The Military Council troops, who are blocking the roads and waterways in Rakhine State also closed the Minbya-Myaypon Highway Road for more than a week, causing transportation and livelihood problems for the residents of more than ten nearby villages.
The Military Council closed the highway on October 2. The Military Council troops are also stationed along the road and at the Kyapsin Bridge on the outskirts of Minbya, a local said.
“We can’t go straight like before. We have to travel around the other villages, sometimes by boat. Some choose the longer route around the Thitpotetaung. Currently, we have to travel far for an actually shorter distance. Numbers of people who go to the city are sliding down. The locals travel only for very important matters. The cost of travel becomes too high. Previously, we used to go by car or by tricycle. The travel cost was around 1000 kyats in the past”, the local said.
There are many villages such as Kyapeikay, Thingannet, Shwechaung, Thitpotetaung, Thayaypyin, Falonpyin, Mansi, Kantha, Taungshaypyin, Kamontaung, and Watgaung along the highway road blocked by the Military Council.
These villages are heavily dependent on Minbya for buying food and medicine and to export and sell agricultural products, so the residents want the highway road to be reopened, he added.
“They have not given permission to use the road yet. It was closed from near the bridge, so the villagers had to travel in difficult ways. People with emergency health issues also faced delays. Since travel is difficult, there are not as many buyers as before. Everyone wants the road to reopen as soon as possible”, a Minbya resident said.
The Arakan Army (AA) issued a statement that they attacked the Military Council troops on the Kyapsin Bridge on the afternoon of October 7, killing 8 Military Council soldiers and injuring several others.
Also on September 26, AA intercepted and attacked two Military Council ferry boats heading to Minbya, and a gunfight broke out between the two sides.
The Military Council troops based in Minbya opened fire with artillery the following day and artillery shells fell on residential villages of Khaunglaungchaung and Sakkare, causing injuries and destroyed properties.
In Rakhine State, the Military Council blocked the Ponnagyun-Rathedaung Road for more than three months. The Angumaw-Maungdaw Road too was closed for about two months.
The Military Council is not only blocking the roads in Rakhine State but also strictly inspecting the transportation of food, medicine and building materials.
Human rights activists are criticizing the Military Council's suppression of the Rakhine people by such methods as a violation of basic human rights.
