16 January 2001

Child rebel leaders surrender in the jungle

Thai security forces took rebel twins, Johnny and Luther Htoo, and 14 other Christian ethnic Karen insurgents into custody.

The teenage brothers had led a self-declared God’s Army inside Myanmar, whose 150 followers had sought to create an autonomous or independent zone for Myanmar’s Karen minority.

The long-haired Htoo twins surrendered along the border at Ratchaburi. Since 2000, they had lost their ability to wage a guerrilla war and were struggling to survive in the jungle.

They wanted to return home, go to school and live a normal life, and said they were between 13 and 15 years old. The skinny Htoo brothers were sent to their parents, who lived in Ban Tong Yang refugee camp in Thailand.

Other Karen rebels taken into custody included some who allegedly killed six Thai villagers in Ratchaburi on December 30, 2000. Other God’s Army rebels were blamed for seizing a hospital in Ratchaburi in January 2000 and holding 800 patients and hospital staff hostage for 22 hours; the siege ended when Thai troops stormed the buildings and killed all 10 insurgents.

16 January 2001

Child rebel leaders surrender in the jungle

Thai security forces took rebel twins, Johnny and Luther Htoo, and 14 other Christian ethnic Karen insurgents into custody.

The teenage brothers had led a self-declared God’s Army inside Myanmar, whose 150 followers had sought to create an autonomous or independent zone for Myanmar’s Karen minority.

The long-haired Htoo twins surrendered along the border at Ratchaburi. Since 2000, they had lost their ability to wage a guerrilla war and were struggling to survive in the jungle.

They wanted to return home, go to school and live a normal life, and said they were between 13 and 15 years old. The skinny Htoo brothers were sent to their parents, who lived in Ban Tong Yang refugee camp in Thailand.

Other Karen rebels taken into custody included some who allegedly killed six Thai villagers in Ratchaburi on December 30, 2000. Other God’s Army rebels were blamed for seizing a hospital in Ratchaburi in January 2000 and holding 800 patients and hospital staff hostage for 22 hours; the siege ended when Thai troops stormed the buildings and killed all 10 insurgents.