Health impacts of "development" projects
Individual Documents
Description:
Dirty coal mining by military cronies & Thai companies, Ban Chaung, Dawei District, Myanmar.....Executive Summary: "This report was researched and written collaboratively by Dawei Civil Society Organizations and documents the environmental and social impacts of the Ban Chaung coal mining project in Dawei District of Myanmar?s Tanintharyi Region. Based on desk research, interviews with villagers, and direct engagement with companies and government, it exposes how the project was pushed ahead despite clear opposition from the local community. It documents the serious harm that has already been done to villagers? health, livelihoods, security, and way of life, and the devastating contamination of local rivers and streams. It calls for the suspension of Mayflower Mining Company?s permit and operations at Ban Chaung until this harm is remedied and the project is effectively evaluated, monitored, and regulated in compliance with Myanmar law and international best practice. It advocates that local villagers should be given the opportunity to take ownership of their own path to development. Formerly mired in conflict, resource-rich Tanintharyi Region is now opened up to foreign investment, and is threatened by a flood of dirty industrial projects including the massive Dawei Special Economic Zone (SEZ) and seven coal-fired power plants. Among these dirty projects is a coal mine in the Ban Chaung area of Dawei District. The project is located in a sensitive recent conflict zone, where administration and territory is contested between the Myanmar government and the ethnic armed resistance organization, the Karen National Union (KNU). Taking advantage of contested administration and weak governance in this area, Myanmar crony company Mayflower Mining used its high-level connections to begin coal mining operations without proper safeguards to protect human rights and the environment. The project was pushed ahead without an Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) and without the Free Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC) of local villagers. Mayflower Mining Company has a partnership with two companies from Thailand ? East Star Company and Thai Asset Mining Company ? that are operating on the ground in Ban Ban Chaung Coal Mining Report 2015 Chaung. Thai Asset has nearly completed building a road to transport Ban Chaung coal to the Theyet Chaung on the Tanintharyi coast, but its progress has been stalled due to a protest blockade by villagers. Meanwhile, East Star has already been operating a 60-acre open-pit mine at Khon Chaung Gyi village for more than three years, transporting nearly 500 tons of coal daily during the dry season according to local villagers. East Star has entered into a Joint Operating Agreement with Energy Earth Company, which will finance its mining operations and sell the coal on the market. May flower and its Thai partners plan to expand operations to mine for coal on at least 2,100 acres, threatening to take almost all of the local community?s agricultural land. Should it be allowed to expand, Ban Chaung coal mining would severely damage the health and livelihoods of approximately 16,000 villagers in the area, most of whom belong to the Karen ethnic group, and rely on fishing and farming. Indeed, many villagers are already suffering from increased pollution of air and water resources and land confiscations, of once productive agricultural land. East Star Company has dumped mining waste directly into the streams, causing fish to die off and local people to fall sick with troubling skin diseases. Uncontrolled coal fires, spontaneously combusting in waste and storage piles, have caused breathing problems in the community. An influx of outsiders along with the presence of the Myanmar military means local people no longer feel safe in their own villages. The project threatens the entire way of life of the indigenous Karen people of Ban Chaung, who have had their land passed down to them for generations. Although local people are overwhelmingly opposed to coal mining in their area, they were never given the chance to voice their concerns; only learning about the project once the bulldozers started digging on their land. Now, Ban Chaung villagers have joined together to challenge irresponsible coal mining in their area, and to call for alternative, democratic, and inclusive development in Tanintharyi Region."
Source/publisher:
Tarkapaw Youth Group, Dawei Development Association (DDA), and the Tenasserim River & Indigenous People Networks (Trip Net)
Date of publication:
2015-10-00
Date of entry/update:
2015-11-06
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Coal mining, Business and Human Rights (Burma/Myanmar-related), Metal mining and other extractive operations, Health impacts of "development" projects, Rights of indigenous peoples - Burma/Myanmar
Language:
Burmese (မြန်မာဘာသာ), English
Format :
pdf pdf
Size:
3.91 MB 3.9 MB
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Description:
Dirty coal mining by military cronies & Thai companies,
Ban Chaung, Dawei District, Myanmar.....Executive Summary: "This report was researched and written collaboratively by Dawei Civil Society Organizations
and documents the environmental and social impacts of the Ban Chaung coal mining project
in Dawei District of Myanmar?s Tanintharyi Region. Based on desk research, interviews
with villagers, and direct engagement with companies and government, it exposes how
the project was pushed ahead despite clear opposition from the local community. It
documents the serious harm that has already been done to villagers? health, livelihoods,
security, and way of life, and the devastating contamination of local rivers and streams.
It calls for the suspension of Mayflower Mining Company?s permit and operations at Ban
Chaung until this harm is remedied and the project is effectively evaluated, monitored, and
regulated in compliance with Myanmar law and international best practice. It advocates
that local villagers should be given the opportunity to take ownership of their own path to
development.
