Hundreds protest dam on Namtu River
More than 1,500 people
staged a protest on Sunday in northern Shan State’s Hsipaw Township, demanding
a halt to plans for a hydropower dam project.
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| Photo by SHRF- people stage a protest near Namtu River in Hsipaw Township on November 27. |
Protestors
included community activists, members of youth groups, women and politicians,
many of whom came from all corners of Shan State to gather at Ta Long village,
where the Upper Yeywa Dam project is slated to be built.
According to Sai
Thum Ai, a spokesperson for the Shan State Farmers’ Network (SSFN), the new hydropower
projects – the Upper Yeywa being one of four proposed to be constructed in northern Shan State – will offer no benefits to the public, but will only create problems.
“The companies
plan to finish building the Upper Yeywa Dam by 2018,” he said. “By that time, Ta
Long village will be under water.”
The proposed dam will create a 60-kilometer-long reservoir and flood up
to the town of Hsipaw, submerging villages and lands. About 650 villagers live
in Ta Long, an agricultural community renowned for its organic oranges,
according to the statement released on November 27.
The dam is due
to be built by: China’s Zhejiang Orient Engineering Co: the Yunnan Machinery
Import and Export Co; Lahmeyer International GmbH of Germany; Swiss company
Stucky SA; and a Japanese conglomerate called Toshiba Hydro Power (Hangzhou) Co
Ltd.
“The dam site and planned reservoir lie in an area of active conflict,
where the Burma Army has been launching offensives in the past few months
against ethnic resistance forces and committing grave human rights violations,
including the torture and killing of civilians,” reads the statement. “On
October 23, over 2,000 villagers fled from their homes after a Burma Army
attack only 20 kilometers east of Ta Long. The recent escalation of fighting in
northern Shan State during the past week has caused more IDPs to flee to Namtu.”
On June 3, Shan Herald reported that Burmese armed forces tortured and killed villagers near the Yeywa
dam site.
Environmentalist Sai Thum Ai said that after the 2010
election, investment increased in Shan State, but more people are struggling.
Many civilians’ lands have been confiscated, he said, while conflict is breaking
out all across Shan State.
“They [the NLD government]
did not solve our problems. On the other hand, they have created more problems
for people. If they build more dams, more people will suffer,” he said.
“We urge the
Shan State government and Union government to stop creating new [dam] projects.
The current projects should provide equality benefits for local people,” he
said. “We also urge the government to bring about an immediate end to the
fighting in northern Shan State.”
The SSFN also urged foreign firms involved in the Upper Yeywa Dam to
pull out immediately from this controversial project, saying they are complicit
in the Burmese army’s abusive military operations to secure the area. In
particular, the farmers group said, Stucky SA should withdraw, given
Switzerland’s proclaimed role as a “peace-builder” in Burma.
By Shan Herald Agency for News (SHAN)
Tags: Human Rights, News
