KACHIN STATE, 3 June 2013 (IRIN) - The UN and others have welcomed recent peace talks aimed at reaching a cease-fire in Myanmar's conflict-affected Kachin State, but building trust will take time, say experts.

On 31 May, the Burmese government and the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO), which has been fighting for greater autonomy for decades, agreed to further dialogue and talks on the resettlement of tens of thousands of internally displaced persons (IDPs).

...SPDC troops in northern Papun district continue to escalate their attacks, shooting villagers, burning villages and destroying ricefields. Undefended villages in far northern Papun district are now being shelled with powerful 120mm mortars. Three battalions from Toungoo district have rounded up hundreds of villagers as porters and are detaining their families in schools in case they're needed; this column is now heading south with its porters, apparently intending to trap displaced villagers in a pincer between themselves and the troops coming north from Papun district.

Executive Summary:
"In September 2011, as the international community discussed easing sanctions on Burma’s
military-backed civilian government, Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) conducted an emergency
investigation in Burma’s Kachin State in response to reports of grave human rights violations
in the region. The aims of the study were
1. to independently investigate reported human rights abuses and war crimes; and
2. to assess the humanitarian situation and nutritional status of internally displaced

A significant decrease in forced displacement has been documented by community‐based
organisations in South East Myanmar after a series of ceasefire agreements were negotiated earlier this
year. While armed conflict continues in Kachin State and communal violence rages in Rakhine State, field
surveys indicate that that there has been a substantial decrease in hostilities affecting Karen, Karenni,
Shan and Mon communities.
In its annual survey of displacement and poverty released today, the Thailand Burma Border Consortium

Between October 2004 and January 2005 SPDC troops launched forays into the hills of Nyaunglebin District in an attempt to flush villagers down into the plains and a life under SPDC control. Viciously timed to coincide with the rice harvest, the campaign focused on burning crops and landmining the fields to starve out the villagers. Most people fled into the forest, where they now face food shortages and uncertainty about this year's planting and the security of their villages.

Thai university professor and international law expert, Vitit Muntarbhorn, looks at the application of labour standards as they relate to migrant workers in Thailand. Professor Vitit concludes with a series of 12 recommendations for both government and non-government sectors. This publication also contains copies of all six sub-regional, bilateral, MOUs on counter trafficking and employment cooperation...
"...Migrant workers can contribute greatly to their home and destination countries, if the process is well managed and

#039;When Burmese President Thein Sein took office in March 2011, he said that over 60 years of armed conflict have put Burma’s
ethnic populations through “the hell of untold miseries.” Just three months later, the Burmese armed forces resumed military
operations against the Kachin Independence Army (KIA), leading to serious abuses and a humanitarian crisis affecting tens of
thousands of ethnic Kachin civilians.
“Untold Miseries”: Wartime Abuses and Forced Displacement in Kachin State is based on over 100 interviews in Burma’s Kachin

Thai factory owners face huge claims after judge rules for Burmese migrants.

About 200 Thai factories employing migrant Burmese workers are braced to meet compensation claims amounting to many millions of dollars following the success of a legal action brought by 18 employees in Thailand’s Tak Province.

The Burmese migrants were awarded a total of 1,170,000 baht (US $29,250) in compensation for unpaid back wages owed by their employer, the Nut Knitting Ltd Partnership in Mae Sot, on the Thai-Burmese border.

In den Grenzregionen des Shan State im Nordosten Burmas, die seit 1989 unter der Kontrolle der United Wa State Army (UWSA) ist, werden 65 Prozent des gesamten Opiums des Landes angebaut. Trotz der Bereitschaft der Landwirte konnten wegen minderwertiger Bodenbeschaffenheit und klimatischer Bedingungen bisher noch keine Erfolg versprechenden Alternativen zum Opiumanbau realisiert werden. Seit dem kompletten Bann im Jahre 2005 werden tiefgreifende humanitäre Konsequenzen für die Region in Form von Menschenhandel, Armut und mangelnder Sicherheit befürchtet.

Nyaunglebin District. Feb 93. Karen men, women: Forced relocation to undrained land; Only Karen villages made to move; SLORC's control of rice to control the population; forced labour (incl. portering). Description of the difficult economic conditions. Extortion; ransoming; looting. Translation of an official SLORC Relocation Order; economic oppression..."
_ADDITIONAL KEYWORDS: forced resettlement, forced relocation, forced movement, forced displacement, forced migration, forced to move, displaced_

Revised 2007...Resettlement: A Vital Instrument Of International Protection And An
Element Of Comprehensive Solutions...

Comprehensive Approach To Resolving Refugee Situations And Providing
Appropriate Durable Solutions:
2.1 Voluntary Repatriation
2.2 Local Integration
2.3 Resettlement in the Context of other Durable Solutions
Resettlement Processes Flowchart...