Narinjara News, July 17, 2025 

The Arakan People's Revolutionary Government's health ministry, led by the ULA/AA, said today that locally made alcohol in Arakan State has 5% to 12% methanol content.

Because these alcohols are not methodically distilled, they might be lethal.

Today, July 16, the Arakan People's Revolutionary Government's health department published this in an article titled "Alcohol is not a drinkable alcohol. It is a poison." "The 'rural' alcohol that people in the countryside drink is not systematically distilled and contains 5-12 percent of the poisonous methanol," the article states.

The people of Rakhine are drinking rice alcohol, coconut alcohol, and some wine that are being sold locally because the AA in Rakhine has outlawed the importation of alcohol from Burma proper, including Yangon.

To ascertain the healthiness of the alcohol made in the area, the Health Department of the Revolutionary Government of the Rakhine People carried out field experiments.

Furthermore, the alcohol produced is said to have a high concentration of methanol, which may be deadly.

Additionally, it is said that consuming alcohol with too much methanol for three months can result in liver cirrhosis and early death.

It is also said that vomiting blood, blackening of the abdomen, and complete brittleness of the liver, which cannot be cured, are symptoms.

Additionally, the methanol in BE alcohol, which is produced by diluting BE oil, can lead to liver injury and premature death. ‎

The Rakhine Public Health Department's advice against drinking alcohol is a positive step, according to a young man from Rakhine.

There are many kinds of alcohol available today, and they are combined in a variety of ways. It is established that certain alcoholic beverages can be combined with alcohol spirits. This is really dangerous. Drinking these things is very risky for the Rakhine people, he said.

Furthermore, the article notes that pricey alcoholic beverages made in Myanmar are not entirely methanol-free.

Since December 2024, when the Rakhine People's Revolutionary Government imposed a ban on the sale and use of foreign and local alcoholic beverages in Rakhine, rice alcohol (rural alcohol) and coconut alcohol (coconut liquor) have dominated the area's markets.

As a result, the young man emphasized the need for the government to systematically prepare and routinely supervise the individuals producing alcohol locally.

Wine costs approximately twenty thousand kyats, coconut alcohol costs around ten and a half thousand kyats, and rice alcohol costs over ten thousand kyats per liter in Rakhine.

The Arakan Public Health Department's article goes on to say that the methanol-laced alcohol that is readily available in the region is not at all "alcohol" that people may drink; rather, if consumed, it will become totally (absolutely) poisonous.

Only a little amount of alcohol can quickly induce nausea, vomiting, headaches, and blurred vision, as well as cause permanent brain injury and blindness. Additionally, it is said that alcohol spirits use can be fatal.