Internally displaced persons (IDP) camps in Chin State and Sagaing Region face a shortage of medicines. Pregnant women and those with gynecological conditions need essential treatment, and many also lack menstrual products.
The findings were included in a report on the situation in Chin State and Sagaing Region in February, released by Women for Justice (WJ) on March 5.
In IDP camps in Chin State and Sagaing Region in northwestern Myanmar, toilets are rarely segregated properly by gender. The limited number of toilets and showers also makes women feel unsafe, the report said.
In some areas, IDP women face daily sexual harassment and verbal abuse, including lewd catcalls, from men. Many also suffer psychological trauma due to domestic violence and family problems, WJ’s report highlighted.
In Chin State and Sagaing Region, the junta killed around 30 civilians and injured more than 50 in various forms of violence in February, according to WJ.
The safety of women in Chin State and Sagaing Region has deteriorated significantly since the 2021 coup. Even when facing harassment and violence, many women are reluctant to take legal action, citing unsafe travel and a lack of law and order. Fear of threats and possible retaliation has also made it increasingly difficult for them to speak out or report crimes committed by the junta and its affiliates.
More than five years after the coup, the number of Chin ethnic IDPs has surpassed 100,000, with another 60,000 fleeing abroad, the Institute of Chin Affairs (ICA) announced at the end of January.