Displaced people have been unable to return to their homes in Lashio, Shan State, due to fears of potential airstrikes, even though the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA)-Kokang army is urging them to come back.
The MNDAA-Kokang army’s request came after the capture of the Northeast Command based in Lashio on 3 August, said local residents of Lashio.
“One-fourth of the people in the town have returned home at the Kokang army’s request. All the people from Wards-9, 10 and 12 have fled because these wards are close to the Northeast Command. No one is left in the wards. Now the situation is clam now. Thefts are rampant in these wards,” said a local woman who has returned to Lashio.
Similarly, the MNDAA said that the owners of the houses in Lashio that were hit by bomb and were completely uninhabitable, to register with the MNDAA along with household census, NRC cards and evidence. It is not yet known how MNDAA will deal with the resettlement, according to local residents.
A local woman from Lashio said, “The invitation to return home is positive, but my concern is whether they can truly provide security. The war isn’t over yet. I want to know if the MNDAA can take responsibility and ensure our safety if the junta keeps bombing us, as happened in Theinni and Laukkai.”
Local residents report that the MNDAA has announced it has taken over the administration of Lashio. Although the UWSA has stationed members to protect their external liaison office and assets, residents have not returned to their homes due to fear of the military council’s airstrikes.
Military leader Min Aung Hlaing again appointed Major General Myint Kyaw Tun from the Office of Chief of Military Training as the new commander. A military source said on 12 August that the army will be regrouped after settling down in the town of Kholam, a town in southern Shan State.
Sent by Shan News