Junta soldiers are demanding money from school-age students returning to their villages after having spent the term living and going to school in Kyaukphyu Town in Arakan (Rakhine) State.

After finishing their final exam of the academic year on 26 February 2025, some Grade 11 students going home to their villages were extorted by junta soldiers at the Kyauktalone security checkpoint at the entrance of Kyaukphyu Town.

A mother who witnessed the extortion said: “The soldiers were extorting 400,000 MMK per student to let them pass. My daughter and I didn’t have much money, so we had to beg them to let us pass for 200,000 MMK each. Some students had to pay 400,000 MMK for just one person.

Schools in most of the villages in Kyaukphyu Township had to remain closed during the 2024 to 2025 academic year because of ongoing fighting in the township. But schools in junta-controlled Kyaukphyu Town and a few in villages close to the town managed to stay open.

As a result some families from Kyaukphyu Township sent their children to study and stay in Kyaukphyu Town during term time. Many stayed with relatives in the town. Now the academic year has finished they are trying to return to their villages but face being extorted by junta soldiers.

A parent from Zinchaung Village in Kyaukphyu Township said: “Despite the concerning military situation, we sent our children to Kyaukphyu Town for their education. We placed our trust in the junta because we had no other choice. Now, the children are stuck in a situation where they can’t leave the town unless they pay.”

Fighting between the Arakan Army (AA) and the junta has been intensifying in Kyaukphyu Township since 20 February 2025. This is causing anxiety amongst parents in the township who want to bring their children home before they get trapped in Kyaukphyu Town by the fighting.

Kyaukphyu Township is home to many Chinese funded projects, including the The Kyaukphyu Deep-Sea Port and the Kyaukphyu Special Economic Zone (SEZ).