In a major development, rights groups are calling for a halt to the construction of five dams planned for the Salween River in eastern Myanmar, also known as Burma. The groups are citing rights abuses due to the forced relocation of thousands of people from their homes. Sai Sai, a spokesman for the Salween Watch Coalition, says:

"Even though the construction of the dams is just beginning with a survey, the military has forced people out of their homes. Over 70,000 people – including indigenous people – have already been relocated from their home towns. The affected people in Burma have not been consulted on the dam construction."

The group also accuses the military government of failing to undertake the projects transparently or being accountable to local communities. Sai Sai says the groups want the government to halt the projects until a democratically elected government is in place.

Controversial pipeline project

Activists have also targeted China for its support and investment in the construction of a 980 kilometer gas and oil pipeline. The Shwe gas pipeline project runs from Myanmar’s western Rakhine (Arakan) state to China’s Yunnan province.

The pipeline, once operating, will transfer oil shipped from the Middle East and Africa together with natural gas from the Shwe gas fields off the coast of Rakhine.

A spokesperson for a rights group, the Alternative ASEAN Network, Debbie Stothardt says the energy projects have led to thousands of people being displaced. Furthermore the militarization in the region has increased.

"People often overlook the economic costs of human rights violations," says Stothardt. "In the case of the Shwe gas twin pipelines, which are going to slice throughout the length of Burma, it is pretty clear that those long-term and midterm economic costs are going to be very high, not just in Burma but on the entire region."

Concern about ethnic minorities

The threat of increasing militarization is also affecting the ethnic communities in the far east of Myanmar. The Burma Environmental Group, in a recent report, warned more troops were being sent to minority areas and many people were being forced "to abandon their homes and livelihoods without any compensation, together with facing human rights abuses."

Saw Paul Sein Twa is the director of the Karen Environmental and Social Action Network. The group includes representatives from the Kachin, Karen, Lahu, and Shan ethnic communities in Myanmar.

"The path that the military government is taking us on leads to environmental problems," Sein Twa contends. "It leads us towards a crisis and will further marginalize our ethnic people in the rural areas. Many people are in refugee camps, and more than 8,000 people in one area are facing starvation."

The report also accuses the military of abuses through beatings, killings and sexual violence in project areas. Rights groups fear the military will continue to refuse local communities the right to be involved in decision making, which might well lead to more environmental damage surrounding the project zones.

Author: Ron Corben (Bangkok)
Editor: Grahame Lucas