U Tun Shwe, 70, died at the resident when Myanmar military bullet went though his right chest in Ponnaygun on July 10 at 6 pm.

AN. Sittway. July 12, 2020. 

 

Myanmar soldiers directly fired guns, shells, and artilleries into Ponnaygun town for 20 minutes yesterday evening and killed a 70 years old man and wounded a 13 years old girl. 

 

 

The Bullet went through the right chest of U Tun Shwe, 70 years old and palsied man and resident of Hwra Haung ward in the town, and died on the spot at his resident yesterday.

 

Thirteen years old girl Ma Nanda Oo’s leg was hit by the bullet and went through it. She was taken to the local hospital last night. 

 

“There was no clash nor mine explosion in the town. The soldiers from the town based Light Infantry Battalion 550 were randomly firing machine guns, artilleries, and shells into the town for 20 minutes and nonstop at 6 pm. Some bullets hit in our school. A boy was lucky he did not get hit because the bullet nocked on the iron bar at the window when he was closing it after we hear the gunfire,” said a charity school teacher who wants to keep his name for security concerned.

 

Similar Myanmar military’s random fire of  guns and shells into the residential villages were taken places in Rathedaung township yesterday. Two village women were critically injured in Aung Bla village. 

 

Arakan Army Spokesperson Khine Thu Kha confirmed there were no fighting between AA and Myanmar military yesterday near Aung Bla village  and in Ponnaygun town. 

 

He illustrates Myanmar military is intentionally targeting and firing guns and artilleries into the residential villages and towns, where no military clashes were happening but based on their own racial hatred and revenge against the Rakhine ethnic populations and increase of violence. The shooting into the civilian communities by the military is an intention and strategy of driving the residents out of their communities and forcing them impossible to live in their villages and towns. 

He said,  "such lawless killing and targeting the innocent civilians is a solid ground of war crime the Myanmar military is visibly committing."

The military base in Ponnaygun had fired guns and artilleries into the town in April, May and June as well. A resident was killed and several civilians were injured. 

 

“What the current development is that the elected government does not deter the military’s lawless killing and targeting civilians at all. On the other hands, media do not cover the true facts of atrocities as well as the voices of the effected civilians on the grounds, in terms of lack of media freedom and intimidation against the press and threatening the journalists to charges with terrorist laws if they cover the true facts of news and checking facts with our organization. This irresponsible system of governance is deeply ruining entire civil and social communities of Rakhine people and constituted long terms damages,” Khine Thu Kha said.

 

He said Rakhine people under the current policy of democratically elected government and political circumstances are suffering the most in history. People are 'no longer protected and guaranteed for their security' but leaving all to die in the hands of brutal military. Justice for these victims and unarmed civilians who are harmed by the government security forces is totally unimaginable.

 

When we are writing this news, local residents report Myanmar troops are attacking Done Paik village from the south and north in Rathedaung township. The military is indiscriminately firing guns and shells into the village. The shooting is still going on, and casualty report is not yet confirmed.

 

Khine Thu Kha said none of the international government nor the UN body has yet come up with a strong protest against the Myanmar military for lawlessly firing and shelling into the populated villages and towns, where hundreds of unarmed civilians, including women, children, and elder people, were killed and injured, and homes were burned down. 

 

He urges international community to take concrete actions to protect the civilians in Rakhine and Chin states.