Myanmar Spring Chronicle – August 17 Scenes
MoeMaKa, August 18 2022
Myanmar facing floods and challenges for livelihood and survival
It usually rains a lot and the river level rises in July and August, which is the middle of Myanmar’s monsoon season. Although floods occur in some years, incidents of floods, landslides and damaged roads are happening every year during the rainy season as Myanmar is suffering from the consequences of climate change due to global warming like other countries during these years. In addition to global warming, due to deforestation in our region and country, there are heavy rains, sudden floods, landslides and flooding of residential areas. And floods have become an annual occurrence due to the drying up of streams, and the areas connected to the water and land are experiencing such affects. In areas such as Kachin State and northern Sagaing, where the destruction of the river has worsened due to deforestation and unrestricted gold mining, floods occur almost every year, and in some years, it occurs more than once, even during the rainy season.
People are suffering more natural disasters due to these environmental damages, but it is now faced with more suffering due to wars, armed conflicts, and economic crises. At present, when the dangers of house fire, gun fires, artillery shells, being arrested, tortured and killed are daily life’s clear & present danger to Myanmar, topics like environmental disasters are no longer that scary. The current threats to being able to stay alive becomes more concern than anything else. In the face of danger for life, the daily regular meal becomes the second most important. So in some areas, they have to go out for work amidst the danger of being shot with weapons and they have to venture by illegally sneaking into neighboring countries to work.
Due to heavy and record-breaking rains these days, lower parts of Myanmar and eastern Shan State are suffering from floods. This natural disaster happens when the country is going through an armed conflict. When the public does not trust the current ruler, and when the organization that controls the administrative power views the people as an enemy. And some of the war-evading areas are also affected by natural disasters, so the people in those areas are facing all sorts of hardships and crises. We can read in the news that for those who were fleeing the war in villages in Karen State, Kayah State, Sagaing Division and Chin State, they were suffering from the natural disaster of this rainy season, and there were people who lost their lives because they had no opportunities to get medical treatment and to buy medicine.
Floods in cities like Yangon are still less troublesome compared to people in regions like Karen, Kayah, Kachin, Chin, Sagaing and Magway and the difficulties and hardships that the people in these areas are facing are heartbreaking.
In this situation, even if there were donors, they were not allowed to help and send aids, so there was no other way for displaced people but to help each other alone.
Another interesting piece of news for today is that at the Yadanarbon bridge checkpoint at the entrance to Sagaing City, some PDF members on a passenger bus exchanged fire with the military council troops and it was reported that 2 PDF soldiers and some other passengers were also killed in gun battle.
There are also some reports that at least 2 PDF members have been killed and one has been arrested. Reports said that the PDF started firing when the PDF members who had bought weapons and ammunition from the Karen State were being checked at the bridge checkpoint. Since weapons are needed for resistance attacks occurring in many townships in Sagaing Division, it can be assumed that the PDF forces go to Kachin State or Karen State to buy weapons. According to reports, they had to buy a gun on the black market for hundreds of thousands of Kyats with the money pooled by the community supporting the PDFs. It is a huge loss that the PDFs that had lost their lives and the guns they carried with them had been confiscated by the enemy.
The other interesting news for today is that the United Nations Special Envoy for Myanmar, Dr. Noleen Heyzer, met with the leader of the Military Council in Nay Pyi Taw to find the solution to the problems that the country is facing. It was the first time that a UN Special Envoy had visited Myanmar since the military coup and there were also concerns that it would like to recognize the legitimacy of the military council. The NUG and GSCB had issued statements about their concerns that the military council would be recognized.
Since the UN is not a political government, it is expected that it will place more emphasis on humanitarian aid than on political positions. After the UN delegation’s trip, we will have to wait and see how much humanitarian aid and security protection can be provided to the suffering civilians fleeing war in various regions of Myanmar.