Some abandoned fields in Arakan State that could not be cultivated due to the armed conflict can be cultivated again this year, according to local residents.
Cultivation in these fields is possible again because military fighting in these areas has decreased. According to locals, farmers in Rathedaung, Buthidaung, Kyauktaw and Mrauk-U Townships in northern Arakan State have begun to brave the risks.
“In the villages around the mountains of Thit Kyit and Lin Mway, where fierce fighting took place, paddy fields are being planted again this year. Cattle are now grazing on the land, which was previously feared to be contaminated with unexploded ordnance. None of the cattle have yet been hit by land mines. Local residents are tilling their fields nearby,” said U Soe Naing from Taing Nyo village in Mrauk-U Township.
The Myanmar army has maintained presence at the historic sites of Thit Kyit and Lin Mway mountain pagodas in Mrauk-U Township since 2019.
Displaced farmers who have been housed in IDP camps for over three years due to the fighting have also had to stop their farming activities.
Local residents said farmers were able to actively reclaim and cultivate abandoned land this year due to reduced conflict in the region.
In Sandawgyi village in Minbya Township, 1,300 out of 1,400 acres of farmland have been reclaimed this year, according to residents.
“In our village, almost all the land that was fallow due to the armed conflict is being cultivated again this year. Only about 100 hectares remain uncultivated,” said U Sein Hla Maung, a farmer from Thaung Da Rar village.
Near Kyauk Tan village, farmers have also cultivated about 100 acres this year out of more than 700 abandoned acres, residents said.
Another farmer from Kyauk Tan village in Rathedaung Township said, “These fields were not cultivated before. This year, we expanded a little more. Since the available farmland was not cultivated, our livelihood was not secured. That’s why we are venturing into the fields now.”
Other farmland lies uncultivated because it is near military council camps, farmers said.
Although farmers do not fear exploded munitions, they have no choice but to cultivate the fields for their livelihoods without any assurance of their safety, farmers said.
In Arakan State, both the military council and the Arakan Army (AA) are responsible for ensuring that farmers can cultivate all available land and expand cultivation for food security, social activists said.
“Right now, farmers only invest in rice cultivation, but they have no psychological security. And if they can’t harvest the current crops, it will lead to more worries among people. They might starve,” said a social activist from Rathedaung.
Arakan State has a total of 12 million acres of farmland, but only about 900,000 acres could be cultivated in 2022, according to the data.
This year, 930,366 acres could be cultivated, including previously abandoned land, according to the Arakan State Farmers’ Association.
Sent by DMG.