THU RAIN, JALOON HTAW – Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA), the armed wing of the Karen National Union (KNU), has demanded yearly taxes from Three Pagodas Pass (TPP) residents beginning January 28th.
TPP residents told The Independent Mon News Agency yesterday that the Township Peace and Development Council (TPDC) there has collected 200 to 1000 Baht from each household depending on the properties belonging to the house owners.
A female resident from town said, “Last time, when they came to collect money at my house, I did not have enough money to give to them. So, I just paid 200 baht. I will pay 100 Baht more this evening.”
“I didn’t have to pay last year, but I have to pay this year. I don’t know why. Every house has to pay money” she added.
Sources close to TPDC members claim that KNLA has threatened the TPDC with destruction of the area if they do not pay the taxes. Every year they have to initiate money collection form the residents and then pay the KNLA to maintain peace and order in TPP.
Last year the township had to pay 700,000 Baht last year, but this year 2.5 million Baht has been demanded, a sum which is extremely hard for the residents.
On account of the KNLA’s demand for taxes from TPP residents, IMNA called David Takapaw, the vice-chairman of the KNU, who explained, “The taxes demanded in TPP do not come from the KNU headquarters, but from Kawkareik District, about nine kilometers (5.5 miles) from TPP in an area under the control of KNLA Brigade 6.
KNLA Brigade 6 has faced difficulties in the past year, in which local businessmen have been unable to do business in KNLA-controlled areas due to the junta’s addition of military offensives in the area.
In previous years, KNLA Brigade 6 offered logging and mining contracts off of which they made money. Reportedly those contracts are the KNU’s major source of income, as it subsidizes the war against the Burmese army by purchasing arms.
According to an official list collected before the 2010 election, there are 7,000 households in TPP. TPP areas are a stronghold for ethnic armed groups such as the Karen and the Mon. Peace has ceased to exist in TPP since Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA) troops seized the town on November 8, 2010 and hundreds of Burmese refugees fled across the Thai border.
Meanwhile, KNLA Brigade No. 6 has blocked off the main trade route from Thanphyuzayart Township to TPP. The road has been sealed off in order to stop all movement of junta troops and food supplies for the military there.
The KNLA has also prohibited all businesses engaged in mining and logging in its areas of control. These areas are under attack as the Burmese military conducts offensives to gain Karen-controlled areas.
TPP residents rely on commodities exported during the current winter and upcoming summer season. Most residents are now buying commodities from Thailand at higher prices.
