Kyauktaw Twsp villagers struggle to rehabilitate

By Admin 13 Sep 2025

DMG Newsroom

13 September 2025, Kyauktaw

Residents of Malar, a village in the upper reaches of Kaladan River in Kyauktaw Township, Arakan State, are reportedly facing rehabilitation, employment, and livelihood difficulties.

Residents of Malar Village have returned to their homes after fleeing the fighting in Kyauktaw, Mrauk-U, and Sittwe townships in March 2020.

"Now that the villagers of Malar have been able to return to their village, there are no more roads in the village. It is as dense as a forest. They are clearing it out bit by bit. There are still many houses that have not been rebuilt," said U Thein Shwe Aung, a villager from Malar.

Village officials say there are more than 110 houses in Malar Village, of which about 75 percent were demolished or burned by the Myanmar military during the fighting.

Some of the remaining houses were reportedly degraded by weather conditions during the village's uninhabited period.

Returnees are building their own homes, but those who lack money are unable to build their own homes and are staying with relatives and friends.

"The returnees are going through many difficulties just to eat regular meals," said village administrator U Saw Shwe Thein. "They can't collect materials to build houses. They are already building houses with bamboo. To live like this, they sell mortgages to people who have little money. They buy tarpaulins and make shelters and build houses with bamboo."

The villagers are struggling to make ends meet by working at random jobs and are asking for agricultural equipment to restore their livelihoods.

Returnees say that the buffaloes, cows, and farm equipment that the villagers previously owned were also killed or destroyed during the war, further complicating the recovery process.

The villagers of Malar were able to return to their homes in January 2024, following the Arakan Army's capture of Kyauktaw Township.

The villagers of Malar have been living in the village for over a year now, but they are still struggling to rebuild.

"When I first saw the village, I cried. Our business was ruined, everything was destroyed. I was worried about how we could ever get back to where we were before. We need financial support and healthcare," Daw Hla Win from Malar Village told DMG.

When the villagers of Malar returned home, they received some financial assistance and tarpaulins from some organisations, but the villagers said it was not enough.

Due to the Myanmar military's presence near Malar Village, the villagers are reportedly worried about the risk of landmines and are having difficulty relying on the surrounding forests for their livelihood.