Kachin resistance takes control of rare earth mining hub
The Kachin Independence Army (KIA) and its allied People’s Defense Force (PDF) took control of Pangwa, which is located along the China-Burma border and 114 miles (183 km) northeast of the Kachin State capital Myitkyina, on Saturday. Pangwa is the capital of the Kachin Special Region 1, which is administered by the Kachin Border Guard Force (BGF).
Pangwa residents said that a cordon has been set up 50 meters from the border gate on Oct. 18, but that Chinese nationals have been allowed to enter for work. “The civilians who fled the town are stuck along the road to the China border,” an anonymous source in the KIA told DVB. Naw Bu, the KIA spokesperson, said that Chinese authorities issued a letter stating that all border gates would be temporarily closed.
The KIA seized the 1002 Battalion near Pangwa in Chipwi Township from the BGF on Oct. 14. It also seized control of the mining towns of Hsawlaw and Chipwi earlier this month. The Kachin Special Region 1 is a hub for Burma’s lucrative rare earth mining, which was reportedly worth $1.4 billion USD last year.
Arakan Army accused of targeting Rohingya civilians again
The Burmese Rohingya Organisation U.K. (BROUK) accused the Arakan Army (AA) of threatening and beating Rohingya civilians in Ah Twin Nget They and Hpon Nyo Leik villages of Buthidaung Township, northern Arakan State, on Oct. 4. It claimed that the AA also abducted six civilians from other Rohingya villages in the township on Oct. 2.
“These raids and the enforced curfews are clear violations of basic human rights and an alarming escalation in a protracted pattern of violence and persecution,” said Tun Khin, the BROUK president. “The AA leadership must be told that the atrocities must stop, or they will face consequences, including sanctions.”
Tun Khin called on the international community to take action against the AA. Human rights groups claim that Rohingya have been targeted by the military and the AA during fighting in northern Arakan’s Maungdaw and Buthidaung townships since May. The AA launched its offensive against the military for control of Arakan on Nov. 13.
Jailed lawyer awarded human rights prize ‘in absentia’
Ywet Nu Aung, 44, has been awarded the 29th International Human Rights “Ludovic-Trarieux” Prize 2024 by the Institut des droits de l’homme des avocats européens (IDHAE). This marks the first time that a Myanmar legal professional has received the award, which was established in 1984 and is considered the most prestigious in the legal profession.
The ceremony took place in Rome, Italy on Oct. 18. Aung Myo Min, the National Unity Government (NUG) Minister of Human Rights accepted the award on behalf of Ywet Nu Aung, who is serving a 15-year sentence at Mandalay’s Obo Prison.
“Despite knowing she would face unjust arrest and punishment…she bravely assisted political prisoners in securing their legal rights, making her truly deserving of this human rights award,” Aung Myo Min shared on social media. Read more here.
News by Region
BAGO–The Political Prisoners Network – Myanmar (PPNM), which monitors the situation inside the nation’s prison system, stated that a 41-year-old political prisoner named Htay Aung Kyaw died of liver failure at Thayarwaddy Prison on Oct. 13.
The PPNM claimed that Htay Aung Kyaw was repeatedly tortured after his arrest in 2021. He’s one of the over 100 political prisoners to have died since the 2021 military coup, and over 63 who have died from inadequate medical attention, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP). Read more here.
MANDALAY—The NUG Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned an attack on China’s consulate in Chanmyathazi Township on Friday. A Mandalay PDF spokesperson told DVB that it did not carry out the attack. The regime in Naypyidaw said that it is investigating an explosion at the consulate. No casualties were reported.
SAGAING—A local charity group told DVB that the bodies of six civilians were recovered in Sipa village of Butalin Township on Thursday. They were among over 50 residents, including women and children, arrested by the military during a raid on the village.
“Three of the victims were elderly but we weren’t able to confirm the identities of the other three,” a charity worker said on the condition of anonymity. Nearly 300 homes were destroyed by arson. A PDF member told DVB that there was no recent fighting near the village.
SHAN—The Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA) claimed that three civilians, including two children, were killed and three others were injured in airstrikes carried out by the Burma Air Force on Nawnghkio Township, located in northern Shan State 80 miles (128 km) north of Mandalay, on Saturday. An unknown number of homes were destroyed.
Read: The need for a unified National Unity Government amidst China’s meddling by Myo Yan Naung Thein.
