Over two-hundred residents of Kanpetlet are suffering from food shortages after the local Chinland Defense Force (CDF) restricted food supplies to the town in an effort to starve out the occupying Burma army soldiers.
A Kanpetlet resident stated that very few vendors are selling food, and all markets have closed. The CDF allows families to transport small amounts of food from Hsaw town in Magwe Township, but they are unable to carry much fresh meat, fish, or vegetables by motorcycle or on foot due to the dangerous conditions accessing the main roadway.
Despite the risks, locals must purchase food once a month, he said. “We have to report to Kanpetlet CDF if we want to buy 1-2 bags of rice for our family. It’s really difficult to get medicine in Kanpetlet. Seniors are unable to travel to get food rations, so their relatives or others have to get it for them.”
Water has also been cut off, and everyone is struggling to obtain drinking water. With no hospitals or clinics open, no one can access healthcare.
Some people remain in the town because they cannot afford to leave.
Before the coup, the town had a population of 10,000, but most of the inhabitants fled to remote villages, their farms or the Magwe or Yangon regions due to the fighting.