Interview: Pauktaw escapee recounts junta’s killing and detention of residents

By Admin 24 Nov 2023

DMG Newsroom
24 November 2023, Sittwe

The Myanmar military and the Arakan Army (AA) have been fighting fiercely in Pauktaw town since November 16. The regime is conducting joint operations using its army, navy and air force. Some houses in the town were destroyed by junta artillery strikes.
 
Hundreds of residents are trapped in the town, with some being held hostage by the regime. The AA has been trying to rescue them, with more than 220 civilians extricated from the town on November 2l and 23.
 
A 57-year-old who was rescued by the AA on November 21 spoke to DMG about the situation in the town. His identity has been concealed for security reasons.
 
DMG: How did you come to be trapped in the town?

Pauktaw escapee: When [the Myanmar military] bombarded the town with aircraft and artillery on November 16, we fled to Lawka Hteikpan Pagoda, thinking that we might be safe there. We were hiding on the precinct of the pagoda. Then junta soldiers and police came. They fired shots at random. I saw four people were killed by stray bullets. Soldiers spotted us, and told us to come out and put our hands up or they would shoot. They then asked me if there were AA [fighters] there. They held us at the mediation hall of the pagoda.
 
DMG: What happened next?

We were not allowed to go out on the day of the arrests. The next morning, we were allowed to go back separately to our homes to take our clothes and food. Men were told to take food from markets and women were told to cook. They seized all our phones and belongings including gold jewelry worn by women. 

When we went to the wards, there was no one there. Junta soldiers are deployed at the entrance and exit of town, as well as in houses. Around 120 people were detained at Lawka Hteikpan Pagoda.
 
DMG: What about the civilian casualties?

Some of the people who were detained along with me were injured [by junta gunfire]. A child was hit in his hip, and needed surgery. Butw he could not, as the hospital was closed. When we asked [junta soldiers] when the hospital would be reopened, they told us they didn’t know. Four people died before my eyes. They were two women in their 30s, an elderly person and a Buddhist monk. The following day, soldiers incinerated them in our absence.
 
DMG: What was it like to be in an active war zone?

We were in the mediation hall. So, we only heard shooting, and we couldn’t see. We crouched in the mediation hall when we heard shooting. Children were frightened by the sounds of artillery and aerial strikes. We could not sleep at night. Both children and adults were in a state of panic. We stayed in the mediation hall for five days. Before we were rescued [on November 21], some shells landed near the mediation hall.
 
DMG: How did the AA extract the detainees? Were you informed in advance about the rescue operation?

Pauktaw escapee: We did not know that the AA would come and rescue us. There was fierce fighting before we escaped. There is a back door at the mediation hall. We went out through that door. AA members told us not to fear, and that they had come to rescue us. We saw dead bodies of junta soldiers and police when we left. The AA took us from the back of Lawka Hteikpan Pagoda.
 
DMG: Are there any other people still trapped in the town?

There are people still trapped in the town. And there are also town residents being detained by the regime in the agriculture office and town hall. I heard junta soldiers do not allow them to go out. I heard there are also injured civilians in the town. Some of the people who were rescued together with me also sustained minor injuries.
 
DMG: How are you doing at the place where you are taking shelter now?

We are now at a monastery in a village. As the regime forces have seized all our money and phones, we have nothing left. We rely on food provided by others. It is not OK.
 
DMG: What else do you want to say about the fighting?

People are suffering from serious troubles due to the fighting. It is best if there is no fighting. I hope that other residents are also released soon.