Impact

March 28 Earthquake of Sagaing caused severe damage not only in Sagaing and Mandalay but also severely hit Naypyidaw, the military junta’s seat of power. Countless lives and livelihoods were lost or destroyed. Amidst the ongoing war, severe military blockades, and acts of violence, rescue and reconstruction efforts have failed to meet the scale required of a state; it would not be an overstatement to say the military regime has fallen far short.

Even now, nearly three months after the earthquake struck, bodies are still being searched in most parts of the urban areas. Earthquake victims remain trapped in hardship, mostly helpless, in several affected sites. In the middle of this tragedy, the Myanmar military has not ceased its favourite attack – airstrikes at every corner and centre of the country against its opposition. It has not stopped the arrests, extortion, and torture of the public. Just hours after the earthquake, the military made surprise aerial bombings in Sagaing and Magway of Central Burma. It would be difficult to believe this really happened if the victims and local people hadn’t provided evidence showing how helpless they were. From a basic sense of humanity, who would carry out aerial bombings against disaster victims? And yet, the military regime of Burma did – an utterly unbelievable act of violence. The extreme carelessness and cruelty of the Myanmar military are shocking and overwhelming. In the Sagaing Region, the military dropped bombs from fighter jets on areas sheltering earthquake victims, conflating them with enemy resistance forces. These earthquake victims suffered one hardship after another.

Within this context, one large village in Central Burma was also destroyed by an arson attack carried out by the Myanmar military regime. Homes, the fruits of generations of labour, were set ablaze. The villagers had no time to carry away even their kitchen pots. Among the aftershocks following the major quake, the villagers of that community were totally helpless.

Villagers are rebuilding their homes (Photo: CAS) 

A team from the Centre for Ah Nyar Studies visited that village. We pooled whatever financial assistance we could and shared it with those victims from that village of Central Burma.

We donated cash directly to the victims (Photo: CAS) 

We showed our collective care and sympathy. Villagers are now rebuilding their homes, buying kitchen utensils and living through the hot sun and wet monsoon in the region. We pray for their safety and that they may find some comfort amidst the sun and rain.

*The village name has been withheld for security reasons.