Resettlement Begins as Longstanding Myitkyina IDP Camp Set to Close After More Than a Decade

Pajau Media

August 2, 2025

Although the number of internally displaced people (IDPs) in Kachin State continues to rise daily due to ongoing fighting, the closure of urban IDP camps has prompted some IDPs’ hopes of returning home to turn into reality, while for others, the journey back remains fraught with difficulties.

Following renewed conflicts since 2011, most people displaced from their homes in Kachin State have been residing in the Waingmaw-Myitkyina KBC IDP camp, which is now due to close by March 31, 2026. Some have already started to return and resettle, but for others, going back home is still full of challenges, according to the camp authorities.

“We have lived here for a long time, this is the land of Waigmaw township. Because the relevant authorities are reopening schools and resuming livelihoods in these areas, IDPs are being asked to move back. They gave advance notice and information. Anyone wants to live and work in their own homeland. Everyone wants to go home, but every family faces different difficulties. The conflict hasn’t ended. Some families have children still in school; if they return home too soon, they worry about children’s education, health, and livelihoods. One way or another, IDPs from this camp must move out,” said a camp official from Myitkyina KBC.

Some IDPs have started returning to their original villages, working to establish new lives and beginning small-scale farming on their lands.

However, financial hardships, concerns about the children’s education, and the unstable security situation make the decision to go back very difficult for many.

Currently, fighting in Kachin State remains intense, and in the Waimaw area, airstrikes and drone attacks occur almost daily, especially near the Myitkyina and Waimaw areas, and conflict analysts worry fighting may escalate further in those locations.

The Myitkyina camp was once a safe and secure place for IDPs, but now even that has changed. Due to these conditions, many are choosing to return to their original villages, said a female IDP.

“We’ve been here for so long already. Now the relevant organizations and pastors are calling people to go back. I once went back before, but when the fighting resumed, I had to return to the camp. This time, since it’s a freed area, we’ve decided to go back,” she said.

The pastors and ministry leaders repeatedly encourage camp residents to go back and lead the return efforts. “If we don’t leave now, it could get worse later. That’s why our family, too, has decided to move back and begun the resettlement process,” she added.

In the resettlement areas, local authorities, the government, and charitable organizations need to do more to systematically provide for security, housing, support, and educational needs for returnees. Even though people are returning, it doesn’t mean they’re entirely confident, they still fear aerial attacks and instability in Kachin, said another woman who has already gone back home.

“It’s now officially a freed area, and I’m happy to be allowed to return. For now, I want to trust in the security, but airstrikes remain my biggest worry,” she said.

The Myitkyina IDP camp is being closed by March 2026. The camp, set up for those displaced by fighting in Waimaw, has been in operation for over a decade and leaders want returning residents to rebuild their lives as quickly as possible.

The Myitkyina IDP camp, established after the 2011 fighting, was once the largest urban camp housing hundreds of families. In early 2023, more than 500 families lived there, and although some have since returned and resettled, others remain; as of 2025, 461 families are still present according to records.

News - Pilan U