Closed border trade zone in W. Myanmar causes loss to entrepreneurs: merchants

The closed border trade zone of Maungtaw with Bangladesh in Myanmar's western Rakhine state due to protracted conflicts has caused loss to entrepreneurs doing border trade, official media reported Thursday.

Following a series of Oct. 9 armed attacks in Maungtaw, the border trade zone there has been suspended up to now.

The suspension of bamboo export has caused loss of up to several billions of kyats, merchants blamed, adding that it will suffer when fish and prawns cannot be exported in time during this season.

There are two border trade zones in Rakhine state -- Maungtaw and Sittway. Under the current situation, Maungtaw trade zone, from which fresh salty-water-prawn, dried fish and bamboo are mainly exported to Bangladesh, is still being closed.

The export value through Maungtaw reached 3.6 million U.S. dollars as of mid-November in this fiscal year 2016-2017 against the targeted 6 million U.S. dollars.

Three border posts in Maungtaw were attacked on Oct. 9 by hundreds of armed men with five soldiers and eight policemen killed in the incident.

A total of 30 attackers including two women were also killed and 12 others captured in a follow-up armed clashes between Myanmar government troops and hundreds of armed men in Maungtaw since the three border posts were violently attacked, officials of the Home Ministry said.

The three border posts are Kyikanpyi in Maungtaw , Kotankauk in Rathedaung and Ngakhuya Office.

A dusk-to-dawn curfew has been imposed in Maungtaw since Oct. 10, resulting in inconvenience for traders to carry out border trade activities. Enditem