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Category: ASEAN

Effort to combat Southeast Asian haze hit by USAID shutdown

Editor07 mins

BANGKOK — An initiative to combat air pollution in Southeast Asia has suspended its work following U.S. President Donald Trump’s sudden halt to international aid – just as the peak season for health-threatening haze unfolds in the region. The program, a collaboration between the Asian Disaster Preparedness Center, NASA and the now shuttered U.S. aid agency, used satellite technology and geospatial data to help countries respond to cross-border environmental hazards such as agricultural land burning and forest fires. It also monitored and forecast air pollution. The annual deterioration in Southeast Asia’s air quality began with a vengeance last month as toxic pollution shrouded cities such as Bangkok and Hanoi for a week. UNICEF, the U.N.’s agency for children, this week released data that showed that poor air quality remains the largest cause of child deaths after malnutrition in East Asian and Pacific countries. “The suspension of the project during the regional haze season is unfortunate and presents challenges,” the disaster center’s air pollution and geospatial imaging expert, Aekkapol Aekakkararungroj, told Radio Free Asia. “The immediate consequence is that some of the planned activities, such as data integration and capacity-building efforts with local stakeholders, have been delayed,” he said. “This could potentially slow down the development and dissemination of tools that support timely decision-making and response strategies.” The State Department said Jan. 26 it had paused all U.S. foreign assistance overseen by the department and the U.S. Agency for International Development, or USAID, during a review to ensure projects are consistent with Trump’s foreign policy agenda. The decision froze humanitarian programs worldwide — from landmine removal to HIV prevention — that are crucial to developing nations. Most of USAID’s thousands of employees have been put on leave from Friday, according to a notice that is now the only information on USAID’s website. The U.S. also has announced its withdrawal from the World Health Organization, or WHO, and the Paris Agreement to limit the increase in average global temperature to less than two degrees Celsius. Aekkapol said the disaster center is seeking funding from other international donors and if successful could resume its air pollution work within a few months. “I am optimistic that our efforts to secure alternative funding and partnerships will help us regain momentum by April,” he said. Collaboration with NASA would continue, he said. Child deaths Poor air quality is a health and economic burden worldwide that weighs particularly heavily on lower-income regions such as Southeast Asia. Although deaths in Asia linked to air pollution have declined substantially over the past two decades due to better healthcare and reduced indoor use of fuels such as coal for cooking and heating, they remain at alarmingly high levels, UNICEF officials said at a press conference in Bangkok on Thursday. Toxic air is linked to about 100 deaths a day among children under five in East Asia and the Pacific, UNICEF said, based on data compiled by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation. Use of dirty fuels for cooking and heating at home accounts for more than half of the deaths. Fine particles in the atmosphere — the basis of Southeast Asia’s annual haze — from land burning and fossil fuel sources such as vehicle exhausts also are a culprit. Its accumulation over cities or the countryside can depend on weather conditions. RELATED STORIES Musk says US aid agency will be closed Hotline unlikely to suffice in Mekong battle against dry season air pollution Top polluting nations dispute climate accountability at international court About two thirds of children in the region live in countries where particulate matter levels in the air exceed WHO guidelines by more than five times. Progress over the past two decades in reducing child deaths from air pollution “represents truly what is possible if we can keep this trajectory going,” said Nicholas Rees, an environment and climate expert at UNICEF. Maintaining the progress depends on factors such as political will, the strength of efforts to reduce reliance on fossil fuels and the capacity of health systems, he told RFA. “Without that, I fear progress will not only be slower in the years ahead, but we may even reverse some of the gains we have made,” he said. Edited by Mike Firn. We are : Investigative Journalism Reportika Investigative Reports Daily Reports Interviews Surveys Reportika

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China thanks Thailand for scam crackdown; militia frees foreigners

