By The Rohingya Post

On January 7, a landmine in Teik Tu Pauk, Kyauk Yant village tract, Buthidaung Township, Rakhine State killed four Rohingya children aged between 8 and 10.

Four Rohingya have died on the spot as the landmine went off while six including their teacher is critically injured.

The tragic incident thappened when some Rohingya children from Teik Tu Pauk, Kyauk Yant village tract, went to collect some firewoods with their teacher to a nearby hill called Fuk Hali located east of Teik Tu Pauk village which is within 15 minutes walking distance.

The deceased children are identified as Yasein Ullah (son of Abdu Zawbar), aged 10; Mamed Amin (son of Salim), aged 8; Arouf Ullah (son of Mamed Zuhir), aged 8; and Abdu Raman (son of Mostafa Kamal), aged 10.

The six injured Rohingya are Amay Ran (son of Shomshu Alom), aged 10; community school teacher Ali Zuhir (son of Sultan Ahmed), aged 25; Azizullah (son of Mostafa Kamal), aged 8; Amis Hakeim (son of Habas Ahmed), aged 8; Abdu Monnan (son of Abdu Salam), aged 7; and Abu Tahar (son of Mamed Fayas), aged 10.

The injured Rohingya were first amitted to Buthidaung General Hospital. However, due to the critical conditions of three children including their teacher Ali Zuhir, they were transferred to Maungdaw General Hospital for emergency treatment.

The children who died on the spot were buried on Tuesday’s afternoon after Myanmar authorities granted their families for burials.

Since fighting broke out between Arakan (Rakhine) Army (AA) and Myanmar Military in early 2018, Rohingya face additional restrictions on their movement and are trapped in villages where they suffer artillery shelling leaving in deaths and severe injuries, and they face difficulty in accessing to basic necessities such as firewood, rice, fish and vegetables.

According to a villager from Teik Tu Pauk village, Myanmar Military has been seen stationed in the hill east to Teik Tu Pauk since February 2019. At least 160 Myanmar soldiers movement and presence has been seen in this hill. Landmines have been used both by Myanmar Military and Arakan Army. The Landmines are mostly found planted near Rohingya villages. Also most of the shootings in the past have been near to Rohingya villages which has lead casualties including loss of lives among the remaining Rohingya ethnic minority in Rakhine state.

The parents of the deceased and injured Rohingya children has raised concerns on the lack of security for Rohingya community in Rakhine State. Not only the parents of these children fear that Rohingya will face continued denial of any kind of protection from the government of Myanmar, they also have expectations of very low any medical supports from the government.

In Myanmar, Rohingya are denied to train as healthcare professionals and have extremely limited access to healthcare coupled with soaring hospital bills for the Rohingya community which lives below the extreme poverty line after having systematically denied fundamental human rights.

The latest landmine is the testimony of continued denial of livelihood, freedom of movement and basic rights with the dangerous environment for the Rohingya community, particularly vulnerable children.