Border News Agency
Thandwe, August 2
Local residents from townships such as Thandwe, Gwa, and Kyaukphru, where the fishing industry is the main livelihood, say they are facing difficulties in making ends meet due to the presence of junta naval forces in the open sea and the lack of markets to sell marine products.
Local residents said they make a living by relying on the sea, rivers, and creeks to catch and sell crabs, prawns, fish, dried fish, and fish paste, while only a small number of them engage in farming and growing seasonal crops on upland fields.
They added that because of the presence of junta naval forces in the sea, those who depend on the sea for their livelihoods do not dare to go fishing.
“Some families are even surviving by collecting and eating coconuts because they have nothing else to eat. There are no jobs available. We are afraid of the navy, so we dare not go fishing. We also no longer have complete fishing equipment,” a displaced woman from Gwa Township told Border News Agency.
The displaced people said they had to flee to safer areas during the fighting and were unable to continue their livelihoods.
They added that even after returning to their homes following the clashes, they are still facing difficulties fishing because junta naval forces remain in the open sea, firing at and arresting fishing boats.
Local residents said the junta’s warships are patrolling the open sea in Thanthwe and Gwa townships, firing upon and harassing fishing trawlers.
“They fire at the fishing trawlers, and sometimes the navy even comes very close to the shore. Because of that, we no longer dare to go out to sea,” a local man from Kyaukphru Township told Border News Agency.
Due to the junta’s blockades on both land and waterways, the prices of basic food items and fuel have increased in Arakan State, and the fuel essential for the fishing industry is now around 15,000 kyats per liter, they said.
In addition, local residents said that even when they manage to go fishing, there is no stable market to sell their marine products, such as fresh fish.
“We can no longer send crabs and prawns to other parts of the country like before. It’s the same for dried fish as well. With the high fuel prices, it just doesn’t meet our requirements anymore,” a local resident from Thanthwe Township said.
In Thandwe and Gwa townships, tens of thousands of internally displaced people are still unable to return home and are struggling with their livelihoods, relying only on limited support from domestic donors as they no longer receive any assistance from international aid organizations, they said.
Across Arakan State, around 700,000 internally displaced people are facing severe livelihood hardships, and local residents, including the displaced, are also struggling to make ends meet
Because the people of Arakan are having to import food, medicine, and fuel through routes including India and Bangladesh, prices within Arakan State have surged, leaving people already struggling with limited job opportunities facing severe livelihood hardships.
The Arakan People’s Revolutionary Government has stated that it is working to systematize trade routes and reduce commodity prices in order to ease the livelihood hardships of the people of Arakan.