Editor06 mins

MAE SOT, Thailand – Chinese President Xi Jinping thanked Thailand’s visiting prime minister on Thursday for a crackdown on scam centers in Myanmar a day after Thailand cut off electricity and internet services to five hubs for the illegal operations just over its border. As Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra was meeting Xi in Beijing, a Myanmar militia allied with the junta released 61 trafficked foreigners from one of Myanmar’s major scam zones and handed them to Thai authorities over the border. Online fraud has mushroomed in parts of Southeast Asia over recent years, often relying on workers lured by false job advertisements and forced to contact people online or by phone to trick them into putting money into fake investments. Would-be investors have been cheated out of billions of dollars, with many perpetrators and victims believed to be from China, research groups say. Reports about the centers have hit the headlines in recent weeks after a Chinese actor was rescued from eastern Myanmar, alarming the public across Asia and leading to a rash of tour group cancellations to Thailand and raising the prospect of economic damage. Thai officials have also cited national security for their decision to cut electricity and internet to the enclaves in Myanmar, though they have not elaborated. Xi thanked the visiting Thai leader for her government’s action, China’s CCTV state broadcaster reported. “China appreciates the strong measures taken by Thailand to combat online gambling and phone and online scams”, CCTV cited Xi as saying. “The two sides must continue to strengthen cooperation in security, law enforcement and judicial cooperation” to “protect people’s lives and property,” Xi said. RELATED STORIES EXPLAINED: What are scam parks? Scam park victim returns to Hong Kong after Thai rescue China, Mekong countries agree to combat scam centers, arms trafficking Militia promises action With the pressure growing, the Myanmar militia group that has overseen and profited from the fraud operations in the Myawaddy region, the Border Guard Force, or BGF, sent 61 foreign workers to Thailand on Thursday and vowed to wipe out the illegal businesses. BGF spokesperson Lt.-Col. Naing Maung Zaw said the 61 foreigners, including some from China, were sent over a bridge across a border river from Myawaddy to the Thai town of Mae Sot. A Thai group that helps victims of human trafficking said 39 of those released were from China, 13 from India, five from Indonesia and one from Malaysia, Ethiopia, Pakistan and Kazakhstan. Media photographs showed Thai officials speaking to the 61, who included some women, as they sat on rows of plastic chairs. Many of them wore blue surgical masks. Last month, BGF leaders said they had agreed with operators of the scam centers to stop forced labor and fraud, and Naing Maung Zaw repeated a promise to clean up his zone. “At some time, we will completely destroy this scamming business. That’s what we’re working on now,” he told Radio Free Asia, adding that the utility cuts had hurt ordinary people more than the scamming gangs. Thai Defense Minister Phumtham Wechayachai greeted the 61 as they crossed into Thailand. “Please feel free to give us information and cooperation which will be useful for eradicating this,” Phumtham told them. “Please inform everyone about the conditions there,” he said before the 61 were taken to an immigration facility for paperwork. Translated by Kiana Duncan. Edited by RFA Staff. We are : Investigative Journalism Reportika Investigative Reports Daily Reports Interviews Surveys Reportika

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Myanmar authorities arrest 475 young people in Yangon in January: group

