More than 100 residents of a town in Myanmar’s Chin state are across the border to India daily to escape ongoing offensives by the military junta in the western state, following clashes that erupted between national forces and local joint militia groups on Sept. 18, a civil society group and residents said.
The Chin National Front’s (CNF) armed wing — the Chin National Army (CNA) — and the Chin Defense Force (CDF) launched an assault on Myanmar troop positions in Thantlang town on Sept. 18, but withdrew when government soldiers fired heavy artillery in retaliation against local civilians, CNF/CNA spokesman Salai Htet Ni said in an earlier report.
Only 29 people out of the town’s population of nearly 10,000 remain in Thantlang, driven out by hostilities between the junta forces and the joint Chin combatants, according to locals and an NGO.
Some of the residents are living in nearby villages, forests, and mountains and many are fleeing to the Indian border, not far from the town, they said.
About 35,000 Chin state residents of Chin state have fled to the adjacent Indian border since the military coup on Feb. 1 that overthrew the democratically elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi, according to the India-based Chin Human Rights Organization (CHRO). Fighting in neighboring Rakhine state since spring where locals have been particularly engaged in military fighting since spring.
Salai Za Op Lian, deputy executive director of the CHRO, told RFA that about 100 Thantlang residents have sought refuge in India every day since Sept. 18.
“About 8,000 out of 10,000 people who fled the town have taken refuge in nearby villages without crossing the border,” he said. “Every day, there are many people crossing the border. We hear that more than 100 people cross the border every day.”
Most are sheltering in eight villages near the border, Salai Za Op Lian said, but neither he nor RFA could not confirm the details.
Those who are staying temporarily in India have received a warm welcome from local civil society groups which are housing them in schools and churches, he said.
The Mizoram state government in northeastern India is trying to provide much-needed assistance to the refugees, he added.
More than 100 residents of a town in Myanmar’s Chin state are across the border to India daily to escape ongoing offensives by the military junta in the western state, following clashes that erupted between national forces and local joint militia groups on Sept. 18, a civil society group and residents said.
The Chin National Front’s (CNF) armed wing — the Chin National Army (CNA) — and the Chin Defense Force (CDF) launched an assault on Myanmar troop positions in Thantlang town on Sept. 18, but withdrew when government soldiers fired heavy artillery in retaliation against local civilians, CNF/CNA spokesman Salai Htet Ni said in an earlier report.
Only 29 people out of the town’s population of nearly 10,000 remain in Thantlang, driven out by hostilities between the junta forces and the joint Chin combatants, according to locals and an NGO.
Some of the residents are living in nearby villages, forests, and mountains and many are fleeing to the Indian border, not far from the town, they said.
About 35,000 Chin state residents of Chin state have fled to the adjacent Indian border since the military coup on Feb. 1 that overthrew the democratically elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi, according to the India-based Chin Human Rights Organization (CHRO). Fighting in neighboring Rakhine state since spring where locals have been particularly engaged in military fighting since spring.
Salai Za Op Lian, deputy executive director of the CHRO, told RFA that about 100 Thantlang residents have sought refuge in India every day since Sept. 18.
“About 8,000 out of 10,000 people who fled the town have taken refuge in nearby villages without crossing the border,” he said. “Every day, there are many people crossing the border. We hear that more than 100 people cross the border every day.”
Most are sheltering in eight villages near the border, Salai Za Op Lian said, but neither he nor RFA could not confirm the details.
Those who are staying temporarily in India have received a warm welcome from local civil society groups which are housing them in schools and churches, he said.
The Mizoram state government in northeastern India is trying to provide much-needed assistance to the refugees, he added.
Radio Free Asia –Copyright © 1998-2016, RFA. Used with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036Radio Free Europe–Copyright (c) 2015. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave NW, Ste 400, Washington DC 20036.