Quarter-Million Myanmar IDPs Denied Quake Aid in Mandalay

The Irrawaddy

Nearly 250,000 internally displaced people (IDPs) sheltering in Mandalay have been excluded from official earthquake relief efforts, according to aid volunteers and residents, deepening the humanitarian crisis sparked by the devastating 28 March quake.

Fleeing conflict in Shan State and Sagaing Region, many IDPs had sought safety in Myanmar’s second-largest city—only to find themselves overlooked by junta-led relief efforts. Local officials have reportedly limited aid distribution to registered Mandalay residents, leaving displaced families without shelter or food.

“We’re treated like we don’t exist,” said a woman displaced from Sagaing’s Kawlin Township. “My house back home was burned down. Now I’ve lost my rented shelter in Mandalay too. The only help we’ve had is a few packets of rice and curry from donors.”

Most IDPs had been living in rented accommodation that was severely damaged or destroyed by the quake. Volunteers estimate that at least 300 displaced people were killed in the disaster, while survivors are now seeking refuge in monasteries, roadside tents, or crowded temporary camps.

According to a volunteer in Amarapura, just outside Mandalay, relief is being distributed based on household registration documents—meaning IDPs, who are not formally registered in the city, are systematically excluded. “Even when several families share a house, only the officially registered ones receive aid,” he said.

The official response has been minimal. Rescue operations in Mandalay ended just ten days after the quake, and victims say they are receiving little support beyond what civil society groups and individual donors can provide.

The scale of destruction is vast: over 60,000 homes, more than 2,300 schools, and thousands of religious and public buildings were damaged across Mandalay, Sagaing, Naypyitaw, and southern Shan State. The confirmed death toll has climbed to 3,725, with over 5,100 injured and 129 still missing.

Meanwhile, many residents fear aftershocks—over 140 have been recorded—forcing them to sleep in schools, open fields, and even on roadsides.

With the regime focused on controlling information and restricting aid, Myanmar’s displaced communities face a grim reality: abandoned in crisis, and left to survive with little more than solidarity and scraps.

-2025-04-22