Khun Rein Yan, spokesperson of the Pa-O National Liberation Army (PNLA), said that some junta troops came to patrol by wearing the Pa-O men’s traditional dress, so it was a brazen act.
When more than 500 junta troops patrolled from Taunggyi town to Hopong Township on March 6 and 7, some troops were reportedly wearing Pa-O men’s traditional dress.
“Now they (junta) are committing acts of violence that destroy the Pa-O region by wearing Pa-O traditional dress. And they are destroying the traditions and cultures of an ethnic group. I want to say that this is a very obscene act,” he said.
About 50 military vehicles carried soldiers to Hopong township on March 6, according to a resident in Hopang town.
“They (junta) are coming from the side of Taunggyi. They arrived in Hopang yesterday. The big battle has not yet happened. Meanwhile, they are continuously firing heavy weapons. Sometimes there are more than 100 rounds. They are not pro-junta PNO militiamen but are soldiers who are patrolling in a column in Pa-O men’s traditional dress. I think they are reinforcing the junta base camps in the north of Hsi Hseng town and Sai Khong village,” he said.
Khun Rein Yan said that patrolling into the Pa-O self-administered zone in the Pa-O traditional dress is an act that leads to entire destruction.
Currently, the military junta and PNLA army are fighting, and the fighting is intense, according to the PNLA army.
