Junta’s counteroffensive worsens displaced people’s hardship in Karenni, southern Shan states

Regime forces’ operations around five towns in Karenni (Kayah) and southern Shan states have exacerbated local displaced peoples’ difficulties in meeting their basic needs in an expanding conflict zone, according to relief workers and anti-junta officials in the area. The Myanmar military launched a counteroffensive dubbed “Operation Yan Naing Min” last year to retake ground lost to resistance forces including the Karenni Nationalities Defence Forces. Junta forces have so far seized the four strategically important towns of Demoso and Loikaw, Karenni State and Pekhon and Moebye, southern Shan State. Troops are still operating in and near those towns as well as in Hpruso, Karenni State. They are expected to advance at least as far south as Bawlakhe Township, which is one of the jurisdictions where the junta has announced plans to hold elections in December and January. The Interim Executive Council (IEC) of Karenni State—a provisional governing body with an alternative administrative apparatus opposed to military rule in the state—has reported that civilians fleeing from the main roads and junta supply routes have experienced increasing difficulty finding shelter and food. Displaced people have gravitated to the west end of Pekhon and Demoso townships, the east end of Loikaw Township, and even as far as Mese Township on the Thanlwin (Salween) River near the Thai border, according to IEC second secretary Banyar Khun Aung. There are more than 470 camps in areas under the Karenni resistance’s control, which house around 150,000 people, according to IEC data. There are 100,000 more displaced people living outside the camps in resistance-controlled villages. According to Banyar Khun Aung the total displaced population is now estimated to be around 250,000, out of a total estimated population of around 300,000 in the same townships before the 2021 military coup. “Nearly every camp has seen more families run out of food and rations. Some are managing somewhat better, but many are struggling,” Banyar Khun Aung said. “As time goes on, families in every camp are exhausting their supplies, with some borrowing money or relying on others for meals.” Moreover, with relief funds declining from both domestic and international sources, the IEC’s humanitarian affairs and rehabilitation department is only able to provide emergency aid to the displaced, he added. Shortages The scarcity of essential goods has grown worse with the increase of the displaced population and the military’s seizure of three crucial supply routes: the Taungoo-Demoso, Pekon-Moebye-Loikaw, and Hsihseng-Loikaw roads. This has driven a rise in prices not just for the displaced but for everyone in the area. “The prices of goods are soaring. Transportation is more difficult than it seems, as most roads outside the main routes are in poor condition during the rainy season, hindering the flow of supplies,” Banyar Khun Aung said. Some have turned to farming as an alternative food source, but this is dangerous due to the constant threat of junta airstrikes and shelling, he added, not to mention the risk that clashes might break out nearby at any time. “After the junta council regained control of eastern Pekhon and Moebye, it became impossible to harvest paddy fields in Loikaw, Moebye, and western Demoso, and planting paddy west of the Loikaw-Demoso Road is now impossible too,” he said. “After the junta column reached Hpruso, farms along Hpruso road could neither be harvested nor sown, leaving many fields uncultivated.” Floods caused by Typhoon Yagi also impacted Karenni State and nearby areas of southern Shan State in 2024, causing widespread damage to farmlands and paddy fields. While people in the area are no stranger to hardship, the situation this year is worse, a local aid worker in Demoso Township told Myanmar Now. “The military is advancing into Karenni from all accessible routes. With the roads blocked, displaced people are facing an acute lack of food, shelter, and any chance at employment or a livelihood. I believe the situation is worsening with each passing day,” the aid worker said. Children seen using mobile phones in Demoso Township, Karenni State in May 2024 (Photo: AFP). Funding the resistance Even amid the acute deterioration of living conditions in the area, the Karenni resistance group Karenni Nationalities Defence Force (KNDF)—which formed in response to the 2021 coup—has continued allocating resources to support the defence against the military’s advance. According to KNDF Deputy Commander Marwi, of the seven billion kyat (US $1.8 million) in tax revenue generated in the average month in Karenni State, some four billion (US $1 million) goes towards defence spending. He made this claim during a speech at a traditional Karenni festival, the Deeku or El Doepawmee, held in Chiang Mai, Thailand on September 28. The defence funds are spent not only on the KNDF but other ethnic armed groups operating in the area such as the Karenni Army (KA) and Karenni People’s Liberation Army (KPLA). “If our monthly income could buy 400,000 bullets, we could potentially capture two or three battalion bases. I’m not saying this to discourage anyone,” he added in his remarks. “The funds are allocated by percentage—a portion to the KA, a portion to the KPLA. Only the remainder goes to the KNDF, which leaves us without enough resources to capture even one battalion base.” Spokespersons for the KNDF said on Monday this week that the military junta has deployed soldiers, accompanied by members of the Pa-O National Army, to the village of Sa Long (South) in Pekhon Township and has been firing on nearby villages using heavy artillery. At the same time, junta infantry columns advancing on two other villages near Moebye have clashed with resistance forces in the area. Troops have also moved towards Lin Hpon Gyi village in eastern Loikaw Township since last week, leading to several consecutive days of clashes with the KNDF. The KNDF has urged the public to stay out of conflict zones to avoid harm from deadly drone strikes, airstrikes, and artillery fire. Damage from the deadly junta aerial attack on Mongmit Township, which killed two teenagers and five other civilians this week in an area with no recent fighting

Junta’s counteroffensive worsens displaced people’s hardship in Karenni, southern Shan states

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