Myanmar's nationals who crossed the Bangladesh-Myanmar border escorted back to their country by ships at Cox's Bazar on April 25. The ruling military has imposed restriction on religious activities in Christian-majority Chin state, bordering Bangladesh and India. (Photo: AFP)
The ruling Myanmar military has imposed restrictions on religious activities, including Sunday services, in the capital of Christian-majority Chin state following a militia attack on a convoy that included junta ministers.
The local administration issued the order on April 22 banning the assembly of more than five persons for religious service and prohibiting the opening of shops in Hakha, a western state bordering India and Bangladesh.
“In Chin state, every family has more than five family members. So, gathering and praying can be affected under the new order,” a Church source, who did not want to be identified, told UCA News on April 26.
The ban on shops will affect daily life, he added.
Though Christians held a meeting with local authorities on April 24, their plea to lift the ban fell on deaf ears.
Local sources say the order, valid until June 22, will affect at least 14 churches of various denominations, such as Catholic, Baptist, and Anglican, in Hakha.
A Church source said that "except for funerals, Church officials need to inform local authorities at least five days before holding prayer meetings and weddings.”
“Sadly, church services are restricted,” said Augustine, a Church social worker based in Hakha who goes by one name.
The ban comes after a few senior officials reportedly sustained injuries in an attack on a convoy of ministers on April 12.
According to media reports, the local Chin Defense Force claimed responsibility for the attack.
Since Feb. 2, 2023, seven townships in the conflict-stricken Chin state have been placed under martial law, with a curfew and a ban on gatherings of more than five persons.
The junta, which is hit hard by resistance from local groups, has imposed martial law in 61 townships across the country since the coup in February 2021.
The mountainous and underdeveloped Chin state, where 85 percent of its 478,000 people are Christians, has been at the forefront of people's resistance.
The western state continues to witness fierce retaliatory attacks, including airstrikes and indiscriminate shelling on civilians.
At least two civilians were killed in the bombing of a local hospital in Mindat township in Chin state on April 25, according to Chin Defense Force.
More than 78,200 people are displaced while over 60,100 have taken shelter in neighboring India, according to an April 22 report by UNHCR, the United Nations’ refugee agency.
The conflict has seriously impacted Christians and their places of worship in Chin state, observed the UK-based Myanmar Witness report on Jan. 24.
At least 100 religious sites, including 55 Christian institutions, have been destroyed since the February 2021 coup, according to the Chin Human Rights Organization.
Christians make up nearly 6 percent of Myanmar’s population of 54 million, while Buddhism is the state religion with nearly 89 percent of the population following it.
