Arakan News Agency | Exclusive
The Arakan Army, a separatist force, has prohibited Rohingya residents from villages surrounding Maungdaw town in western Myanmar’s Arakan State from entering the city without an official endorsement letter issued by AA-controlled local authorities.
Local residents told Arakan News Agency on Monday that these permits are no longer issued by Rohingya officials after their authority was revoked on July 1. The power to grant travel endorsements has since been transferred to Arakan Army administrative offices.
Applicants are now required to pay fees ranging between 35,000 and 70,000 Myanmar kyats in exchange for a temporary travel permit.
A resident of “Byin Phyu” village said he paid 35,000 kyats for a single-day travel permit and was warned of a fine of 1,000 kyats for each additional day he overstays.
Another resident from “Ba Nyawng Bin Gyi” village reported paying a total of 105,000 kyats for a travel permit to Bangladesh for medical treatment. He was threatened with a fine of 17,500 kyats for each extra day beyond the permit’s validity.
This policy affects Rohingya villages in the south of Maungdaw such as Ban Taw Bin, Dunyaung Bin Gyi, and Ma Kyee Chaung as well as villages in the north like Paung Zar, Mangala Gyi, and Hla Baw Zar, further exacerbating the plight of the Rohingya, who have long faced systematic discrimination and persecution.
Since seizing control of Maungdaw on December 8, the Arakan Army has continued abuses against the Rohingya population, including sealing homes based on false accusations, confiscating property, and displacing numerous families.
Severe restrictions have been placed on Rohingya movement between villages, enforced through a network of security checkpoints at the entrances and exits of every Rohingya village. The AA has also imposed tolls on pedestrians and motorcycle owners for crossing bridges.
The Arakan Army launched a military offensive in November 2023 against Myanmar’s junta, aiming to take control of Arakan State. It has so far captured 14 out of 17 towns. However, the conflict has severely affected the Rohingya, who have faced violence, forced displacement, and oppression from both sides on top of the 2017 genocide by the Myanmar military that forced nearly a million Rohingya to flee to Bangladesh.
