Hindus trapped in Sittwe going hungry

By Admin 05 Nov 2024

DMG Newsroom
5 November 2024, Sittwe

Approximately 3,000 Hindu followers in the junta-controlled Arakan State capital of Sittwe are going hungry due to soaring food prices and jobs scarcity.

Most Hindu people in Sittwe are low-income manual workers who made a living as barbers, washers, stevedores or by repairing umbrellas and collecting scraps.

However, as most town residents have fled for fear of fighting, Hindu people have found themselves losing their livelihoods.

One Hindu woman from Aung Mingalar Ward in Sittwe said: “I have to eke out an existence on money provided by relatives. We have no jobs here.”

While the majority of residents have fled, many Hindu people have not been able to afford to flee the town.

Another Hindu woman said: “We had jobs when there were a lot of people in the town. But we have no jobs now. We can scrape by thanks to our savings. However, we are going hungry.”

Hindu people said they are suffering from health problems due to poor nutrition, but cannot afford to receive medical treatment.

“Everyone is having a hard time,” one Sittwe man said. “Needless to say, the people who survived on daily wages are going through a difficult period. Some people might be starving as there are no donors.”

Military tensions have been running high between the regime and the Arakkha Army (AA) in Sittwe Township. According to the 2014 population census, there were 12,000 Hindu people in Arakan State.