KHIN KHIN MRA

Fighting on two fronts: the women facing conflict and COVID-19 in Rakhine state

In 2020, the “war” on COVID-19 was declared and is now being fought across the world. But people in Rakhine and Chin states in Myanmar have already been affected by conflict between the Arakan Army (AA) and the Tatmadaw, the Myanmar military, for years. Since the conflict started in December 2018, there have been approximately 157,000 people displaced and hundreds of civilian deaths. As the world awakened to the seriousness of the pandemic in April, the fighting also intensified: 4,000 people were uprooted from their homes in Minbya over two days, while smaller-scale displacements continued in other townships. The displacement rate in Rakhine and Chin states has escalated by more than 50 per cent since January. The affected are already on the frontline of an actual war, with the “war” on COVID-19 about to hit them too. People in conflict areas are doubly jeopardised when the threat of COVID-19 intersects with war. While the world is following updates on how to stay safe and prevent the spread of infection, people in conflict affected areas of Rakhine are ignorant of life-saving information due to internet shutdowns and electricity blackouts. The lack of proper information make them feel less worried about COVID-19. For them, the virus…