Khami people have called for prompt action to end ongoing conflicts and for the return of displaced people to their homes, during an event marking the 11th anniversary of Khami National Day on April 27.

Khami National Day was celebrated at a Buddhist monastery in the Arakan State capital Sittwe on Tuesday, and the event was marked on a modest scale due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The chairman of the Rakhine Ethnics Congress (REC), U Shwe Baw Sein, called on ethnic people to do their fair share to surmount obstacles and build peace in Arakan State.

“People have been displaced by the fighting in our region. Ethnic people including Khami, Arakanese, Daingnet, Thet and Mro are faced with armed conflicts. But the military situation changes every year,” he said.

“So, I would like to urge you to be united in difficult times. I would like to take this opportunity and urge you to do your fair share to build a better future and achieve peace as soon as possible, so that we can revive our traditions.”

Ethnic Khami woman Ma Tha Nu May said she wishes for peace in her homeland and for soonest return of displaced people to their homes.

“I hope that peace can be achieved as soon as possible. I feel sorry to see that many people are displaced and struggling,” she said.

Ethnic attendee U Wai Sein Aung said he felt sorry that unlike previous years, the event could not be held on a grand scale with a large attendance of ethnic Khami people.

“I wish all the Khami people could attend Khami National Day and celebrate it in unison. This is how we should maintain the prestige and integrity of our ethnic group. But we had to hold a simple event this year due to circumstances. I feel sorry for that,” he said.

A number of organisations including the Arakan Army and Arakan Students’ Union sent messages of felicitations on the 11th anniversary of Khami National Day.

Khami people are spread across several townships in Arakan State including Mrauk-U, Kyauktaw, Pauktaw, Ponnagyun and Sittwe.