Kyaukphyu landmine victim in need of costly medical treatment

By Admin 15 Jul 2024

DMG Newsroom
15 July 2024, Kyaukphyu

A landmine victim from Ceditaung Kwin Ward in Kyaukphyu, Arakan State, is reportedly in need of financial assistance to treat his injuries.

U Maung Wai Thein, in his 50s, stepped on a landmine while searching for vegetables near Aungcedi Village on July 12. He lost his left leg in the landmine blast and is currently undergoing treatment at Kyaukphyu Hospital, where his injuries require surgery, but he is facing financial difficulties, a family member said.

“His medical expenses have cost around K1 million. I still don’t know how much it will cost him. It will take a long time to receive medical treatment, so it is not easy with the cost of medicine these days,” the family member added.

A junta outpost is located on a hill near Aungcedi Village where the landmine dismembered U Maung Wai Thein, and the explosive charge is believed to have been planted by junta troops, locals said.

A growing number of those who earn a living by cutting down timber or fishing are losing limbs due to landmines, and the families they support are also suffering as a result.

“As for how many landmines there are, you can see a lot of them on the ground when it rains,” said a local resident of Kyaukphyu’s Taungyin Ward.

Two local men were severely injured in a landmine explosion near Aungcedi Village in February. According to a DMG tally, four villagers were killed and 11 others were injured in landmine blasts in Kyaukphyu Township’s Ohntaw, Kubala, Mala Kyun, Pyaing Saykay, Hnanphetaung, and Auang Zedi villages in recent months, since the latest fighting between Myanmar’s military regime and the Arakkha Army (AA) began.

At and around junta bases, military headquarters, camps, police outposts, forests, roads, schools, and grazing lands in some townships held by the AA, civilians are experiencing death and debilitating injuries caused by landmines.

The AA has issued a notice to civilians to avoid travel near junta camps and surrounding areas, and to educate themselves about landmine hazards.