Landmine blast injures Namtu civilian
A man was seriously injured after stepping on a
landmine in northern Shan State’s Namtu Township on Monday.
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| Landmines found in temple ground in Namtu Township in May 2017. |
Sai Ba Nyan, the vice-chairman of
the local aid committee in Namtu, told Shan Herald today that the accident
occurred at about 10.30am in Pang Marn village, Zai Khao village tract, in
Namtu Township. The victim, Sai Pan Aung, aged 20-30, was walking on a track to
his farm.
“Both of his legs were wounded,”
said Sai Ba Nyan. “He is now being treated at Namtu hospital.”
He said there were a lot of
landmines all over the area due to the ongoing conflict and that local villagers
had been warned about walking outside their communities. Sai Pan Aung was injured
because he didn’t heed the order, he said.
“As armed clashes keep happening,
they [Burmese armed force and ethnic armed groups] will not clear their
landmines,” the Shan aid worker said. “Many of the villagers in these areas are
afraid to return to their own homes.”
Clashes have been regularly
reported between Burmese government forces, the Restoration Council of Shan
State/Shan State Army (RCSS/SSA) and the Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA)
in the Namtu area.
On July 6, Shan Herald reported that over 300 villagers in
Namtu Township had reportedly fled their homes due to fighting involving the RCSS/SSA, which is one
of eight armed groups to sign a Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA) with the
government, and the TNLA, which was largely excluded by Naypyidaw from the
peace process.
According to the Landmine and
Cluster Munition Monitor, a research and monitoring arm of the International Campaign to
Ban Landmines (ICBL), Burma was
ranked third most dangerous country in the world for landmines in 2014 behind
only Colombia and Afghanistan.
The ICBL report on 25 November 2015
also highlighted the numbers of landmine victims between 1999 and 2014. The
report said that there were a total of 3,745 people affected by landmines in
Burma, which included 396 killed; 3,145 injured; and 204 unknown. However, it
noted that the real figure could be much higher.
In May this year, eight novice monks in Namtu were seriously
injured after a landmine exploded
while they were playing with it. The next day another 23 mines were discovered near the temple compound.
Among several other incidents in
Shan State, a man was killed after stepping on a
landmine in Mong Kyat tract in
Lashio Township.
By Shan Herald Agency for News (SHAN)
Tags: Human Rights, News
