A report on the Parjau massacre, which took place at the northern headquarters of the All Burma Students Democratic Front (ABSDF) in 1991 and 1992 in northern Kachin State, was released on March 15, and the committee to investigate the incident held a press conference in Yangon that same day.
Published on Tuesday, 17 March 2015 00:06
The report states that many students formed armed groups to fight the military junta after the 1988 military coup.
The ABSDF was formed in November 1988 in the area under the control of the Karen National Union (KNU). The ABSDF-Kachin was formed in northern Kachin State, which was under the control of the Kachin Independence Army. Later, many non-Kachin students joined the group, and the name was changed to ABSD-North.
Fearing government infiltration, leaders of ABSDF-North began to arrest arrest and interrogation fellow members. Some detained students died as a result of the torture they endured during interrogations. Over a hundred students were arrested and tortured, and 36 were murdered in 1991 and 1992.
The report does not name specific perpetrators of the murder and torture. However, it points to the senior members of the ABSDF as the most responsible persons for the brutal interrogations and murders.
The report says ABSDF-North violated human rights and that the central headquarters failed to address the purges taking place northern headquarters. What is more, a statement released by the central headquarters reiterated the claim that the killed members of the ABSDF were government informers. Therefore, the central headquarters also bears responsibility.
The committee urged the ABSDF to restore the positions of the killed students, to assist their families and to apologise to the families of the deceased. The committee also urged that those who committed the massacres should be removed from politics.