The free expression advocacy group Athan has condemned the sentencing of an Arakanese youth to five years in prison for allegedly instigating attacks against Myanmar’s military, calling the punishment a violation of human rights.

Two men allegedly raped a 16-year-old girl in Arakan State’s Ann Township on December 21, with one remaining at large, according to the township police and the victim’s family. 

Currently, civil society organisations such as the Rakhine Ethnics Congress (REC) and the Wun Lark Development Foundation are working on landmine risk education in Arakan State.

For most of the affected townships, the situation since August of this year has allowed mobile internet users to connect to a 2G network (in contrast to the 4G networks enjoyed by the rest of Myanmar) that critics say is too slow to execute even basic online functions. 

A motorboat rented by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to reach villages in Rathedaung Township, Arakan State, for food deliveries was turned back by a Tatmadaw watercraft in the Mayu River on December 24, locals said.    

The 18-year-old, Maung Aung Nay Win from Apaukwa village, was taken from his home by two Tatmadaw soldiers on December 22 and was released later the same evening, his father said. 

Young people in Arakan State have meagre job opportunities due to a dearth of factories and lack of government assistance, according to lawmakers and local organisations, who note that talent continues to leave the state in search of employment elsewhere.

The Japanese government has provided more than US$9 million in assistance to internally displaced people (IDPs) and other victims of conflict in Kachin, Chin, Shan and Arakan states.

Residents in the vicinity of the Akyeittawkone hill in Sittwe, Arakan State, are complaining of the fumes they breathe in from the burning of rubbish in their neighborhood, which hosts a landfill for much of the city’s trash. 

Myanmar military personnel allegedly detained and beat an 11th grade student in Arakan State’s Kyauktaw Township on Tuesday, releasing him the same evening.

Twenty-one people were killed lawlessly in the three months from June 16 to September 15 in Arakan State, the civil society youth organisation Generation Wave said in a report released on December 21.

The Forest Department has invited people in Arakan State to establish community forests in its efforts to promote local forestry practices in Myanmar.

The recently opened Metta Yeik orphanage in Myebon Township’s Kanhtaunggyi town, Arakan State, for orphans who have lost parents during armed conflict, is in dire need of bed-related supplies such as pillows and blankets.

Most internally displaced people in Arakan State’s IDP (internally displaced person) camps are women, and Arakanese female parliamentarians and women’s civil society groups say they will work together to support the government in ensuring the safety of displaced women. 

An unidentified group of people with knives robbed a farmer’s tent in Khamaung Done village, part of Arakan State’s Rathedaung Township, late Monday evening, the farmer told DMG.

Journalists working for Arakan State-based media outlets say they continue to face challenges when contacting the Tatmadaw for comment on news related to armed conflict in the region, despite persistent outreach efforts in line with media ethics.

Family members have demanded the immediate release of U Myint Maung, a member of the Paletwa Township Development Affairs Committee in Chin State, who was arrested by the Arakan Army (AA) more than eight months ago. 

Three youths who participated in a campaign in the Arakan State capital Sittwe marking International Human Rights Day were charged under Section 19(a) of the Peaceful Assembly Law on December 21.

It is important that Arakan State’s next chief minister be a person whom the majority of MPs in the state Hluttaw agree upon, said U Thar Tun Hla, chair of the Arakan National Party (ANP).