Editor06 mins

Read RFA coverage of this topic in Burmese. Myanmar junta authorities arrested nearly 500 young people in the biggest city of Yangon in January for conscription into the military and other reasons, a pro-democracy monitoring group said on Wednesday. Young people have been at the forefront of opposition to the junta that seized power four years ago, ending a decade of tentative reform that had given the public hope for an end to decades of stifling military rule. The junta, facing a growing insurgency since its coup, enforced a conscription law in early 2024 targeting men aged 18 to 35 to make up for heavy losses in battles against allied pro-democracy and ethnic minority guerrilla groups. But many young people are fleeing or finding other ways to dodge the draft leading to mass arrests by military officials to fill the ranks. “The junta is arresting people for many reasons, including public conscription – 475 have been captured,” said a member of an anti-junta group called the Rangoon Scout Network, which monitors political action in the former capital of Yangon. “They’re always waiting to arrest people. To be released, you have to pay a bribe of between 1 and 1.3 million kyat (US$475-$620). If you can’t pay, you’re conscripted.” RFA tried to telephone the Yangon region’s junta spokesperson, Htay Aung, to ask about the situation but he did not respond. The member of the Rangoon Scout Network, which has no connection with the global Scout Movement, did not say how many of those detained in January were men and how many were female. It said 58 of them had been detained and then released but there was no word on the others. According to data compiled by the network and allied groups, 241 of those arrested in January were simply chased down on the street in city neighborhoods such as North Dagon, Insein, Tamwe, Thingangyun and Ahlon. Among the others, 77 were arrested for violating guestlist registration rules, aimed at tracking where people stay, 58 were picked during spot check and 51 of those grabbed had outstanding warrants, the network said. RELATED STORIES Myanmar’s forced conscription: How the junta targets young men Myanmar military regime enters year 5 in terminal decline Students from coup-hit Myanmar lament loss of canceled ‘DEI’ scholarships The pro-democracy parallel government in exile, the National Unity Government, said the junta had trained nine classes of conscripts, or 40,000 people in all. Late last month, members of the public said the junta had begun initial steps to draft women for active military service. The military has faced significant setbacks in fighting that has engulfed townships across the country over the past year or more; thousands of people have been killed and some 3.5 million have been displaced. The military also wants to expand its area of control in the run-up to an election, expected late this year, that the generals hope will improve their legitimacy. Anti-junta groups say an election organized by the military will be a sham. Myanmar has endured strict isolationist military rule since 1962, apart from a decade of reform when democracy champion Aung San Suu Kyi won two elections and many people dared hope that their country was at last taking its place in vibrant Southeast Asia as a stable democracy. The military’s ousting of Suu Kyi’s government on Feb. 1, 2021, on what were widely derided as bogus accusations of electoral fraud, crushed those hopes. Translated by Kiana Duncan. Edited by RFA Staff. We are : Investigative Journalism Reportika Investigative Reports Daily Reports Interviews Surveys Reportika

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Nearly 300 Myanmar nationals in Singapore naturalized in 2024 to avoid returning home

Editor03 mins

Nearly 300 Myanmar nationals living in Singapore have renounced their ties to their homeland and acquired Singaporean nationality last year, according to an announcement from the junta-controlled embassy there. A person originally from Myanmar told Radio Free Asia that some are doing this because they were having difficulties extending their passports through the embassy. Others decided they wanted to avoid paying taxes to the junta, which took over Myanmar in a coup four years ago, ousting the country’s democratically elected government. Additionally, some said they did not want to return to Myanmar because the junta is aggressively conscripting people to fight the civil war against a patchwork of factions opposed to military rule. People walk along the promenade at Marina Bay in Singapore on Jan. 27, 2025.(Roslan Rahman/AFP) According to Singapore’s Ministry of Human Resources and Empowerment, over 200,000 Myanmar citizens live in the country. Meanwhile, an individual who lived in Japan for over 13 years told RFA that he now regrets his decision to return to Myanmar permanently. He returned when the democratically elected government led by Aung San Suu Kyi was in power. “(At that time,) returnees came from Singapore, Bangkok, and Japan, believing they could finally build a better future at home,” he said. “But all their hopes were dashed after the military coup, and some who had renounced their foreign citizenship to return to Myanmar now deeply regret their decision.” He said that these days, “nearly everyone” is trying to leave Myanmar as the situation worsens. Translated by Aung Naing. Edited by Eugene Whong and Malcolm Foster. We are : Investigative Journalism Reportika Investigative Reports Daily Reports Interviews Surveys Reportika

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In the Myanmar military, life insurance for soldiers isn’t paying out

