Internally displaced persons (IDPs) are suffering from malaria, diarrhea, and stomachaches in Hmawngbuchhuah Village in Lawngtlai District of Mizoram State after fleeing from the clashes between the Tatmadaw and the Arakan Army in Paletwa Township, Chin State.
Jonah, a Chin volunteer who has been assisting the IDPs in Lawngtlai, said the malaria outbreak is caused by mosquitoes and the IDPs are living near the forest and a creek without mosquito nets while the number of mosquitoes has increased in the monsoon.
“Malaria is caused by mosquito bites. A Rakhine national activist group gave them mosquito nets in the past, but they use it as nets to catch fish,” he said.
He continued that the IDPs are facing difficulties in obtaining food and they are drinking water from the mountain stream so there are many cases of diarrhea and stomachaches.
“It may be due to livelihood or low and high temperature. The drinking water is unhygienic. They have to take drinking water from the mountain stream,” Jonah said.
The IDPs’ leader U Maung Oo said all the IDPs in Mizoram State will return home in October.
Jonah told Khonumthung that the IDPs are unlikely to return home at the moment as they are still facing difficulties in living in their areas.
“They aren’t going to go back yet. I went up to the river mouth the other day. They are still facing difficulties in living [at the village]. They are unsure [about going home]. They said they won’t go back the last time but they went back home. Then, around 13 families fled back here after going back home. Their number must have been around 30-40. Due to these situations, they are unsure. Some of them want to go back. The people who went back don’t dare to stay long so some of them came back. There haven’t been any new arrivals but new IDPs arrived back in May and June,” said Jonah.
Currently, 362 IDPs are staying in Hmawngbuchhuah Village and the majority of them are Rakhine people that reside in Paletwa Township, Chin State.
