The military council has imposed travel restrictions in Pein Za Loke, Shwegyin Township in Nyaunglebin District in Bago Region in the Brigade-3-controlled territory of Karen National Union (KNU).
The people who have recommendation letters from relevant village administrators are allowed to enter the town, according to local residents.
A local resident from Pein Za Loke said: “Since last month, the military has restricted travelling. Anyone who wants to enter the town has to show a recommendation letter from relevant village administrators. It is only effective for one time. The people have to ask for another recommendation letter for the next time. Only the people who can show the recommendation letters are allowed to pass the checkpoints along the road to the town.”
This comes after artillery shelling by the military council’s Pein Za Loke-based Light Infantry Battalion-264 and nearby camps into the villages near the town and internet and power blackouts in the recent months.
In addition, the military council has allowed the people who come to the town from the villages near Pein Za Loke to buy goods to carry a ration for a household only. Residents said that due to the security situation, the entry and exit of the town has been restricted. So they only go to other nearby cities to buy the goods.
Due to these restrictions, there is no guarantee of security, and residents of some villages where there is no village administrator are having difficulty traveling to Pein Za Loke, according to local residents
A local man from Kyaukkyi said: “The villages which have administrators can travel. From whom should I ask for a letter of recommendation as our village has no administrator.”
In the townships and villages in Nyaunglebin District, where the military activities of the revolutionary forces are strong, the military council blocks the roads, collects fees for various reasons from those traveling through the checkpoints and bans the people from carrying a large quantity of food and medicine. Residents said that they are experiencing a situation where they cannot do business properly due to food shortages and high commodity prices.
Karen Human Rights Group (KHRG) said in July that Nyaunglebin District is one of seven KNU-controlled territories where many human rights violations have been committed by the military after the military coup.
The military council is carrying out reinforcement of troops near the town after the Yangon-Mandalay railroad section between Pein Za Loke and Taw Wi station was blown up on 17 October. Before that day, the heavy shells fired by the military council’s Light Infantry Battalion-264 and Light Infantry Division-20 wounded some local residents from the villages near Pein Za Loke.
Sent by KIC.