Editor011 mins

Part of a three-story series to mark the fourth anniversary of Myanmar’s 2021 coup, looking at how the military treats its own soldiers. The 2021 coup that plunged Myanmar into civil war has been a disaster for its military. It has lost control of much of the country, and thousands of soldiers have been killed or wounded in the face of rebel advances. That’s also made it one of the riskiest places on Earth to enlist as a soldier – one where life insurance sounds like a sensible idea to those on the front line and a risky business for those offering it. Not so Myanmar, where members of the armed forces are required to take out life insurance provided by a company run by the son of army chief and coup leader Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing. The scheme is operated by Aung Myint Moh Min Insurance, or AMMMI, established in June 2013, when Myanmar opened up life insurance to the private sector. The company, however, is believed to be a subsidiary of Myanmar Economic Corporation, one of the military’s two sprawling business conglomerates. Myanmar military chief Min Aung Hlaing in Naypyidaw on June 10, 2017, at a donations event for victims of the military transport plane crash in the Andaman Sea.(Aung Htet/AFP) “It should surprise nobody that control of the military life insurance policies for Myanmar’s army rests with the son of Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing. Corruption in Myanmar’s military flows from the top down,” said political analyst Jonah Blank from the Rand Corporation, a think tank partially funded by the U.S. government. “Corruption permeates every rank, with profits flowing straight to the top,” he told RFA. RELATED STORIES ‘My father’s death wasn’t worth it’: Poverty awaits families of Myanmar army dead Myanmar’s forced conscription: How the junta targets young men for military service ‘We protect the family’ Former Maj. Tin Lin Aung, who defected from the military after the coup, said a service member starts paying premiums with their first paycheck, and the policy’s beneficiary is their spouse or other nominated family members. Ei Ei Aung, an independent online insurance agent, said that when life insurance was operated by state-run Myanma Insurance soldiers would be fully covered in the event of their death as soon as they submitted their first premium. Things became more flaky when Aung Myint Moh Min Insurance, whose motto is “We Protect the Family,” took control. 10,000 kyat banknotes currently in use in Myanmar.(RFA) Aung Myint Moh Min has a variety of policies catering for different ranks. Payouts on maturation of a policy or the death of the policyholder start as low as $110. Those cost the equivalent of $1.55 to $2.65 per month, depending on the lifespan of the policy. There are policies offering higher payouts with higher monthly premiums. RFA could not find publicly available financial information about the current operations of AMMMI, but if the number of military personnel is estimated at 130,000 and each person contributed $2 a month in premiums, the Aung Myint Moh Min Insurance company would be raking in more than $3 million a year in life insurance premiums. Concerns over the life insurance have intensified in the past four years since the coup, as conflict has escalated across Myanmar, and the military’s casualties have mounted. Insurance agent Ei Ei Aung told RFA there are many ways the company avoids paying out. “In the military, there are numerous cases where families of deceased soldiers fail to claim compensation,” she said. “This may be due to family members being unaware of the soldier’s death, lack of notification from responsible superiors, or insufficient communication. As a result, many compensation claims go unprocessed and are ultimately lost,” she said. Aung Myint Moh Min Insurance Company deducted a 25,000 Myanmar kyat ($11.93) monthly premium for life insurance from a captain’s August salary in 2020. Capt. Zin Yaw, who left the Burmese military in 2021, provided this document to RFA.(Zin Yaw) Missing out Relatives of Min Khant Kyaw, a 23-year-old from Ayeyarwady region, learned from authorities in November of his death in the military, without saying how, when or where he died. It was the first time the family had learned he was even in the military. Now they say they don’t know how to claim any benefits for him as they have no idea which unit he fought in. “The key issue is that the person connected to the deceased must be aware of the death and notify the insurance company,” Ei Ei Aung said. “If a death goes unreported, the family of the deceased misses out on significant rights as well. As a result, even though it is undeniable that these people have died, many do not receive the benefits they are due.” This is not the only benefit that the junta or its associates are accused of pocketing. Former and current soldiers told RFA that deductions from their salaries were made to buy shares in the two military-run conglomerates, Myanmar Economic Holdings Limited (MEHL) and Myanmar Economic Corporation, which have interests in everything from banking to mining and tobacco, and tourism, and are a direct source of revenue for the military. In 2020, Amnesty International released documents showing that MEHL had funneled up to $18 billion in dividends to the military. According to military defector Capt. Lin Htet, soldiers are coerced into buying shares according to a sliding scale according to rank, requiring payments of between 1.5 million and 5 million kyats ($110 and $330). Capt. Zin Yaw, another defector, said the practice has been that if foot soldiers can’t come up with the full amount on the spot, deductions are taken from their pay. Before the coup, annual dividends were paid to soldiers in September each year, but defectors and serving soldiers have told RFA dividend payouts became sporadic after the coup and stopped altogether in 2023. “I left the army in 2023,” said Lin Htet. “From 2021 to 2023, MEHL paid us the benefit…

