IDP attacked by bear in Kyauktaw Twsp

By DMG 30 Jul 2021

DMG Newsroom
30 July 2021, Kyauktaw 

A man from a camp for internally displaced people (IDPs) in Nyaung Chaung village, Kyauktaw Township, was attacked by a bear while foraging for bamboo shoots in the nearby forest on Thursday. 

U Thaung Tin Aung survived the attack but was bitten on his left leg, with the wound requiring 16 stitches, his son U Ko Che told DMG. 

“My father went to search for bamboo shoots with a companion. As they came back, my father came across the bear. The other [companion] managed to run away. He sustained around five scratches and his leg needed 16 stitches,” said U Ko Che. 

U Thaung Tin Aung was rushed to Kyauktaw Hospital and his wounds were not life-threatening, according to camp manager U Khaing Myo Aung. 

Fellow IDPs expressed concerns about the incident, but said they currently have no other option but to continue to earn their livelihoods by farming, and gathering bamboo shoots and firewood from the surrounding forests. 

Nyaung Chaung IDP camp receives humanitarian aid only from the World Food Programme (WFP), and the last time the camp received aid supplies was about two months ago, said U Khaing Myo Aung. 

“All of the people at the camp are enduring hardship,” he said. “We haven’t received assistance from the WFP for some two months. They said they can’t withdraw cash from the banks. The Disaster Management Department provided supplies earlier this month. But it was just two cans of rice per day for a person. You can’t eat only rice.” 

Nyaung Chaung IDP hosts 824 households, with a population of 3,413 people. Several displacement camps in Arakan State are running low on food as IDPs are not allowed to go out and earn a living due to Covid-19 restrictions, at the same time that donations have been declining. 

More than 100,000 people remain displaced by conflict between the military and Arakan Army in Arakan State, despite an informal ceasefire that has put a stop to the fighting for more than nine months.