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Maungdaw Township, Arakan State — Rohingya shopkeepers in Maungdaw town say they are facing mounting threats, extortion demands, and forced closures from the Arakan Army (AA), which has controlled the area since 8 December 2023.

Local business owners told RVision that AA members are demanding a so-called “license fee” of 10,000 kyats every six months from all shopkeepers, regardless of size or earnings. Additional levies reportedly range from 60,000 kyats for hair salons to 250,000 kyats for gold shops.

Many of these businesses had already suffered devastating losses during earlier waves of conflict, when Rohingya residents were forced to flee and armed groups looted shops stealing as much as three-quarters of their stock. After returning in the past four months, shop owners have restarted their businesses with whatever goods they could salvage, often selling leftover gold or small stockpiles to survive.

However, they now face new restrictions. Locals report that movement between villages has been banned, and AA has set up additional checkpoints at village entrances and exits. Rohingya pedestrians and motorcycle owners are being charged to cross bridges, further squeezing livelihoods.

“The prices of food and basic goods have skyrocketed, and there are fewer buyers,” one shopkeeper said. “We’re just trying to survive, but every day there’s another demand for money.”

Residents say that under the previous Myanmar government administration, taxes were collected annually and small businesses such as salons were often exempt. Now, under AA control, the tax burden is heavier and enforced more aggressively.

Since its offensive in November 2023, the Arakan Army has captured 14 of 17 townships in Arakan State. Rohingya residents, already displaced and persecuted in large numbers during the Myanmar military’s 2017 campaign, now find themselves caught between two armed forces—facing harassment, forced displacement, and economic strangulation.

Rohingya Vision News

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