Since last week and intensifying this past Tuesday, the Chinese government has been forcibly evicting Kachin refugees from the borders of its Yunnan province and back into the conflict-ridden Kachin State of northern Myanmar. The refugees have reportedly been living in Yunnan for around a year, fleeing from one of many civil wars currently occurring in Myanmar. The Chinese government has no official stance on the Kachin conflict, though the area's wealth of timber, jade, and other valuable resources are apparently coveted by China, which also has a few dam projects in the state. The Chinese Foreign ministry would give no official comment and calls to the Yunnan and Dehong (the location of the refugee camps) propaganda offices were not answered or returned. This makes it unclear as to why exactly the refugees are being expelled from the area now. Around 4,200 Kachin or more have been forced from six refugee camps and back into Kachin State, where they are reportedly living on both sides of the conflict zone. In some cases, Chinese border guards had begun destroying refugee huts before the refugees had even had a chance to leave the site.
This behavior on part of the Chinese has arguably been a huge violation of human rights. The Human Rights Watch had reported in June that between 7,000 and 10,000 Kachin refugees were living in terrible conditions in China and faced harassment and harsh treatment by officials. That means that these refugees were already in a state of extreme vulnerability and likely had no way to defend themselves from this eviction - and even if they had, resistance might have been met with more violent retaliation. It is unlikely at this time that the Kachin will be able to bring a case against the Chinese government, as they live in extreme poverty and their everyday lives are a battle for survival with little time, money, or energy to spend on hiring lawyers. It is possible that outside organizations such as the Human Rights Watch may attempt to step in on behalf of the Kachin refugees, as this is a clear violation of international humanitarian law. In doing this, the government is sentencing these people to a life of even worse squalor and a constant fear for their lives - it is my hope that an international watchdog organization of some kind will step in, though it is probable too early to tell.
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/24/world/asia/china-forcing-repatriation-of-ethnic-refugees-from-myanmar.html
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