Myanmar military regime widens ban on sanitary towels, claims rebels use them for first aid | global development

Myanmar’s military regime is expanding its ban on the distribution of period products, claiming they are used to treat wounded resistance fighters, according to local activists.

The Southeast Asian country is locked down civil war since 2021when the military took over the democratic government and launched a violent crackdown on dissent. Artillery fire, the burning of townships and arbitrary arrests have become common in the years since.

Thinzar Shunlei Yi, a director at Sisters2Sisters, a women’s rights collective that supports fighters, said: “The (military) said menstrual products are used by the People’s Defense Force for medical reasons and as support for their feet and boots to absorb sweat and blood.”

There has been no official communication from the military government about this, but the blockade – believed to be part of a wider effort known as “four cuts”, designed to deprive insurgents of basic supplies – began in August in certain areas controlled by opposition forces. Transportation of pads over the bridge that connects Sagaing with Mandalay, Myanmar’s second largest city, is completely prohibited.

The ban was expanded this year and was likely to be more widespread than many people thought, Thinzar Shunlei Yi said, because of the taboo of talking about menstruation.

Meredith Bunn, founder of the medical aid charity Skills for Humanity (SFH), said anyone who has ever worked in combat medicine knows that sanitary towels cannot be used to treat gunshot wounds or even cuts.

“A sanitary pad won’t stay in place, won’t soak enough blood and won’t keep the area (clean),” she said, blaming the ban on “completely uneducated, misogynistic fools within the military.”

Henriette Ceyrac, who founded a period education organization, Pan Ka Lay, in Myanmar before it was forced to close several years ago, said women had to use unsafe alternatives such as cloths, leaves or newspaper, which exposed them to disease.

“It can cause urinary tract infections (UTIs), reproductive tract infections; just a lot of discomfort and pain,” she said.

Alternatively, they turn to the hidden market where prices have tripled from 3,000 kyat (£1) to pack to 9,000 kyat, Thinzar Shunlei Yi said. The minimum daily wage in Myanmar is 7,800 kyat.

In a country where the health system has collapsed, medical attention is hard to find. Thinzar Shunlei Yi said Sisters2Sisters regularly received requests for antibiotics to treat UTIs. The women were uncomfortable, distressed and sometimes preferred to stay indoors during their periods rather than participate in “political activities,” she added.

That was probably the regime’s intention, Ceyrac said. “It actually makes sense that (the military) wants to restrict women’s movement even more. It’s basically gender-based violence,” she said.

Bunn believes this is a military tactic designed to target female fighters, control civilians and victimize those in displacement camps. More than 3.5 million people have been forced to find shelter in temporary camps since 2021.

Organizations on the ground are working to distribute reusable pads, but without access to washing water, even these can cause health issues. “A lack of menstrual equipment and areas to wash it properly can cause infections, irritation, UTIs and worse, which is why disposable (menstrual products) were preferable until they became absolutely necessary,” Bunn said.

Alternative menstrual products such as cups and tampons are rare in Myanmar. Ceyrac said: “It is frowned upon as a woman to seek information and to be informed about these things.” The whole process of menstruation is considered shameful, she said, and women are encouraged to hide any evidence of it.

Thinzar Shunlei Yi said local groups had warned the UN about the situation in Myanmar, calling the ban on such a basic commodity “a human rights violation”.