German Tourist Killed by Landmine in Myanmar’s Shan State

By Zarni Mann 27 November 2019

MANDALAY—A German tourist was killed and an Argentinian woman was hospitalized after the man drove over a landmine on a motorbike in Hsipaw Township, northern Shan State on Tuesday.

According to a local volunteer rescue group that responded to the incident, the two were traveling by motorcycle between Pan Nyaung Village and Kun Hauk Village about 25 kilometers west of Hsipaw Township. The road between the villages is so bumpy that the woman was forced to get off the bike and walk behind it. She was following on foot when the motorbike struck the landmine at about 5 p.m.

“The man was driving a motorcycle on the village track and rode over the landmine. He was in his 40s and suffered serious injuries to his chest, waist and leg. He died on the spot,” said Ko Myo of the group Hsipaw Social Volunteers Without Borders.

“The lady was walking behind the motorcycle and was not injured, but was left in a state of shock after the incident,” he added.

The area in which the two tourists were traveling is in northern Shan State, a region that is actively contested by various armed ethnic groups fighting the Myanmar military. Travel in the remote region around Hsipaw and Kyaukme townships is restricted, especially for foreign tourists, but its trails continue to attract hikers.

The volunteer group said the German man’s body was sent to a hospital in Hsipaw and the German Embassy in Yangon was informed.

“The embassy said its representatives will arrive today to make arrangements for both [tourists],” Ko Myo said.

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