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Vietnam’s To Lam consolidates power through personnel changes at 10th Plenum

Editor08 mins

Exactly one year ahead of the Communist Party of Vietnam’s 14th Party Congress, the Central Committee convened its 10th Plenum, where General Secretary To Lam further solidified his lock on the party. There were a number of personnel changes in the convocation that started Sept. 18, 2024, the most important of which was the elevation of Lam’s longtime protege and former deputy minister of public security, Nguyen Duy Ngoc, to the Politburo. Upon his election as general secretary, following Nguyen Phu Trong’s death in July 2024, Lam appointed Ngoc to be the head of the Central Committee Office. This is not a sexy position, but it is the absolute nerve center of the Communist Party, responsible for setting up, drafting documents and agenda-setting for party plenums, as well as a host of other personnel issues. If one wanted loyal eyes and ears ahead of a party congress, the Central Committee Office is as good a place as any. Lam did meet some resistance when he tried to quickly elevate Ngoc as the standing chairman of the Secretariat, when Luong Cuong was elected president in August 2024. There appears to have been some concern at the time that Lam was amassing too much power. But at the 10th Plenum, Ngoc was elected to the Politburo. This is surprising, because under Party rules, one is only eligible to be on the Politburo after one full term on the Central Committee. Ngoc only joined the 13th Central Committee in January 2021. That speaks volumes about the trust To Lam has in him, as well as the lock Lam has on the Politburo and the Central Committee. RELATED STORIES To Lam moves to secure full term at pinnacle of Vietnamese power To Lam shakes up Vietnam with a government restructuring plan Vietnam’s To Lam throws his drowning rival an anvil Lam is governing with a sense of pragmatic urgency, fearful of falling into the middle income trap. He is pushing ahead with a major government re-organization that will lead to roughly one-fifth of civil servants losing their jobs and 10 ministries being folded into just five. That shakeup is meant to improve government efficiency, and speed up decision-making. But to get all that done, Lam needs to put in place loyal supporters of his agenda, and remove corners of resistance. Vietnam’s former Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung waves at the opening of the National Assembly’s autumn session in Hanoi on Oct. 20, 2022.(Nhac Nguyen/AFP) Courting the South Ahead of the 10th Plenum, though, was another event that had important political implications. To Lam awarded the highest party honor to former Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung. Dung had vied to become the CPV General Secretary at the 12th Congress in January 2016, but lost to Nguyen Phu Trong. The two men despised each other. Dung promoted a vision of growth based on market reforms. Trong saw that as not only a betrayal of socialist values, but as a policy that would enhance inequality and corruption, leading to the party’s loss of legitimacy. Although out of central decision making, Trong could never make corruption allegations against Dung stick. Meanwhile, Dung quietly positioned his American-educated son for advancement. Now the minister of construction, Nguyen Thanh Nghi, was recently made the deputy party chief of Ho Chi Minh City. Lam quickly and publicly courted Nguyen Tan Dung upon being elected general secretary. It was not just the simpatico of former Ministry of Public Security officials. While Lam’s lock on the party apparatus is very strong, he has one shortcoming: Southerners are really under-represented on the Politburo and other central-level bodies. In part, this is because Trong really worked to purge the southern party apparatus, which he deemed as too free wheeling. At present, only three of the 16 Politburo members are southerners — two are from the central region, while the remainder are northerners. Southerners are demanding greater representation on the 14th Politburo and Central Committee. Key to winning southern support is Nguyen Tan Dung, the most politically connected and savvy politician in the south. As such, his son, Nguyen Thanh Nghi is likely to be elevated. So while Dung’s Gold Star medal clearly signals the end of the Nguyen Phu Trong era, it also reflects the one key bloc that To Lam is actively courting so that he can put in place a leadership team of his making, not the traditional balances amongst factions and regions. Zachary Abuza is a professor at the National War College in Washington and an adjunct at Georgetown University. The views expressed here are his own and do not reflect the position of the U.S. Department of Defense, the National War College, Georgetown University or Radio Free Asia. We are : Investigative Journalism Reportika Investigative Reports Daily Reports Interviews Surveys Reportika

