Rathidaung: Organized gangs of cattle thieves have been lifting cattle belonging to  farmers around Arakan State with the help of local police officers. The cattle are smuggled to Bangladesh, farmers in Arakan said.

"It is currently a very serious problem for farmers in Arakan as cattle are being stolen by rustlers everywhere in Arakan for onward transportation to Bangladesh," a farmer from Sun Bike Village in Rathidaung Township said,

The problem is not restricted to Rathidaung but in townships throughout the state. Farmers are struggling with their livelihoods because of the cattle thefts, he added.

A farmer in Pauktaw Township said, "We are all suffering from the problem, but we have not received any help from the government authorities in resolving the matter. When we complain to the police stations and to authorized persons, we learn the police have taken bribes from the rustlers and they do not want to solve the problem."

Local people in Arakan widely believe that local police officers have a nexus with the cattle thieves.

Many farmers in Pauktaw Township have sent a complaint letter to the head of state in Naypyidaw after signing on to it three months ago, but no action has been taken by the regime to date.

"We sent our complaint letter to Naypyidaw for action against the rustlers, because the problem is very serious in our state, but we have not received any feedback from the higher authorities regarding our letter. Some of our township level authorities also have connections with the cattle gangs in our area, and they regularly get bribes from the cattle gangs."

According to a local source, the cattle thieves have to pay half the money they make to police officers at many separate police stations after they dispose off the cattle in Bangladesh.

The farmer from Rathidaung said, "There is a police station in Long Chaung Village, located in southwestern Rathidaung Township, and the police officer from the station instigates the local cattle gang to steal cattle and sell them in Bangladesh. He takes half the money from the cattle gang after they sell the cattle."

The area in southwestern Rathidaung is near the Bangladesh border, and cattle theft is frequent and on a daily basis there.

The problem of cattle theft has been on the rise in Arakan, and many officials from the army and police department are believed to be involved in the thefts with the local cattle gangs.

The unemployment rate has increased sharply in recent years in Arakan, and many people have turned to unlawful activities for survival.