China tells Burma to “punish the murders” of Yunnan civilian

THE BODY OF LAHPAI ZAU LAWN, A CHINESE NATIONAL OF KACHIN (JINGPO) ETHNICITY.LAST WEEK CHINESE AUTHORITIES TOOK THE UNUSUAL STEP OF PUBLICLY CALLED ON BURMA TO "PUNISH THE MURDERS" OF THE 53-YEAR OLD FARMER.

Mai Ja Yang, Burma — Nearly two months after Burmese soldiers are alleged to have crossed into China and killed Lahpai Zau Lawn, an unarmed Chinese citizen of Kachin (Jingpo) ethnicity, Chinese authorities have taken the unprecedented step of publicly calling on Burma to punish those responsible.

Last week China's state owned media quoted Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Weimin issuing what is by far Beijing’s harshest criticism of Burma in years.

"The Chinese side has lodged solemn representations with the Myanmar side asking it to quickly find out the truth, punish the murderers and compensate the bereaved families," said Liu during a regular ministry press briefing.

"The Myanmar side said it paid attention to the representations and is stepping up investigations", the government spokesman added.  Liu's damming indictment of the Burmese army was later reported by the AFP news service which also quoted from the Kachin News Group's previous coverage of the story. Burma's embassy in Beijing refused to respond to AFP's request for comment.

Brutal slaying occurred on Chinese territory
According to Lahpai Zau Lawn's family the 53-year old farmer was abducted by Burmese troops on the evening of Thursday January 12 near his village, Loi Lung Bum in southern Yunnan.

An examination of Lahpai Zau Lawn's body which was found on Chinese soil showed that he was shot at close range in the abdomen and twice in head, his relatives said.  A photo of Lahpai Zau Lawn's corpse provided by his family supports their conclusion that he was struck in the face with a butt of a gun before being killed.
The Kachin News Group has learned that Chinese authorities found blood stains and bullet cartridges on the Chinese side of the border, at the place where Lahpai Zau Lawn appears to have been summarily executed.  Lahpai Zau Lawn's relatives say he did not cross into Burma that day and was instead captured in China.

Zau Lawn's body was found a short distance away from where he appears to have been killed. In an apparent message to his fellow villagers, Burmese soldiers also planted two mines, one at the place where the blood stains were found and another mine where his body was found, according to a source familiar with the Chinese investigation.

The soldiers who carried out the attack on Zau Lawn are said to be from the Mu Bum base located on the Burmese side of the border and hail from the Shwenyaungpyin-based Light Infantry Battalion No. 321 under the Northern Regional Command, according to sources on the ground.

Villagers in the area say that Zau Lawn's killing was likely in retaliation for a December 22 incident in which two Burmese soldiers from Battalion No. 321, who crossed into China, were detained by local residents from the deceased man's village of Loi Lung Bum, located four miles inside China.

According to villagers familiar with the incident, the stray Burmese soldiers appeared to be hungry and had crossed into China to steal food from a local farm.  After capturing the two Burmese conscripts, villagers handed them over to Chinese authorities, prompting the Burmese army to seek revenge.

According to sources familiar with the Chinese investigation in Zau Lawn's killing, Chinese authorities were initially reluctant to pursue the matter with Burma's government despite an overwhelming amount of evidence indicating that an innocent Chinese citizen was murdered on Chinese territory by Burmese troops.

The announcement by China's Foreign Ministry that it wants Burma to investigate Zau Lawn's murder is a strong indication that China has given up trying to pursue the matter quietly.

According to villagers, in 1992 when the Burmese army was previously fighting the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO) in the area, a Chinese citizen from Loi Lung was also captured by the Burmese army inside Chinese territory.

Maru Lagyung an ethnic Kachin, was seen being detained by Burmese soldiers shortly after the KIO's base at Mu Bum had fallen to the Burmese army.  Following his capture, Maru Lagyung was never heard from again and is believed to have died at the hands of his captors.

Last October soldiers from Mu Bum base are also alleged to have abducted Sumlut Roi Ja, a 28-year mother while she was tending to her fields near the base.  Her husband who witnessed her abduction tried to pursue his wife's disappearance in the Burmese legal system but a court in Naypyidaw recently squashed this challenge.