FROM THE DVB NEWSROOM
NUG fundraising program sells out of land plots. The NUG’s End of Dictatorship (EOD) fundraising program’s Spring Glory project on Thanthuma Road sold out its 400 40 ft x 60 ft wide plots of land within a day. “All 400 plots of land were sold out on the first day. Two types of lands are available for purchase. Thank you to all the buyers and agents who purchased the lands,” EOD said. EOD’s Spring Villa at Mindhamma Road and Spring Glory at Thanthuma road projects went on sale on Sep. 1. The new projects will be sold to the public to provide income to resistance forces and buyers of the properties will have the right to own the land. It is being sold at one third of the current market price, and payments will be made in two installments – one during the revolution and one after the revolution.
Latest Developments of fighting in Rakhine State: The Arakan Army (AA) announced it captured the Burma Army’s no. 40 outpost, located on the Bangladesh-Burma border, on the morning of Aug. 31 – killing 19 Burma Army troops and seizing a large haul of military equipment. It is said that the AA suffered casualties, but the exact numbers are unknown. During the battle, the AA said that the Burma Army used heavy weapons and conducted a series of air-raids. Three locals including a 5-year-old boy were killed and nine others were seriously injured due to the heavy shelling of the Burma Army. The AA said that fighting has been occurring in Rakhine and neighboring Chin State for nearly one month. In Chin’s Paletwa Township, there were reports that 10 Burma Army troops were killed in combat on Aug. 31. State media have not yet confirmed the casualties.
The Central Bank injects foreign currency into the market to ease surging inflation. The junta’s Central Bank announced on Aug. 31 that it would inject more than US$200 million into the foreign currency market to ease surging inflation caused by rising fuel prices in Burma. The brief announcement did not provide detailed information on how this would be accomplished. The statement comes after the Burmese kyat reached a record low against the US dollar. It recently warned it would take action against “illegal” foreign exchange traders who are working online and also accused “illegal online media” of “incitement” for reporting about the rising price of basic commodities. The junta appointed a new head of the Central Bank as a part of its cabinet reshuffle in late August.
News by Region
KAREN—Two gold shops at a market in Shwegun village, Hlaingbwe Township were robbed by a group of unidentified armed men on the morning of Aug. 31.The Crown and Tun Shwe had K70 million worth of gold stolen. No one was injured during the robbery. Another robbery took place at a CB Bank in Hpa-An on June 3. The following day, some of the alleged robbers were shot and arrested by Burma Army-backed police and Border Guard Forces. A KBZ branch in Hpa-An was robbed on Mar. 4. Robberies have increased across Burma as the country deals with an economic crisis since the military coup.
RAKHINE—A school clerk was robbed by an unidentified group on her way back from collecting the salaries of education workers at a Kunohnchaung village school in Kyauktaw Township on Aug. 31. The salaries for the 23 education workers, which are worth more than K3.7 million, are reported to have been stolen near the township’s education office. “It is true that the salaries were stolen. We still can’t say exactly how it happened,” Maung Maung Hein, the headmaster of the village school told DVB.
SAGAING—A young woman was killed and her mother seriously injured in an IED blast in Katha Township on the morning of Aug. 31. The incident occurred while the victims were collecting discarded bottles on a street in Sathigone village. The victims work collecting discarded bottles in the township. A local told DVB, “it is yet unknown who planted the IED.”
TANINTHARYI—A pro-military militia robbed a home in Launglon’s Nyawpyin village on Aug. 31, according to local sources. More than 10 militiamen claiming to be a branch of the pro-regime militia “Pyusawhti” entered the village and attacked the house of a villager, locals said. The victim’s family is said to have worked in the fishing industry. “They went into the house and pointed their guns at people. They then claimed to be PDF members. They took jewelry worn by the residents as well as gold and money from the closet,” a villager close to the family told DVB. DVB was unable to verify locals’ claims that K10 million and 490 grams worth of gold were looted. It is also reported that the robbers fired 10 shots during the attack, but no initial casualties were reported. An estimated 20 pro-military militiamen are reported to have a base in Kyauk Ni Maw village, three miles from Nyawpyin village. Since April, at least seven homes in Launglon Township have been robbed, and police have yet to investigate.
YANGON—Seven Burma Army personnel including a captain were said to have been killed and another two were injured in a shootout after an argument in Sit Pin Gwin village, Thanlyin Township at around 10 p.m. on Wednesday, according to sources close to the junta. Two soldiers opened fire on other military personnel after an altercation took place over who should guard a post. “It was the issue of the oppression of low-ranked soldiers by their superiors. The captain started to punch a soldier. The soldier then opened fire at him,” the source told DVB. A captain, and five other soldiers were killed while two women from military families were injured, according to sources. One of the two soldiers who fired shots was arrested and one managed to flee. Security forces blocked off Thanlyin bridge and increased security at intersections in the township.