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Defying orders, Chinese miner hasn’t stopped operating near 2 sinkholes in Laos

Editor05 mins

Defying orders from Lao officials, a Chinese-owned potash mining company hasn’t stopped operating near two massive sinkholes in central Laos, a Lao official, a worker and residents told Radio Free Asia. On Dec. 4, a sinkhole measuring 20 meters (65 feet) wide and 10 meters (33 feet) deep opened up on farmland in Thakhaek district’s Pak Peng village in Khammouane province. On Dec. 21, another sinkhole — about half the size of the first — formed nearby. Residents suspect the sinkholes are a result of excavation at a potash mine in neighboring Nong Bok district, operated by Sino-Agri International Potash Co., Ltd., a subsidiary of Asia Potash International Investment (Guangzhou) Co., Ltd., linked to entities directed by China’s governing State Council. No one has been injured by the cave-ins, but villagers are anxious that more holes will appear. Earlier this month, Lao authorities told the company to stop operations near the sinkholes. But on Wednesday, an official with the government team investigating the matter told RFA Lao on condition of anonymity that Sino-Agri International “has never stopped operating near the sinkhole area.” Residents, who also declined to be named due to security concerns, also confirmed to RFA that the potash mine “is still running,” and that they regularly hear operations underway near the sinkhole area. Attempts by RFA to contact Sino-Agri International went unanswered. An employee who wished to remain nameless said the company continues to work “both above and underground all the time,” adding that more workers are being hired. No probe results yet Meanwhile, after nearly two months, an investigation into the cause of the sinkholes wrapped up on Sunday, a government team member told RFA, but official results have yet to be released. The team will hold another meeting next week to outline the investigation results, he said, noting that while the probe was initially expected to be completed by Jan. 21, there is no hard deadline. Khammouane Province Governor Vanxay Phongsavanh, left, and his delegation inspect a sinkhole in Pakpeng village, Laos, Dec. 4, 2024.(Khammouane News) Residents of Thakhek district were quick to dismiss the report. “They [the city and provincial officials] are like that — they don’t want the villagers to know,“ said one resident at the time. ”But the truth is nothing like this has happened before … The sinkholes are pretty close to their [the mine operator’s] drilling tunnel — no more than 150 meters (500 feet).” ‘We don’t know the real cause’ An official with the Ministry of Energy and Mines investigation team told RFA at the time that his group was working daily to find the cause of the sinkholes. “As for the potash mine, we didn’t say it [the sinkholes] was related to the mine yet because we don’t know the real cause,” he said. But other residents said that while Lao authorities had consulted with Sino-Agri International during the investigation, “they ignored our concerns.” “It must be related to the mine since it happened while the tunnel was being drilled, and before exploration occurred,” another resident said. “Villagers can’t carry out a technical analysis, but according to our observation this is the first time something like this has happened [here] in decades.” Translated by RFA Lao. Edited by Joshua Lipes and Malcolm Foster. We are : Investigative Journalism Reportika Investigative Reports Daily Reports Interviews Surveys Reportika

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Over 1,000 civilians flee Sittwe amid tension between Myanmar junta and ethnic army

