by RK Desk
Buthidaung, Arakan State — September 21, 2026
Rohingya residents in Buthidaung Township say young people recruited as volunteers under local ULA/AA-administered structures are receiving lower pay than some Rakhine workers and, in some cases, being assigned manual labour rather than formal positions.
According to local sources who spoke to Rohingya Khobor, Rohingya volunteers have been recruited for teaching and other community work in areas where staffing remains limited.
The sources said Rohingya volunteer teachers are currently receiving around 130,000 kyats per month, while some Rakhine teachers receive about 200,000 kyats.
Rohingya Khobor has not independently verified the payment records or established whether the difference reflects an official policy, employment category, qualification level or other administrative arrangement.
A recent report from Arakan said the Arakan Education Department had set a standard monthly salary of 200,000 kyats for education workers, including volunteer teachers, with the new rate expected to take effect from late October.
It remains unclear whether Rohingya volunteer teachers will receive the same rate when the new salary system is implemented.
Manual work reported among trained Rohingya volunteers
Local sources also said some Rohingya men in Ywet Nyo Taung who received military or security-related training were later assigned to manual work rather than formal military or administrative positions.
The work reportedly includes road construction, carrying rice, planting trees, removing structures for road projects, cutting bamboo, gardening and farming.
Rohingya Khobor has not independently verified the training received by these men, their formal status, whether the work is voluntary or compulsory, or which ULA/AA body supervises them.
Sources also said some personnel receive rice and cash allowances, but the payment arrangements could not be independently confirmed.
Human rights organisations have previously documented forced recruitment and forced labour involving Rohingya in areas controlled by the Arakan Army, including in Buthidaung Township.
Those earlier findings do not independently establish that the people described in the latest accounts are being coerced or treated differently because they are Rohingya.
Questions over equal treatment
The latest accounts raise questions over whether Rohingya workers and volunteers receive the same pay, employment status and opportunities as other communities working under ULA/AA-administered institutions.
Further verification is needed to establish the employment categories involved, the official salary structure, whether participation is voluntary and whether Rohingya workers have access to formal positions on equal terms.
Rohingya Khobor is seeking clarification from the relevant ULA/AA authorities on teacher salaries, volunteer recruitment, work assignments and employment conditions in Buthidaung.
