On November 20, World Children’s Day, human rights activists in war-torn Arakan (Rakhine) State renewed calls for urgent action to ensure that children in the conflict-stricken region can access their most basic rights.
According to social activists, children in Arakan State continue to face life-threatening dangers from airstrikes, widespread food shortages, and the collapse of the education system. Many are also deprived of essential healthcare, including full vaccination, leaving them increasingly vulnerable.
Children are suffering profound psychological and physical harm as they remain trapped in the intensifying conflict, and parents are urged to take special care to support their children’s wellbeing.
“Children have been through brutal airstrikes, and the experience is deeply traumatic for them. Even if they aren’t physically hurt, the mental scars are still there. With danger everywhere, they can’t go outside or play freely, even though that’s vital for their development. And on top of that, they’re not getting the nutrients they need,” said a mother from Myebon Township.
Children in Arakan State have been killed, injured, and forced to live under constant fear due to airstrikes, artillery fire, and drone attacks unleashed by the coup regime.
Civilian areas including residential neighborhoods, schools, and monasteries have been repeatedly bombed, despite their protected status under international law. These attacks have further undermined children’s right to education.
Human rights activists stressed that it is time for the international community to take concrete action to halt the junta’s escalating crimes and rights violations.
“I believe the junta is heading toward genocide. It’s striking places where children study instead of military targets, clearly showing an intent to destroy their chance to learn. Children are the foundation of a nation’s future, and taking away their education is essentially destroying future generations. I want to urge the United Nations and other international organizations to move beyond statements and take real, practical action to protect children’s rights,” said a human rights activist from Rathedaung Township.
Nearly 600,000 people in Arakan State are currently displaced by conflict. Children in displacement camps and low-income communities face severe malnutrition as families struggle to obtain food, with some children resorting to begging.
“For children in the camps, they only get proper meals when donors provide them. But getting other essential supplements or nutrient-rich food is very difficult. Families have no income and are just struggling to survive, so they simply can’t focus on whether their children are getting nutritious food,” said an aid worker in Ann Township.
With trade routes blocked and agricultural activity disrupted due to widespread fighting, Arakan State could face famine by 2025, putting an estimated 2 million people at risk of starvation, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has warned.
Because of growing food scarcity, many displaced children are entering the workforce early, taking whatever temporary, physically demanding work they can find to assist their families.
On World Children’s Day, United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF) announced that more than 1 million children have been displaced across Myanmar due to conflict and natural disasters.
As of mid-2025, more than 3.5 million people across the country have been displaced, including over 1 million children, all struggling to access basic necessities such as food, clean water, education, and healthcare.
