I stopped using the social networking site and sat back in my wheelchair. For a brief moment, I placed the phone on my chest with my hand.
“Every ethnic group in the world has struggled to survive on its own,” came to me.
The message urging the Chin people to work for the establishment of a united Chin state in a statement issued by the Chin National Advisory Council on Chin National Day on February 20 made me reconsider. I’m thinking back to 1993. I hurried back to the Kyon Sein village in Hpa-an Township, Kayin State, near the Donthami creek.
2.
The stream at the base of the hill had very cold water.
Last night, I sat down and talked to some Kyon Sein villagers, and I woke up late because it was late. DKBA Brigade Commander Bo Thein Soe accompanied me as I descended the hill in Sanchaung to refresh.
Bo Thein Soe (fallen) was a 30-year-old Karen military officer. A Karen Revolutionary Army officer, Brigade 1 Brigade Commander Brigadier General Kyaw Lin provided me with road support and security when I visited villages throughout the region. A Karen soldier by the name of Wae Sa (Fallen) was with him. I work as a field correspondent for the Democratic Voice of Burma (DVB) in Brigade 1 townships Hpa-an, Thaton, and Hpapun.
Bo Thein Soe was getting a new face changed next to me in Sanchaung water while I was changing in Chaungsap. From Kyon Sein village, two loud explosions were heard at that time.
Bo Thein Soe ran up the hill after grabbing a carbine from a bamboo grove. We heard screams and dogs barking as we reached the top of the hill and gazed over Kyon Sein village. As well, smoke is rising.
He stated, “These men fired heavy weapons into the village.” We’ll descend, Ko Nyein.
We were met by a group fleeing the village about 20 yards away when the three of us reached the footpath at the foot of the hill. When they saw us on the street, the crowd was still standing. People ran ahead only after Bo Thein Soe yelled like a Karen. The village heard gunfire at the same time, and the residents fled ahead. We were all forced to flee with the villagers.
A villager in his 30s was running away, I saw. He does not have a shirt on. An old Madeleine handkerchief can be found on the naked back. An old scarf is also there. I could clearly see the puppy’s protruding head within the scarlet.
I’ve been fascinated by this singular Kyon Sein villager ever since I saw this scene. He didn’t bring any clothes, blankets, or food, and he ran away with just a puppy in one hand, unlike the other people.
Kyon Sein village residents fleeing artillery shelling in 1993
In the Kyon Sein Reserve, a small stream that was beginning to dry up was where our fleeing group stopped. Near Chaung Kale, the villagers were housed by Bo Thein Soe, who was also a resident of Kyon Sein village. Find a spot with water before it gets dark. He explained that the villagers should eat together and stay here for the night. I and my comrade Lay Wae Sa took a census. Under the bamboo trees, everyone was seated in groups.
Bo Thein Soe informed me this morning that he had attended a funeral in Kyon Sein village where people collected bones. On the other side of the Donthami Creek, close to the village, there is a camp for an army battalion. At 8 a.m. today, the army requested that three pounds of pork be brought to the base. The army was unable to deliver the requested three pounds of pork for more than eight hours because of the funeral. The villagers fled to a nearby forest after the army launched two 60-millimeter artillery shells into the community.
He stated that the area was safe due to the inability of the enemy government to arrive suddenly. I was informed by Bo Thein Soe that the number of casualties was still unknown.
People prepare their place because it is a location from which the adversary cannot enter. Under a bamboo tree, my friend Wae Sa and I spread dried leaves. The moon began to set over the forest as the house was being built, and the sun’s rays quickly disappeared.
My head was resting on my backpack as I fell asleep, and I awoke from something. The moonlight on my body jumped up and down as I lightly shook it. A forest stream is illuminated by the moonlight. I hear a medallion while the moon is shining and everyone is asleep.
