Chin State
Chin state is split into 9 different townships, with a population of approximately 500,000. The townships affected by the famine include six districts: Paletwa, Matupi, Mindet, Thantlang, Falam, and Tidim. Only some portions of the districts are affected by the famine with the total population expected to be in the tens of thousands.
The areas most affected by the flowering bamboo are largely those in the southern part of Chin State. The southern part of Chin State is difficult to access due to under-developed roads, transportation and the presence of the military.
The Chin People
The Chin people always depend on their own crops. Maize and rice are their major food. This year 2007-08, families that use to reaping 200 to 400 tins of the paddy can only reaping 20 – 40 tins of paddy. Approximately a person eats 12 tins (180 kilogram) of rice per year. There are also many families who totally lost their crops from their fields. Additional environmental condition, such as heavy rain fall, has caused maize to rot.
Burma’s Government Reaction
In Burma, although the impending famine has been reported to the government, the SPDC (State Peace and Development Council) regime has done nothing to prepare for, prevent, or provide relief to the affected areas. Rather, the SPDC continues to impose harsh and arbitrary taxes on villages within the affected areas.
Other human rights abuses also continue unabated, such as forced labor, forced portering, and confiscation and deprivation of private property. These actions will only exacerbate the affects of the famine crisis. Under this circumstance, Chin people have been for years forced to live in abject poverty.
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Background 