E/CN.4/1993/62 page 66 without cover. Only two and a half hours of sleep were allowed. They would resume work in the dark and were not allowed to stop or eat until noon. This was the only meal, and it lasted one hour. Only a handful of cooked rice was provided. Sometimes no water was allowed. Between 8 and 20 days of service were required before release. Those who escaped during service suffered attacks on their families and were usually beaten to death, as were those too ill or slow to keep up. Malaria also took a heavy toll. No medical treatment was made available and injuries were common. Mr. Jalil has a wide scar the length of his right leg, where a boulder fell on him. He was never released at the time of the injury. He also has multiple scars from punctures during beatings. Sabed Ali, 29, a farmer from Bardaija village, Maungdaw township, reported that one morning in early 1991 he came out of his house to pray at about 6 a.m. Someone aimed a flashlight in his eyes, and a soldier told him to come forward. He ignored the order and went on praying. They made a leap for him, a chase ensued and he was soon surrounded. His elbows were tied from behind, and he was loaded with 40 kilos of rice. He was then made to walk several hours to Bardaija Camp, a military outpost. He then had hot water poured over his face until he promised he would not resist forced labour again. He was released after one month, during which he was forced to carry heavy loads with almost no rest, food or water. Mr. Ali reported that the age of the other porters ranged from three men over 70, to several over 50 and a nine year-old boy. Magbul Ahmad, 30, from Donchara village, Buthidaung township, reported that he had been working intermittently during a year and a half as a forced labourer on the construction of a major highway across Akyab District. He saw many of his fellow workers on the road crews die of mistreatment, beating, exhaustion and malnutrition. Water was not supplied to the workers. He once saw a labourer ask a soldier for a drink, then watched the soldier urinate in a cup and give it to him. Mr. Ahmad has gone as long as seven days on the work crew without being allowed to steal away for a drink from a stream or a pond. The only food the workers were allowed was a tiny portion of rice and greens per day. At night, they had to sleep under guard on the road that they were building. Nur Alam, 30, from Bawly Bazaar, said that the army chose forced labour crews from alternative houses and that the village head was responsible for replacing the labourers. The previous crew was not released until their replacements were sent. Muslims were constantly told they were not Burmese, but from Bangladesh. In early 1992, soldiers forced over 400 Muslims to work on a pond for 20 days. They were beaten and had to work in the cold. Faruq Ahmad, 35, provided information similar to that given by Nur Alam. Crews of eight persons sent by the village head received an eight-day term of duty; crews taken by force had an indefinite term of forced labour. Also, if the village head would fail to provide an alternate crew of eight men, he himself would be obliged pay a fine of 50 Kyat (US$8) per man he could not provide. Mr. Faruq worked as a forced labourer for as long as 25 days at a time.