Shwe Phee Myay, June 9, Namhkam
Top leadership from the Palaung State Liberation Front/Ta’ang National Liberation Army (PSLF/TNLA)—including the Vice Chairman (1) Lieutenant General Tar Jok Jar, Vice Chairman (2) Major General Tar Khu Lan, General Secretary (1) Brigadier General Tar Ohm Tamao, General Secreatary (2) Colonel Tar Parn—have met with and apologized to the victims who suffered and sustained losses due to the explosion in Kaung Tat, according to the statement of the armed group.
On June 6, a traditional one-week memorial service and Buddhist alms-offering ceremony was held for the victims of the Kaung Tat village blast.
As part of a humanitarian aid package, the PSLF/TNLA disbursed 10 million Kyat to each victim’s family, drawing from the organization’s special emergency funds.
The ethnic armed group reiterated its deep condolences to those killed and injured, explicitly acknowledging that the tragedy was triggered by an explosion at the TNLA’s gelignite storage warehouse, and offered a formal, profound apology for the incident.
The statement further emphasized that the group takes the catastrophic losses with the utmost seriousness, pledging full accountability and promising to do everything within its power to support the recovery and rehabilitation of affected residents.
According to official figures released by the TNLA, a total of 41 local civilians were killed in the May 31 disaster, which occurred when an explosion ripped through a warehouse storing gelignite.
The commercial-grade explosive was intended for use in mineral mining extraction works operated by the armed group’s economic department in Kaung Tat village. The area, located in northern Shan State’s Namhkam Township, is currently under the administrative control of the TNLA.
The blast also left 154 local residents injured and destroyed 680 homes and buildings, leaving the affected community in urgent need of medical supplies and reconstruction aid.
A network of ethnic armed organizations has stepped in to fund rehabilitation efforts: the Kachin Independence Organization/Kachin Independence Army (KIO/KIA) has contributed 55 million Kyat, the United Wa State Army (UWSA) provided 10 million Kyat, and the Shan State Progress Party (SSPP) donated 10 million Kyat alongside 20 bags of rice.
Solidarity donations are also pouring in from both domestic and diaspora communities, with contributions arriving from Ta’ang, Kachin, Shan, Chinese, Lisu, and Bamar civilian groups worldwide.
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Translated by #KLT
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