IDP numbers increasing
Posted on March 8, 2009
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IDPs in Karen State
With ongoing conflict and human rights violations in Burma an additional 66,000 people from ethnic minority groups were displaced in 2008 according to a new report released this week.
The Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC) estimates there are 451,000 Internally Displaced People (IDPs) in rural Eastern Burma. However, they admit this is a conservative figure and does not include IDPs in other parts of the country.
IDPs includes 224,000 people living in temporary settlements in ceasefire areas administered by ethnic nationalities, another 101,000 civilians estimated to be hiding from the SPDC in areas most affected by military skirmishes, and approximately 126,000 villagers who had followed government eviction orders and moved to designated relocation sites.
Overall, there appears to be a ten percent drop in IDP numbers compared with 2007. But, IDMC says this was due to the estimated fall of over 70,000 in the number of IDPs in ceasefire areas. Meanwhile, however, estimates for IDPs in hiding and in relocation sites had increased from 2007 to 2008
IDMC says the Karen have the worst affected of all the ethnic groups, as a result of the ongoing offensive against the Karen National Union. They estimate there are 100,000 IDPs in Karen State.
Meanwhile, in western Burma, famine has led to people being displaced in Chin State.
The report found the IDPs greatest needs were physical security, food, shelter, health and education. It also noted that humanitarian access to this population continued to be very restricted.
An overview of the report can be found here.
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