Relief groups from Kachin State traveling to provide aid to earthquake-affected areas in Sagaing and Mandalay cities faced delays due to roadblocks set up by armed groups along their route, according to Kachin relief and rescue teams.
The social assistance groups and other self-help organizations from Kachin State in upper Myanmar, which was spared from the earthquake’s impact, were using the Myitkyina-Mandalay road to reach the affected areas.
On 30 March, social assistance teams from Kachin State, heading toward Sagaing, were stopped at a point along the Indaw road section by unidentified armed men. As it was after 6pm, they were denied passage and had to spend the night in a village along that route.
One member of the relief team recounted: “We tried talking to them, but they wouldn’t let us through. They said it was their duty shift, and they couldn’t allow passage—it’s their rule. So we had to turn back and sleep in a place far from the checkpoints. We don’t even know which armed group they belonged to,” describing the situation on the road.
The Myitkyina-Mandalay road, used by these social assistance groups, passes through Indaw Township, where intermittent clashes between the military junta forces and joint defense forces had been ongoing since August 2024 until just before the earthquake.
Reports indicate that the specific section of the Indaw road, where the assistance groups were blocked, is controlled by joint defense forces. When contacted for comment, U Nay Phone Latt, spokesperson for the National Unity Government (NUG), responded as follows:
“We don’t block any roads when it comes to humanitarian aid and rescue efforts. Instructions have already been issued to ensure all such operations are allowed to proceed,” he said.
He further elaborated: “However, the problem arises when passing through junta checkpoints—sometimes the junta doesn’t grant permission. In other cases, some roads are damaged. This makes previously accessible routes impassable. Apart from such delays, I can assure you that the NUG forces absolutely do not obstruct donations or rescue efforts.”
Before the earthquake, the Indaw Township road section—where frequent and intense clashes between opposing forces were common—had been closed off by the joint defense forces, forcing travelers to use detour routes instead.
A member of the defense forces present on the ground explained: “There are landmines planted by both sides. Indaw Town is also a fire zone. Even if we let the rescue vehicles pass without firing at them, what can we do if the other side doesn’t? Even if we opened the road, it wouldn’t be easy to do so immediately.”
The NUG had announced on 29 March that, except for defensive operations, all offensive actions in earthquake-affected areas and related regions would be suspended for about two weeks to facilitate humanitarian aid efforts following the disaster.
Meanwhile, the military council has continued airstrikes using aircraft in parts of Kachin, Sagaing, and other regions across the country, including on 28 March when the earthquake struck, up to the present day, resulting in additional casualties.
The powerful 7.7-magnitude earthquake has claimed over 1,700 lives and injured more than 3,400 people as of the evening of 31 March, according to the military council’s statement.
Sent by KNG.
