BBC News
Myanmar then finds itself devasted by a strong earthquake after four years of civil war, a severe food problems, and an economy that is in decline.
The city of Sagaing in central Myanmar was struck by a 7.7 magnitude earthquake on Friday, which was followed by reports of damage coming from Mandalay, the nation’s second-largest city, as well as Nay Pyi Taw, the country’s capital, which is located more than 150 miles ( 241 kilometers away ).
It’s challenging to get information out of Myanmar. Tens of thousands of people in the affected areas even live without electricity and have limited access to the internet, despite the uneven mobile lines that have been patchy since the earthquake struck. Due to a shortage of media freedom, foreign reporters are also hardly ever permitted to enter actually.
How did Myanmar arrive in this country, then?
Since its independence from Britain in 1948, the nation has seen years of turmoil and martial law.
In 2011, it appeared to move away from this and free elections were held four years later, which Aung San Suu Kyi won.
Political hopes were shattered in 2021 when she and her authorities were toppled by a revolution led by General Min Aung Hlaing.
He detained and charged Ms. Suu Kyi and other people of her state, alleging widespread fraud in a vote held weeks before, when her National League for Democracy party had won more than 80 % of the vote.
The revolution sparked widespread rallies, with thousands of people taking to the streets every day to demand the end of civilian rule. The army responded with terrible army, using tear gas and rubber bullets against crowds, as violent behavior rapidly escalated between citizens and the defense.
According to rights organizations, the crackdown resulted in hundreds of fatalities and thousands of injuries.
What started out as a simple civil disobedience protest quickly grew into a pervasive insurgency involving pro-democracy and ethnic rebels, which eventually sparked an entire civil war.
Four years later, violent fighting has continued between ethnic armies and armed resistance groups on the one hand.
The military has suffered significant losses and no longer controls a lot of the nation. As more and more soldiers defect, there is also growing dissatisfaction with General Min Aung Hlaing in the army.
According to rights groups, the fighting has left millions of people living in constant fear and insecurity, with little access to basic necessities like food and medical care, claim rights groups.
The UN estimates that more than 3.5 million people have been displaced as a result of the conflict, which the UN predicts will only increase as the conflict gets worse.
According to the organization’s world food program, food insecurity has reached “unprecedented levels,” adding that rapid inflation has made food unaffordable for many.
The UN announced earlier this week that it would stop providing aid to more than one million people in Myanmar starting next month, citing global funding problems.
This comes months after more than 200 people died in the wake of Typhoon Yagi, which triggered severe floods and mudslides in Myanmar and left hundreds of thousands of acres of crops destroyed.
Getty ImagesThe country’s 50 million people will undoubtedly experience more suffering as a result of Friday’s earthquake.
It struck close to the rebel stronghold of Sagaing, which is where it was. It was the site of intense fighting between rebels and the military just months ago, with local reports claiming that air strikes were launched, causing thousands of people to flee.
Mandalay, the second-largest city, has also experienced the earthquake and is home to 1.5 million people. Resistance troops and the army engaged in fierce combat in the Mandalay region.
A hospital in the capital Naypyidaw, where the military government is located, has been transformed into a “mass casualty site,” according to a very slow, limited stream of information coming out of the country. The few images that we can see depict destruction, including cracked roads and collapsed buildings, show this.
The hospital’s emergency building also collapsed, according to security personnel, who are arriving with hundreds of injured people.
The nation’s junta has now issued a state of emergency in several regions and submitted a eminently rare request for international assistance.
However, as they battle a war under the direction of a disgruntled general, it is unclear how they will react to the earthquake.
