Arakan News Agency
Rohingya residents in Maungdaw Township, in western Arakan State, Myanmar, reported that Buddhist Arakan militias (Arakan Army – AA) have been coercing the community to pay money through various means, including rent from shops owned by displaced Rohingya and so-called “fund donations” from already displaced families.
In a move that residents described as unjust, the militias began collecting rent from shops owned by Rohingya who had fled to Bangladesh and Yangon due to the fighting, according to Rohingya Khobor.
On September 30, officials summoned all shop owners to a meeting and announced that rents must now be paid directly to the Arakan militias instead of the displaced shop owners.
A shop owner said: “They told us that those who fled are linked to armed groups, and if we send them the rent, it means we are supporting terrorists. So they ordered us to give the rent to the Arakan militias instead.” Local residents said the decision has only deepened their daily suffering.
In another part of northern Maungdaw, residents of Thu U Lar village (Kholar Bil) reported that a local administrator, Mohammed Rashid, has been collecting 100,000 kyats from each family as a “fund donation” for the Arakan Army, even though these families were displaced and struggle to survive through small daily jobs and manual labor.
A man from the village said: “We are poor and struggling to survive day by day, yet they force us to pay 100,000 kyats to the army.” A woman added: “Instead of helping us in this difficult time, they are taking money from us. We feel hopeless and afraid.”
Residents said these incidents reflect a growing pattern of extortion, financial exploitation, and intimidation under Arakan Army control. Although the group presents itself internationally as a force for self-determination, Rohingya say they continue to face new and ongoing abuses against innocent civilians.
Under Arakan Army rule, Rohingya suffer widespread violations, including the closure and seizure of their homes following false complaints, confiscation of valuable property, forced displacement of many families, and severe restrictions on their movement between villages enforced by a network of security checkpoints at every Rohingya village entrance and exit.
The Arakan militias launched a military offensive against the Myanmar army in November 2023 to take control of the state and have seized 14 out of 17 townships. The conflict has engulfed the Rohingya, who have faced violence, forced displacement, and persecution from both sides—after previously enduring a “genocidal campaign” by the Myanmar military in 2017 that forced nearly one million Rohingya to flee to Bangladesh.
