Nearly 700 Families Worried for Prisoners in Bhamo

Pajau Media

June 19, 2025

Due to the ongoing city-capturing offensive by the KIA in Bhamo, Kachin State, prisoners in Bhamo prison are facing food shortages, surviving daily on only cassava and bananas as their main meals. Family members are growing increasingly worried as prisoners have been calling home to ask for assistance, according to an anonymous source.

"The prisoners said they no longer have rice, so they are only eating cassava and bananas. Some who have money buy rice from soldiers’ wives, who sell it for 30,000 kyats per packet. Because of this, the prisoners have called and asked their families to send about 200,000 kyats to buy rice. They said they are only being fed cassava and bananas," said the anonymous source.

Currently, there are nearly 700 inmates in Bhamo prison. The military has reportedly asked the prisoners to fight as soldiers during the ongoing conflict, but all the prisoners have unanimously refused. Most of the prisoners are Kachin and have lost contact with their families.

"They were asked to become soldiers, but they refused, saying, 'We will not become soldiers.' That might be why they are being deliberately deprived of rice. Also, the army may not be providing food because of the shortage. Whatever the reason, we feel helpless as we cannot do anything from the outside, and we are very worried," the source continued.

The battle for control of Bhamo city has been ongoing for over six months, and as the conflict drags on, family members believe that food shortages inside the prison are becoming more severe.

"When we get phone calls from them, we are so happy. But when they say they haven’t eaten rice, it makes us very sad. We feel so sorry for them. It’s a situation where we can’t go and help them at all, so we are extremely worried," one family member said.

Bhamo prison is currently located within the territory controlled by the 21st Military Battalion, where heavy fighting with joint KIA forces is taking place daily. This has also heightened the concerns of the prisoners’ families.

Furthermore, it has been a long time since prisoners have been allowed to receive parcels or letters, and with the ongoing intense fighting and reports that they are not getting rice, families are increasingly worried for their loved ones’ safety.

Reported by: Zau Mai