Chin IDPs continue to struggle for survival
Many people who have been paying attention to the Myanmar crisis have seen the tragic need for more IDP camps, as a result of the fighting. This has been particularly true in Chin State. A recent post from our local partners shared how these Chin camps came into being. Their story continues in this post, which takes off from the early need to establish camps, and discusses their sudden growth, which is compounded by receiving no support of any kind from local authorities (and worse, often being targeted by them). As we are continuing to allocate our funds to these Chin IDPs, please take a moment to read and consider a contribution of any amount. Even the smallest amount goes a long way in improving the lives of so many who have become impacted.
The people then fled to villages located to the north and south of the town, as well as to Yaw Region in Magway Division. Host villages welcomed around 25,000 people and placed them in their homes, churches, schools, and monasteries— anywhere they could be kept safe. Life became desperate and harsh for everyone overnight. Everything became problematic for the people: food, shelter, clothes, tarpaulins, raincoats, blankets, water, toilets, and lack of medical supplies to address health concerns. At the same time, there were also safety concerns due to the possibility of imminent attacks from SAC troops. The people of Mindat had never faced this type of situation, and they could not prepare themselves. They had to leave the town within one day, and all they were able to bring was what they could carry in a bag or backpack. So, IDPs are now reliant on host communities in the villages to accommodate them, with very limited resources.
According to traditional custom, villagers store food supplies only for their families, but the situation required them to share their stored food with the IDPs. There were a few IDP camps with large populations in villages such as Vomthu, Keetha, Luk She, and Sun Tawn. In Vomthu, a few people from Mindat PAC, along with a few volunteers, formed an IDP committee. The committee collected data from each temporary IDP camp, and distributed food supplies and aid to the IDP camps in around 50 villages. Accordingly, many villages organized IDP camps on their own; there were approximately 80 IDP camps in Mindat Township alone. They all posted many fundraising posts on social media, mainly on Facebook. Then, many private donors (including local, national, and international) were eager to donate to the IDPs in Mindat.
However, donors became confused as there were many IDP camps scattered throughout the township. To ensure that camps were run effectively, a group of young community leaders from each IDP camp organized a conference to form an IDP Camp Management Committee at Vomthu Village on May 28, 2021. In total, 72 representatives from more than 100 villages’ IDP camps attended and agreed to form one committee. They will be preparing and sharing their needs assessment based on this meeting, which we will post here soon.