Sexual and gender-based violence in Myanmar and the gendered impact of its ethnic conflicts in English home.534 In another case, Tatmadaw soldiers destroyed a survivor’s parents’ kitchen, beat her parents and took them away for forced labour for a week. 535 In yet another case, a Ta’ang woman reported the sexual assault and attempted rape incident to the village administrator but she later learned that Tatmadaw soldiers had beaten him to prevent an official report being filed.536 In this climate of fear, many survivors decided to leave the country after sexual violence.537 246. Lawyers who have taken up sensitive cases of sexual and gender-based violence against the Tatmadaw in Kachin and Shan States have also faced threats, leaving some afraid to work on these cases.538 One lawyer told the Mission: “Every time I went to the place of the incident, I was harassed by police. My co-workers were threatened by the military. They said, “If you take the case, you will have problems.”539 247. Civil society organizations working in Kachin and Shan States reported additional security concerns when releasing reports on sexual and gender-based violence that implicate the Tatmadaw.540 They fear constant surveillance and visits from the security forces. 248. An additional hindrance to justice is that many of the victims of sexual and genderbased violence do not have the education or the financial means to pursue justice. They often live in remote areas without proper access to legal representation. B. Flawed process when complaints are taken up 249. Due to the lack of cooperation from the Government of Myanmar, the Mission did not have access to official information on prosecutions against members of the Tatmadaw for human rights violations. The Mission is aware that, in a small number of cases, lower ranking members of the Tatmadaw have been prosecuted for violations including sexual violence.541 This includes one case of a soldier sentenced to 10 years in prison with hard labour for the rape of a child in Kachin State.542 250. When investigations and prosecutions do occur, however, they appear to be limited to a small number of often high-profile cases and to be restricted to junior soldiers, not senior officers or commanders. The standard approach is to deny Tatmadaw responsibility, dismiss the complainant and, in many cases, threaten prosecution of those alleging Tatmadaw involvement in the incident. Only when these approaches fail to deflect attention, do authorities undertake some form of investigation, which is generally inadequate and lacking compliance with international investigative standards.543 251. The Mission was also told of a case of rape in 2018 in Shan State where, following a meeting between local authorities, a Tatmadaw commander and relatives of the victim, the soldier responsible was slapped 10 times and compensation of 200,000 Kyat (132 USD) provided to a male family member of the victim.544 252. In its 2018 report, the Mission verified the rape and killings of two volunteer teachers, Maran Lu Ra and Tangbau Hkawn Nan Tsin, in Shan State on 19 January 2015. 545 534 535 536 537 538 539 540 541 542 543 544 545 PI-005, PI-007. PI-063. PI-057. GI-006, PI-143, PI-145, PI-146. PI-037, BM-008; International Commission of Jurists, Achieving Justice for Gross Human Rights Violations in Myanmar Baseline Study, (Geneva, 2018). BM-008. BM-007; A/HRC/34/67. PI-037, PI-142, PI-144. PI-037. A/HRC/39/CRP.2, p. 394 et s. PI-110. A/HRC/39/CRP.2, para. 204-206. 57