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Myanmar officials evict 500 people who were living in their Mandalay shops

June 11, 2024/in News

Residents of more than 100 shops, clinics and offices in the area were given 15 days to vacate. Military junta authorities have evicted more than 500 people who were living in shops near Mandalay’s sports stadium, saying that shop owners and their family members never had permission to reside in stalls purchased more than 20 […]

Junta bombs dropped on wedding party in Myanmar leave 24 people dead

June 4, 2024/in News

The two 500-pound bombs also left 30 people injured in the northern Sagaing region. A military junta airplane dropped two 500-pound bombs on a wedding ceremony, killing 24 people and injuring about 30 others in Myanmar’s Sagaing region on Monday, residents told Radio Free Asia. After the bombing, junta troops fired several artillery shots into […]

Myanmar officials evict 500 people who were living in their Mandalay shops

June 11, 2024/in News

Junta bombs dropped on wedding party in Myanmar leave 24 people dead

June 4, 2024/in News

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Myanmar officials evict 500 people who were living in their Mandalay shops

June 11, 2024/in News

Residents of more than 100 shops, clinics and offices in the area were given 15 days to vacate.

Military junta authorities have evicted more than 500 people who were living in shops near Mandalay’s sports stadium, saying that shop owners and their family members never had permission to reside in stalls purchased more than 20 years ago.

The shop owners were forced out without any offers of an alternate piece of land or any compensation, according to a shop owner, who wished to remain anonymous for security reasons.

“They evicted us without providing any support,” he told Radio Free Asia. “It’s very hurtful.”

The shops in the area surrounding Ba Htoo Stadium were sold in 2003 through private contracts with Myanmar’s Road Management Department. A two-story shop measuring 15 x 30 feet (4.5 x 9 meters) sold for over 160,000 kyats (US$57) at the time.

Shop owners still had to pay more than 50,000 kyats (US$18) per month – plus an additional 10 percent – to the Road Management Department to rent the land under shops.

Because the area is in Mandalay’s downtown area, the value of a shop has increased to about 300 million kyats (US$106,000), according to one resident who didn’t want to be identified out of security concerns.

ENG_BUR_STADIUM SHOPS_06102024.2.jpg — The residential shops situated on 71st St., between 30th and 31st St., near Ba Htoo Stadium, in Chanayethazan township, Mandalay, were forcibly removed on June 7, 2024. (Citizen journalist)

Road Management Department officials issued notices on May 24 that cited the 1955 Government Housing Act, which mandates eviction for living without permission. Residents of more than 100 shops, clinics and offices in the area were given 15 days to vacate.

Several residents told RFA that everyone moved out before June 7 out of fear that junta troops would forcibly remove them if they didn’t comply by the specified date.

A second shop owner told RFA that there was nothing in the original sales contract about how long shop owners could live there.

The lack of clear language about residence in the contracts and the government’s interpretation of the 1955 law has been “deceitful,” he said.

Those who can afford it have rented houses, but some people are dependent on monasteries, the first shop owner said.

“It has forced us to transition from owning our homes to living as renters,” he said. “The displaced include employees, retirees, the elderly and the disabled. Students had already registered for this academic year, making their education difficult due to this upheaval.”

RFA couldn’t immediately reach Thein Htay, the junta’s Minister of Economy for the Mandalay region, for comment on the evictions.

RFA News

Junta bombs dropped on wedding party in Myanmar leave 24 people dead

June 4, 2024/in News

The two 500-pound bombs also left 30 people injured in the northern Sagaing region.

A military junta airplane dropped two 500-pound bombs on a wedding ceremony, killing 24 people and injuring about 30 others in Myanmar’s Sagaing region on Monday, residents told Radio Free Asia.

After the bombing, junta troops fired several artillery shots into Ma Taw village in Mingin township, forcing more than 2,000 residents from six nearby villages to flee their homes, village resident U Htay said.

The bomb was dropped directly onto the wedding party at 8:15 a.m., he said. The bride and groom were on their way to the village monastery at the time and were uninjured.

“In rural areas, the place where food is cooked and served, and where wedding gifts are provided, are all in small central areas,” he said. “The bomb struck this central area, causing all people there to be hit.”

ENG_BUR_WEDDING BOMBS_06032024.2.jpg — This photo taken on Dec. 11, 2023, shows a member of the Mandalay People’s Defense Forces walking through a crater after a bombing campaign by a Myanmar military aircraft near the frontline amid clashes in northern Shan State. (AFP)

Because many of the injured are in serious condition, the number of deaths is expected to rise, residents said. Among the dead was an 8-year-old.

Families have tried to search for the remains of their missing relatives but the numerous dismembered body parts and continuous junta shelling have made that difficult.

“Junta troops are still firing heavy artillery, preventing anyone from daring to collect the dead bodies in the area,” U Htay said. “They are continuously shooting with heavy weapons.”

Civilians regularly targeted

Myanmar’s central dry zone, made up of the Sagaing, Magway and Mandalay regions, has become a hotbed of opposition to military rule from the majority ethnic Burman community.

The junta has responded with heavy firepower in its battles against militias known as People’s Defense Forces. At times, civilian populations have been targeted with artillery and bombs that have leveled villages.

ENG_BUR_WEDDING BOMBS_06032024.3.jpg — Charred houses sit in ash between the trees in Mwe Tone village of Pale township in the Sagaing region, Myanmar on Feb. 1, 2022. (AP)

Military-backed Telegram channels said the junta plane dropped the two bombs because a Mingin People’s Defense Force’s leader was one of the people getting married. RFA was unable to independently verify the claim.

Aung Myo Min, the human rights minister for the shadow National Unity Government, called the bombings a war crime.

“This is not a military campaign at all, but a deliberate bombing of a civilian wedding,” he said. “It is a military strategy and an intentional attack on the civilian population.”

Despite numerous attempts, RFA received no response from junta spokesman Major General Zaw Min Tun regarding the bombing.

RFA also attempted to contact Nyunt Win Aung, the junta’s spokesman for Sagaing region, but he did not respond to several phone calls.

RFA News

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ND Burma

ND-Burma formed in 2004 in order to provide a way for Burma human rights organizations to collaborate on the human rights documentation process. The 13 ND-Burma member organizations seek to collectively use the truth of what communities in Burma have endured to advocate for justice for victims. ND-Burma trains local organizations in human rights documentation; coordinates members’ input into a common database using Martus, a secure open-source software; and engages in joint-advocacy campaigns.

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