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More than 1,000 civilians have fled Rakhine state’s capital Sittwe and nearby areas in western Myanmar, fearing heavy artillery attacks as tensions rise between junta forces and the Arakan Army, an ethnic armed group that has advanced on junta positions, residents said Friday. Ongoing exchanges of fire between junta soldiers and the Arakan Army, or AA, in nearby villages, have prompted residents to seek safe havens out of concern that they might be hit by bombs, sniper fire, drone strikes or air strikes, should the conflict escalate. Of the 17 townships in Rakhine state, 14 are under the control of the AA, leaving only three — Sittwe, the military council’s regional headquarters, Kyaukphyu and Munaung — still in the hands of the military junta. An aerial view of Sittwe township in western Myanmar’s Rakhine state, May 15, 2023.(AP) “Some already fled from Sittwe township, but now they find themselves forced to flee again, adding to their hardships,” the person said. “Many are struggling due to a lack of warm clothing for winter and severe shortages of basic necessities after being displaced.” Junta fortifies positions The junta’s blockade of transportation routes in Rakhine state, which has made travel for displaced civilians difficult, has compounded the situation, they said. Sittwe residents told RFA that the AA has surrounded the city with a large number of troops while the military junta has fortified its positions, increasing its military presence with battalions outside the city, in areas of Sittwe, and at Sittwe University, in preparation for a defensive stand. RELATED STORIES EXPLAINED: What is Myanmar’s Arakan Army? Myanmar junta troops tell residents of villages near Sittwe to leave by Friday Arakan Army’s gains enough to enable self-rule in Myanmar’s Rakhine state (COMMENTARY) Myanmar’s Arakan Army draws closer to region’s capital Additionally, thousands of Rohingya — a stateless ethnic group that predominantly follows Islam and resides in Rakhine state — have been given military training by the junta, sources said. “The army is shooting; the navy is also shooting,” said a Sittwe resident. “People are afraid. They don’t know when the fighting will start.” AA’s heavy artillery The AA has already fired heavy artillery and used snipers. Local news reports on Jan. 27 indicated that daily exchanges of fire were occurring between the ethnic army and junta forces, including the use of attack drones. Civilians displaced by armed conflict flee Sittwe, capital of western Myanmar’s Rakhine state, Jan. 29, 2025.(Wai Hun Aung) Attempts by RFA to contact both AA spokesperson Khaing Thu Kha and junta spokesperson and Rakhine state attorney general Hla Thein for comment on the issue went unanswered by the time of publishing. Human rights advocate Myat Tun said he believes the AA will resort to military action in Sittwe if political negotiations fail. “The situation in Sittwe is escalating,” he said. “The AA is preparing to take military action if political solutions are not reached.” Translated by Aung Naing for RFA Burmese. Edited by Roseanne Gerin and Malcolm Foster. We are : Investigative Journalism Reportika Investigative Reports Daily Reports Interviews Surveys Reportika

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Myanmar junta blocks military-aged men from work abroad

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Read RFA coverage of this topic in Burmese. Myanmar’s junta has banned employment agencies from sending military aged men abroad as it struggles with a growing civil war while promising to extend peace and stability for an election that it hopes will bolster its legitimacy. Millions of Myanmar people have gone abroad to work, many through arrangements it has with other governments, organized by employment agencies. While the overseas workers are an important source of income for the junta that seized power in a coup on Feb. 1, 2021, the military is also keen to fill the ranks of its armed forces as it battles ethnic minority insurgents and allied pro-democracy fighters. Nearly a year after the junta enforced a conscription law, began recruiting women and arresting young men to serve, it has sought to block prospective soldiers from travelling abroad for work, representatives of employment agencies told Radio Free Asia on Friday. “Starting today, people between the ages of 18 and 35 will no longer be eligible for the OWIC,” an official at a Yangon-based oversea employment agency told Radio Free Asia, referring to the Overseas Worker Identification Card, issued by the Ministry of Labor, which everyone hoping to work abroad must obtain. “The restriction does not apply to women yet, only males between the ages of 18 and 35,” the official said, referring to a ministry order to stop issuing the cards. RFA tried to telephone the junta’s spokesperson, Maj. Gen. Zaw Min Htun, to ask about the policy, but he did not answer. Minister of Labor Nyan Win also declined to comment and referred RFA to Zaw Min Htun. The ruling military extended a state of emergency for another six months on Friday saying more needed to be done to ensure peace and stability for a successful general election. No date has been set for an election, which anti-junta forces have dismissed as a sham. The constitution mandates that an election must be held within six months after a state of emergency is lifted. RELATED STORIES Myanmar aid groups struggle with freeze as UN warns of ‘staggering’ hunger Tide of Myanmar war refugees tests Thailand’s welcome mat for migrants Myanmar junta prepares to send migrant workers to Russia in 2025 In December, junta authorities ordered job agencies to add a clause in migrant workers’ contracts stating they could be called home for military service. One young man hoping to get a job through an agency to work in Thailand – where about 1.8 million Myanmar workers are officially employed and many more work unofficially – was despondent about his chances. “I already signed a contract with the agency and put a deposit down,” said the 25-year-old who declined to be identified. Another employment agency employee said migrant workers who come home for a visit could be banned from going back to their jobs abroad. “Some people might come back without studying the situation here … They won’t be given permission to go abroad again,” said the agency staffer, who also declined to be identified. Under Myanmar’s Military Service Enactment Law, anyone summoned for military service, as well as anyone who manages to postpone their service, are not allowed to travel to go abroad. Translated by Kiana Duncan. Edited by RFA Staff. We are : Investigative Journalism Reportika Investigative Reports Daily Reports Interviews Surveys Reportika

