Thousands in Myanmar poised to flee to Thailand

MAE SARIANG • Thousands of ethnic Karen villagers in Myanmar are poised to cross into Thailand if, as expected, fighting intensifies between the Myanmar army and Karen insurgents, joining those who have already escaped the turmoil that followed a Feb 1 coup.

Karen rebels and the Myanmar army have clashed near the Thai border in the weeks since Myanmar's generals ousted an elected government, displacing villagers on both sides of the border.

"People say the Burmese will come and shoot us, so we fled here," Karen villager Chu Wah, who crossed over to Thailand with his family this week from the Ee Thu Hta displacement camp in Myanmar, told Reuters.

The Karen Peace Support Network said thousands of villagers are taking shelter on the Myanmar side of the Salween river and will flee to Thailand if the fighting escalates.

"In coming days, more than 8,000 Karen along the Salween river will have to flee to Thailand. We hope that the Thai army will help them escape the war," the group said in a post on Facebook.

Meanwhile, the United Nations said that half of Myanmar's population could be living in poverty next year, driven by the combination of the pandemic and the political crisis sparked by the military coup.

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) said yesterday that by early next year, as many as 25 million people, or nearly half the population, could be living below the poverty line.

UNDP administrator Achim Steiner said the crisis could reverse progress made since 2005, which has seen Myanmar halve the number of people living in poverty.

"Without functioning democratic institutions, Myanmar faces a tragic and avoidable backslide towards levels of poverty not seen in a generation," he said in a statement.

Amid the turmoil, Karen fighters on Tuesday overran a Myanmar army unit on the west bank of the Salween in a pre-dawn attack. The Karen said 13 soldiers and three of their fighters were killed.

The Myanmar military responded with air strikes in several areas near the Thai border.

Thailand's Foreign Ministry spokesman said 2,267 civilians had crossed into Thailand as at early yesterday since the latest round of the conflict began.

Thailand has reinforced its forces and restricted access to the border. The inhabitants of two Thai villages close to the border have also been displaced, ministry spokesman Tanee Sangrat told a briefing, with 220 people seeking refuge deeper in the Thai territory.

Heavy clashes have also been taking place in the north of Myanmar between government forces and ethnic Kachin insurgents.

Media reported heavy casualties among government troops in recent days but a spokesman for the Kachin Independence Army insurgent group said he could not confirm any figures.

The Karen, Kachin and several other insurgent groups have come out in support of pro-democracy protesters who have been taking to the streets across the country to oppose the return of military rule.

REUTERS, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE