such as microwave towers. If these are near villages, we warn them. If there is a Tatmadaw camp in an area controlled by an ethnic armed group where they are sniped at and harassed, they will lay mines around the camp.” Monitor meeting with U Min Htike Hein, Assistant Secretary, Union Minister Office for Defense, Ministry of Defense, Naypyitaw, 5 July 2019.

[96] “Pyithu Hluttaw hears answers to questions by relevant ministries,” Global New Light of Myanmar, 13 September 2016. The deputy minister stated that the Tatmadaw used landmines to protect state-owned factories, bridges and power towers, and its outposts in military operations. The deputy minister also stated that mines were removed when the military abandoned outposts, or warning signs were placed where landmines were planted and soldiers were not present.

[97] For example, see Lawi Weng, “3 Civilians Reportedly Killed by Landmines in Shan State in June,” The Irrawaddy, 4 July 2018.

[99] Human Rights Council, “Losing a generation: how the military junta is devastating Myanmar’s children and undermining Myanmar’s future: Conference room paper of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar,” A/HRC/50/CRP.1, 14 June 2022.

[100] ICBL, Statement on Universalization, Mine Ban Treaty Nineteenth Meeting of States Parties, 15 November 2021.

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