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Myanmar aid groups struggle with freeze as UN warns of ‘staggering’ hunger

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MAE SOT, Thailand – Groups helping victims of Myanmar’s turmoil are struggling to provide assistance after the U.S. put a 90-day freeze on nearly all foreign aid, one organization said on Thursday, as the U.N. warned of looming hunger five years after the military ousted an elected government. More than 3.5 million people have been displaced in Myanmar due to war between a junta that seized power in 2021, which is backed by China and sanctioned by Western governments, and a loose alliance of pro-democracy and ethnic minority groups battling to end military rule. In the 2024 fiscal year, which ended on Sept. 30, the U.S. provided $141 million in humanitarian aid to Myanmar, much of which is channeled through groups working on the Thai-Myanmar border. The U.S. State Department on Friday announced the freeze on nearly all aid in order to give the State Department time to review programs “to ensure they are efficient and consistent with U.S. foreign policy under the America First agenda.” In the days since, stop-work orders have been sent by the U.S. Agency for International Development, or USAID, to implementing partners ranging from media organizations to clinics. One aid worker, who declined to be identified, said about 20 relief groups providing healthcare with USAID assistance along the Thai-Myanmar border were at risk of being suspended. Nai Aue Mon, program director of the Human Rights Foundation of Monland group,which documents human rights violations, said communication and travel costs, salaries and stipends would be hit. “To be honest, it’s widespread, it’s huge,” Nai Aue Mon said of the impact of the aid freeze on humanitarian groups in areas under the administration of the anti-junta Karen National Union in Kayin state and to the south in Mon state, affecting thousands of people. “It significantly impacts those groups … nearly every organization is more or less impacted by this executive order.” Groups might have some funds in reserve and were scrambling for other sources of donations but the outlook was grim, he said. “As far as I know, my organization, we still have some resources but we don’t know after that,” Nai Aue Mon said. “We’re definitely struggling a lot.” RELATED STORIES China undermines its interests by boosting support for Myanmar’s faltering junta Tide of Myanmar war refugees tests Thailand’s welcome mat for migrants Thailand to try to fill the gap Some 100,000 ethnic Karen people from eastern Myanmar war zones have lived in camps on the Thai side for decades and people fleeing more recent repression in Myanmar’s towns and cities have also sought shelter on the border. Refugee camp hospitals were having to discharge patients because health workers had been suspended from duties, a health worker speaking on the condition of anonymity for security reasons told RFA. Thailand will help fill the gap in funding for the camps on its soil, at least for the time being, a government minister said, according to The Bangkok Post. “We cannot abandon or chase them away since they have lived here in the camps for a long time,” Thai Public Health Minister Somsak Thepsutin told the newspaper. “We cannot just talk about refugees who have been affected … All kinds of healthcare and assistance must be provided to other groups of people who live in this country.” The freeze in U.S. aid comes as Myanmar is spiraling into a humanitarian crisis, aid groups say. “A staggering 15 million people are expected to face hunger in 2025, up from 13.3 million last year,” the World Food Programme said in a report on Wednesday. Almost 20 million people, or nearly one in three people in Myanmar, will need humanitarian assistance in 2025, the U.N. food agency said. “Growing conflict across the country, access restrictions, a crumbling economy and successive weather-related crises are driving record levels of hunger,” said the WFP Country Director Michael Dunford. “The world cannot afford to overlook Myanmar’s escalating crisis. Without immediate and increased international support, hundreds of thousands more will be pushed to the brink.” Edited by RFA Staff. We are : Investigative Journalism Reportika Investigative Reports Daily Reports Interviews Surveys Reportika

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