Shock as Humanitarian Worker is Executed in Burma

A humanitarian worker providing assistance to villagers in Karenni State in Burma has been executed by the Burma Army on 10 April, Christian Solidarity Worldwide has reported.

Free Burma Rangers relief team member Saw Lee Reh Kyaw was captured two days prior to his death while he was helping to bring humanitarian aid to a local community.

Upon his capture, Lee Reh was taken to the Burma Army headquarters where he was interrogated and tortured before being shot dead, CSW has told Christian Today.

The Burma Army abducted Lee Reh as its troops attacked Ha Lee Ku village, killing one pro-democracy Karenni soldier.

On 9 April, the Burma Army also arrested the headman and secretary of the village, although their whereabouts remain unknown.

In Karen State, three Burma Army battalions burned down four villages on 22 April 2007. One villager was killed in the attack as he tried to escape. More than one thousand people fled the villages and are now in hiding, CSW reports.

These attacks follow a month of smaller attacks against villagers in northern Karen State, during which five people were killed and a nurse was shot and severely wounded.

Christian Solidarity Worldwide's National Director, Stuart Windsor, said: "The tragic and brutal death of Saw Lee Reh Kyaw, who was providing much needed assistance to the Karenni people, illustrates the brutality of the Burmese regime. Their total disregard for the lives and needs of the Burmese people is horrifying.

"The international community, and particularly Burma's neighboring governments, must send a clear signal to the ruling military junta that these violations of human rights cannot be tolerated."