Calls have been made for the international community to investigate claims of genocide and crimes against humanity, and to increase pressure on Burma's ruling Junta.

Reported by Assist News Service, a joint delegation from Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW) and the Humanitarian Aid Relief Trust (HART) has just returned from a visit to ethnic groups on the Thai-Burmese border. The group is very concerned about the evidence of a campaign of genocide perpetrated by the ruling State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) in the region.

The delegation consisted of members from CSW UK, Australia and New Zealand. During the visit to the Internally Displaced People (IDPs) in two sites inside Burma, as well as the ‘Karen’ and ‘Karenni’ refugees in Thailand, the delegation listened to the first-hand testimonies from various refugees.

A spokesperson for CSW said, "Hundreds of thousands of Karen, Karenni and Shan continue to face a humanitarian crisis in eastern Burma. Internally Displaced People in the jungles are denied access to adequate medical care, food and shelter, they face the threat of forced labour, forced relocation, widespread rape, torture and the destruction of villages, crops, rice barns and livestock."

"We want to see the heart of the Burmese government change so we can live in peace," a refugee camp leader told the team. "We hope to return to our villages but we don't know when. While we are together in this camp, we really need provision, especially food and medicine."

"There are an estimated one million people internally displaced in Burma," added the CSW spokesperson. "The Thailand-based Burma Border Consortium estimates at least 526,000 people have been displaced in Karen, Karenni and Shan areas, with 157,000 of these displaced in the past two years. Since 2002, at least 240 villages have been completely destroyed, relocated or abandoned, and a total of 2,500 villages in eastern Burma have been destroyed since 1996."

The Shan people face a particularly severe crisis, with 300,000 internally displaced and at least 200,000 living illegally in Thailand. Unlike the Karen and Karenni, the Shan have been denied refugee camps in Thailand. Instead, those who flee persecution find sanctuary either illegally in Thailand, or in IDP camps in Shan state, Burma.

"We are in need of material and moral help. We need to make our plight known to the rest of the world," one Shan leader said. "The situation in Shan state is no different from Iraq with regards to the number of casualties, but the difference is that there are no reporters or observers in Shan State. Battles erupt on a daily basis."

Baroness Cox, Chief Executive of HART and Honorary President of CSW-UK called on the international community to investigate claims of genocide and crimes against humanity, and to increase pressure on Burma’s ruling Junta.

She said, "Every time we visit the Karen, Karenni and Shan, we find mounting evidence of gross violations of human rights which we believe may amount to genocide, crimes against humanity and violations of the Geneva Conventions. We urge the British Government, the European Union and the United Nations to recognise the severity of the situation and take appropriate action."

"We also appeal to the Association of South-East Asian Nations [ASEAN] to suspend Burma’s membership of the organization until significant progress is made towards a transition to a federal democracy and an improvement in human rights. We call for free and open access to all areas of Burma for international humanitarian aid groups and human rights monitors."