The junta has increasingly used drones to carry out bombing strikes in Demoso Township, Karenni State, resulting in civilian casualties in the farms where locals are working during the current rice harvesting season.
In a notable incident on October 25, a junta drone bombed farmers harvesting rice at an undisclosed location in Demoso Township, killing one man.
Residents of several villages in Demoso Township displaced by fighting have taken the risk of returning temporarily to their homes to harvest rice this season. However, they said they live in constant fear of attacks from the junta’s drones.
The worry is always pounding in our hearts, but we have to take risks for our livelihood. Sometimes we rush to harvest for just half a day before quickly leaving the farms. We know it’s dangerous, but we keep going back and forth between harvesting and hiding because we have no choice, we need to survive. This situation is really stressful.
- A displaced woman
We feel scared and unsafe all the time while harvesting. Whenever we’re in the rice fields, we keep looking up to watch for drones. If we see one, we run and hide. We’re very scared, but we know that if we don’t harvest, the rice will go to waste. If we don’t harvest, we won’t have any food. So even though it’s terrifying, we keep harvesting despite the danger to our lives.
- A displaced woman
Here, our main concern is drones. Sometimes, just after one drone passes, another one comes. When we see them, we flee, jump into the ditches, and hide. That’s the only way to avoid being seen. Once the drones are far away, we come out and continue working. When they return, we flee again. It has become like a routine. We also carry the harvested rice little by little, because if we don’t, we won’t have food for the whole year. Since this is our livelihood, we have to take the risks and keep harvesting, even though it puts our lives in danger.
- A displaced man
It was time to harvest the rice we had planted, so we took the risk and went back to our fields. On the way, we were constantly worried about drones. We couldn’t work with a clear mind, so the harvesting wasn’t very effective. We had to work quickly and leave quickly, which meant some rice was left unharvested and some equipment was left in the field, but we didn’t dare go back for it. While we were in the fields, every time we saw a drone, we ran and hid. If we hadn’t harvested at all, we would have run out of food for the whole year. If we had been able to harvest all the rice we planted, it would have been enough to last the entire year.
- A displaced man
photo credit - CJ
