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SOUTHERN SHAN STATE – It is reported that some refugees from Southern Shan State and the Karenni (Kayah) side are consuming wet and decayed rice and chicken feed rice because of insufficient food and low income. Since there are no jobs and they had been away from the home for a long time, they have to eat such rice.
“We are sad. Before, these types of rice were used to make animal feed. Now, they are buying these types of rice. We sell them as they are, and add a lot of extras for free. They don’t want people to know, they will be ashamed,” a Taunggyi rice shop owner said.
It is said that 2Kg of plain coarse rice is 4000 or 5000 and fine rice is 6,000 to 8,000, but wet rice damaged by water is only about 1,500 kyats. War refugees and some low income people buy and eat such rice.
A war refugee from Loikaw to Aye Thayar said, “Some can’t even afford to eat broken rice. They have to drink the rice soup. The wet rice is much better, it can dry up in sun and able to cook. Some have to eat the decayed rice by washing many times and cook. It cost only over one thousand kyats. Yesterday we bought for 1200. We can buy only 4Kg. We all are suffering like this. On a working day, we can earn 5,000 to 10,000 kyat, but on a non-working day, they can barely pay for transport. All 5 family members are doing all the work they can get money for.” He said that he was very worried that he would be sick because he had no money, and that he could not even chew the betel nut that he liked so much.
Currently the prices for the 2kg of rice are half broken rice for 2000 kyats, wet rice for 1500 kyats, and decayed rice for 1200 kyats.