Interview
Border News Agency
Maungdaw, August 8.
In Maungdaw Township, the Mro ethnic people rely on forests and mountains for their livelihood, but they say they no longer dare to go there due to the danger of landmines.
They explained that the forests and mountains are also dangerous because of armed so-called Rohingya extremists, and that the Arakan Army has advised them not to go. Furthermore, landmines planted earlier by the junta forces have not yet been cleared.
As a result, those who depend on the forests and mountains to sustain their livelihoods are now facing many hardships.
Border News Agency interviewed a Mro ethnic resident from Thiho Aye Village, Maungdaw Township.
“In our village, the difficulty is that we only have casual labor. If there’s no work, we collect snails or bamboo shoots. Some days we find them, but many days we don’t. We can’t feed our families properly. That’s the kind of hardship we face.”
“As for support, we do get some, enough for only about fifteen to sixteen days a month. There are about one or two people here who have to beg. During the conflict, I had no parents and no children, living only with my daughter-in-law at home. That’s why I ended up living a life of begging.”
“In this village, there is no real livestock farming. Some people raise one or two pigs, and one or two chickens. There are no cows and no goats. As for farming, the situation is not favorable now, so people no longer farm.”
“I want things to be easier for people injured by landmines. Those who have lost a leg need prosthetic limbs.”
“I told the Arakan Army that it would be good if they could clear the landmines around our village. But they said the demining experts haven’t arrived yet, so they still can’t clear them. The villagers are also feeling unhappy about this.”
