About 1,000 people displaced from their homes by fighting and now sheltering in Pinlaung Township, southern Shan State are in urgent need of emergency assistance.

Since early September 2024, ongoing fighting along the highway between the towns of Pinlaung and Pekon has caused many residents to flee the villages of Namhparmu, Banmauk, Saunglan, Konepaw, Kawngkyein, Nawngwoe, Namhparmu, Pinson and Lwewun in Pinlaung Township and Laei and Lartein villages in Pekon Township.

A 40-year-old villager who fled from Saunglan Village said: “Our villages have become accustomed to frequent fighting, so some villagers only evacuate when the clashes come very close. However, the intensity of the fighting has clearly escalated over the past week. On 29 October, residents of Laei and Lartein villages in Pekon Township were also forced to flee due to airstrikes.”

The displaced are currently sheltering in three safe villages in Pinlaung Township, Kantaw, Narmun, and Yarsap. Amongst them are people suffering from chronic illnesses; elderly and disabled people; and pregnant and breast feeding mothers.

They are staying in monasteries, village assembly halls, and relatives' homes. Their most pressing need is food.

A lay person from one of the monasteries where displaced people are now sheltering said: “The primary need is rice. If there is rice, meals can be improvised. Right now, those who bring rice are sharing it with other families in need. Some of the displaced men are also engaging in masonry and other manual labor to earn an income.”

There is ongoing fighting in Pinlaung Township between the Pa-O National Liberation Army (PNLA) and Karenni defence forces on one side and the junta and the Pa-O National Liberation Army (PNLA) junta-allied militia, on the other.

On 28 and 29 October the junta also launched airstrikes on Pekon Township.