AA spokesman decries Tatmadaw’s summoning of ward/village administrators in Arakan State

By DMG 04 Oct 2021

DMG Newsroom
4 October 2021, Sittwe 

The Myanmar military (Tatmadaw) should not summon ward and village administrators to warn them about administrative matters involving the Arakan Army (AA), U Khaing Thukha, a spokesperson of the ethnic armed group, told DMG on October 4. 

“The Myanmar military’s summoning of village administrators has severely damaged trust between the two sides. The Myanmar military is doing something that should never be done,” he said. 

The Tatmadaw and Arakan Army were engaged in a two-year conflict from late 2018-2020, but an informal ceasefire has held for almost one year. 

A commander from the Tatmadaw’s Light Infantry Battalion (LIB) No. 535 summoned three village officials from Nga Yant Chaung village-tract in Buthidaung Township and threatened them on September 19, a village official told DMG on condition of anonymity. 

“The Myanmar military called us in for questioning,” said the unnamed village official, who attended the meeting. “The Myanmar military asked us if we were providing food supplied by ICRC [International Committee of the Red Cross] to the Arakan Army. They [military officials] asked us about the formation of AA in the villages, and who was in the group. We replied that there was no food supply to the AA and that there were no AA members in the village.” 

On September 6, the Tatmadaw also summoned local Muslim administrators in Kyauktaw Township, Arakan State, telling them not to accept an offer of police and administrative training courses that were to be provided by the Arakan Army/United League of Arakan (AA/ULA). 

Tatmadaw officers from the Kyaukphyu-based 34^th Infantry Battalion have summoned administrators from downtown Kyaukphyu and asked them to report any ULA/AA administrative and judicial cases that were found. 

U Khaing Thukha said the Tatmadaw’s summoning of ward and village administrators undermined the rule of law, peace and stability in Arakan State. 

There have been no clashes between the Tatmadaw and Arakan Army for some 11 months, nonetheless, as the two sides have reached an informal ceasefire arrangement.  

More than 90,000 internally displaced people (IDPs) have yet to return home due to the lingering effects of the two-year conflict, however, according to figures compiled by the Rakhine Ethnics Congress (REC).