Formerly mired in conflict, resource-rich Tanintharyi Region is now opened up to foreign
investment, and is threatened by a flood of dirty industrial projects including the massive
Dawei Special Economic Zone (SEZ) and seven coal-fired power plants. Among these dirty
projects is a coal mine in the Ban Chaung area of Dawei District. The project is located in a
sensitive recent conflict zone, where administration and territory is contested between the
Myanmar government and the ethnic armed resistance organization, the Karen National
Union (KNU).
Taking advantage of contested administration and weak governance in this area, Myanmar
crony company Mayflower Mining used its high-level connections to begin coal mining
operations without proper safeguards to protect human rights and the environment. The
project was pushed ahead without an Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA)
and without the Free Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC) of local villagers.
Mayflower Mining Company has a partnership with two companies from Thailand ? East
Star Company and Thai Asset Mining Company ? that are operating on the ground in Ban
Ban Chaung Coal Mining Report 2015
Chaung. Thai Asset has nearly completed building a road to transport Ban Chaung coal
to the Theyet Chaung on the Tanintharyi coast, but its progress has been stalled due to a
protest blockade by villagers. Meanwhile, East Star has already been operating a 60-acre
open-pit mine at Khon Chaung Gyi village for more than three years, transporting nearly 500
tons of coal daily during the dry season according to local villagers. East Star has entered
into a Joint Operating Agreement with Energy Earth Company, which will
finance its mining
operations and sell the coal on the market. May
flower and its Thai partners plan to expand
operations to mine for coal on at least 2,100 acres, threatening to take almost all of the
local community?s agricultural land.
Should it be allowed to expand, Ban Chaung coal mining would severely damage the health
and livelihoods of approximately 16,000 villagers in the area, most of whom belong to the
Karen ethnic group, and rely on
fishing and farming. Indeed, many villagers are already
suffering from increased pollution of air and water resources and land confiscations, of
once productive agricultural land. East Star Company has dumped mining waste directly
into the streams, causing
fish to die off
and local people to fall sick with troubling skin
diseases. Uncontrolled coal
fires, spontaneously combusting in waste and storage piles,
have caused breathing problems in the community. An influx of outsiders along with the
presence of the Myanmar military means local people no longer feel safe in their own
villages. The project threatens the entire way of life of the indigenous Karen people of Ban
Chaung, who have had their land passed down to them for generations.
Although local people are overwhelmingly opposed to coal mining in their area, they were
never given the chance to voice their concerns; only learning about the project once the
bulldozers started digging on their land. Now, Ban Chaung villagers have joined together
to challenge irresponsible coal mining in their area, and to call for alternative, democratic,
and inclusive development in Tanintharyi Region."
Source/publisher:
Tarkapaw Youth Group, Dawei Development Association (DDA), and the Tenasserim River & Indigenous People Networks (Trip Net)
Date of publication:
2015-10-00
Date of entry/update:
2015-11-06
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Coal mining, Business and Human Rights (Burma/Myanmar-related), Metal mining and other extractive operations, Health impacts of "development" projects, Rights of indigenous peoples - Burma/Myanmar
Language:
English, Burmese (မြန်မာဘာသာ)
Format :
pdf pdf
Size:
3.9 MB 3.91 MB
more
Description:
Conclusion:
"The displacement in Thilawa took place amid a broader
climate of state-sponsored abuse in Burma, where
people have no recourse to challenge illegal government
action. Specifically, the displacement process in Thilawa
violated residents? human rights, negatively affected
their ability to provide for themselves, and resulted in
deteriorating food security and limited ability to access
health care. The TSEZMC will relocate 846 more
households when development begins on phase two of
the project. If the TSEZMC, the Burmese government,
and JICA continue to operate as they did in the first
phase of the project, these households will suffer the
same fate.
Burma requires economic development, but given the
historical context of forced displacement, impunity for
human rights violations, weak rule of law, and
corruption, there is great risk that economic
development projects will benefit a select few in power
at the expense of deepened deprivation and poverty for
many others. Although the results of this survey cannot
be generalized for the country as a whole, the survey
does highlight risks inherent to any major development
project in Burma. Having recently emerged from more
than 50 years of military dictatorship, it will take time
and commitment to build a strong civil society that is
capable of educating people in Burma about their rights.
Residents generally fear their government, which for
decades has controlled the population by force. The
government has yet to implement sufficient
mechanisms to protect people from human rights
abuses and ensure justice for victims.
Given this context, any development project in the
country carries great risk of human rights violations.
JICA and other organizations implementing such
projects should make every effort to proactively identify
the potential negative outcomes and consult with the
affected community about how best to minimize or
eliminate these risks. The Thilawa case suggests that
foreign organizations cannot rely on the Burmese
government to protect the human rights of forcibly displaced
populations..."
Andrea Gittleman, Widney Brown
Source/publisher:
Physicians for Human Rights
Date of publication:
2014-11-00
Date of entry/update:
2014-11-18
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Burma/Myanmar: "Development"-induced displacement, Other Special Economic Zones, Health impacts of "development" projects
Language:
English, Japanese
Format :
pdf pdf
Size:
571.51 KB 333.7 KB
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