NMSP Closes All Entry And Exit Points To Its Controlled Territory

By Network Media Group
Wednesday, September 16, 2020

The New Mon State Party (NMSP) has sealed off its area in Mon State, shuttering all entry and exit points to stop the rapid spread of SARS-CoV-2 affecting other parts of Burma.

Nai Banyar Lel, head of the NMSP’s interior affairs department, told NMG no-one would be allowed to enter with the exception of health workers. He said community-based groups and other groups would not be allowed to hold training sessions or gatherings.

In response to increased transmissions in hotspots such as Yangon Division and Rakhine State, NMSP’s COVID-19 Control and Response Committee imposed travel restrictions while issuing 10 health guidelines. The Phayathonsu (Three Pagoda Pass) border crossing is being carefully watched by the ethnic armed organization.

Locals are not allowed to travel unless they get permission from their village or township-level department, according to an NMSP statement. Private vehicles and vehicles for hire can only transport up to five individuals at a time. No more than two can ride on a motorbike. All travelers must be quarantined for 14 days before being allowed to enter NMSP territory.

Nai Banyar Lel told NMG that many are not adhering to the new health guidelines. Even though SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes the COVID-19 disease, is spreading rapidly, they don’t think it’s dangerous, he explained. The “death toll is high” and why everyone needs “to follow the guidelines.”

Although there has not been a single case of COVID-19 found in NMSP’s area since the onset of the pandemic, there have been 70 cases in Mon State.

In Burma, the government has confirmed 3,636 cases, 39 deaths and 832 recoveries at 8 a.m. on September 16.