By WLC member, Zoya Phan.
On March 28th, a 7.7 magnitude earthquake hit Burma, and tremors were felt in Thailand, Southern China, and India. The quake hit a country already in the midst of a crisis. The UN estimated that at the beginning of this year, 19 million people in the country were in need of humanitarian assistance, 15 million acutely hungry, and 3.5 million internally displaced. The earthquake will only exacerbate the already dire situation in the country, which is a result of yet another military coup in 2021.
Earthquake:
The Burmese military reports the death toll at 3,300, however, independent media estimate the death toll is well over 4,000. The WHO has reported 3 hospitals being destroyed and 22 partially damaged. Thousands of houses have been damaged, resulting in people sleeping outside. With monsoon season beginning, shelter and disease control are major issue.
The country is considered one of the world’s most geologically “active” areas as it lies between two tectonic plates known as the Saigang Fault. The quake resulted in a state of emergency being declared in the six most impacted regions of Sagaing, Mandalay, Magway, Bago, Shan, and Nay Pyi Taw. Damage to roads and bridges has made it challenging to transport aid throughout the country. However, the much bigger obstacle in the effort to provide the much-needed support to the people of Burma is the military junta’s continued attacks on its people, blocking local and international aid teams, and unwillingness to provide support.
Political/Military state:
The Burmese military has a decades long record of committing war crimes and crimes against humanity against ethnic groups in Burma. Since the 2021 coup Burma has been plunged into a deeper conflict as the military dictatorship fights for its survival against growing resistance movement. The Burmese military is committing widespread and systematic abuses against its population. These include arbitrary arrests, extrajudicial killings, torture, and bombing schools, medical clinics and homes.
For four years in a row, the government has extended a “state of emergency”. Opposition is harshly cracked down on, and freedoms of speech, assembly, and association are non-existent. Since the coup, more than 28,000 people, including many journalists, doctors and nurses have been arrested, with the Peace Research Institute of Oslo saying more than 4,000 of these prisoners were killed. Under the Junta, Rohingya have face ongoing genocide, with up to 140,000 of their population being confined to prison camps in the central Rakhine state since 2012.
In the wake of this disaster, the Burmese military is showing no sign of halting its aggression or providing significant aid to its people. They continued attacks across the country despite declaring a ceasefire, block aid to areas they don’t control, and leverage calls for aid to try to gain international legitimacy.
Foreign Aid/Response:
While the Burmese military is not willing to stop its brutal air strikes, it did ask for foreign aid. Chinese, Russian, and Indian rescue workers are already on the ground, but only areas under military control. Overall, it is very hard to get information about the level of destruction caused by the quake due to the Junta’s banning independent media, internet bans, and preventing foreign journalists from entering the country. It is vital that aid is not only channelled via UN agencies, but also to local civil society organisations and using cross border mechanisms.
What does this all mean for the people of Burma?
This earthquake has not only killed thousands, destroyed a vast amount of infrastructure, and cut off essential needs from the people of Burma, but it has once again illustrated that the ruling Military Junta does not care for the safety and well-being of its people. Seeking to weaponise aid by blocking aid to areas it doesn’t control, and suppressing international criticism of its human rights violations and response to the quake, using the ever present threat of blocking the limited access that agencies do have.
