🔗 Share this article Within Insurgent-Controlled Myanmar, Ordinary People Confront Catastrophic Aerial Bombardments and a Sham Vote A resident escaped from her home after the regime initiated air strikes in the vicinity. During the evening last month, a resident listened to explosions in a neighbouring village, and subsequently warplanes circling the area. She dashed from her home to see a smoke cloud far away. "We were horrified. We feared the regime's jets could strike us too. So we seized our essentials – some food and clothes and escaped to the forests encircling our village." Iang's face quivers as she tells the events of what occurred on 26 November in K-Haimual, located in Myanmar's western Chin State. She is one of countless residents who've abandoned their homes in recent weeks subsequent to the Burmese military began a fierce campaign of bombing runs, coupled with a land assault in rebel-held areas throughout the nation. A great number of people have crossed into India to flee the conflict in Burma. Some from Chin state have described the regime's newest campaign as the fiercest it has conducted in more than three years. Countless refugees have found shelter in other parts of the state. Iang is part of a group that crossed the border into the Indian state of Mizoram. Currently sheltered in a decrepit badminton court in a village, the group's few belongings they were able to carry are contained in polyethylene bags. Ral Uk Thang has had to flee his home at the age of 80, staying in improvised dwellings in jungles for days, prior to eventually reaching a secure location. "We fear our own government. They are incredibly harsh. Their military has come into our and other villages in the past, they've arrested people, tortured them, and burned down homes," he says. It is challenging to converse with Burmese civilians freely. Myanmar's regime does not allow unfettered entry in the country for foreign journalists. It took over the country in a coup in February 2021, soon after the last election. Humanitarian Toll and Deliberate Strikes As part of the newest operation, the junta last week attacked a medical facility in Rakhine. Resistance organizations in Rakhine report at least 30 people were slain and more than 70 wounded. A human rights organization states that over recent months at least multiple schools and a number of places of worship in Chin State have been targeted by regime air raids, killing 12 people comprising six children. Reports indicate the destruction of a school in a community on 13 October. Two students were killed as they were studying. The bombs tore through their classrooms injuring more than a dozen other students. A refugee says the impending elections are a sham. This is the second time, a father and his loved ones – a wife and two young children - have been made homeless. In 2021, following the coup, their home was razed in an air strike. They started over in K-Haimual village. Now they're homeless again. "Words fail me to explain how difficult and traumatic it is and what a tough choice it was to make to leave. But we had to do it to survive," he says. A Questioned Electoral Process The National League for Democracy party, which won landslides in the two elections prior to the coup, is not participating as most of its senior leaders are detained. "This vote is unwanted. Because the military lacks the ability to govern our country. They only work for the gain of their senior officers. When the previous government was in power, we experienced a measure of democracy. But now all we do is grieve and lament," says the elderly man. Iang Za Kim believes the election will be fixed. "Should we cast a ballot for a party not allied with the military, I believe they will falsify the outcome and claim we voted for them." The vote will take place in phases, with a result expected around the end of January. Resistance forces have declared it a pretense. Insurgent Battleground and Losses At a base of a leading insurgent force operating in the state, a vice chairman states: "This process is only being held to prolong military dictatorship. It's not about the people's choice." He points out the areas where the fiercest combat is taking place. "There are columns of hundreds of soldiers trying to push into the northern part of Chin state from multiple fronts," he says. "The troops are being supported by air strikes, artillery fire and by UAVs." An injured rebel suffered grave injuries resisting the military. Access to such bases is very limited. Located within wooded hills, it is the center of the resistance against the junta in Chin state. Within a clinic at the base, several injured fighters were brought in overnight and had to undergo lengthy operations. Some of them have had to undergo surgeries. Many of them were just teenagers when the coup occurred in 2021. Just about adults now, they've let go of their dreams to engage in combat against the junta. "During the pullback we ran forward and I triggered a landmine. We were injured in the explosion. Then we were attacked from the air. The airstrikes make things very challenging for us," states a wounded rebel. "Although I am amputated, if I must sacrifice my life I'm happy to make the sacrifice so that coming generations have a better life." The impact of the brutality of the ongoing operation is apparent in room after room at the hospital. However, it's the determination and resolve of countless numbers of youngsters who picked up arms that have helped the rebels make significant gains against a better-equipped rival. Individuals such as 80-year-old the elderly refugee hope that post-poll, the junta will pull back, and he will be able to go back home. "However, I doubt I will live to see democracy restored in Myanmar," he says. "I wish my children and grandchildren can witness it some day."