Yangon farmers protest land dispute

Yangon farmers protest land dispute

By Su Phyo Win   |   Monday, 08 July 2013

More than 300 farmers demonstrated outside the offices of four companies in East Dagon township last week about the confiscation of more than 1770 acres of land in 2008.

Farmers protest over a land dispute in East Dagon township. Photo: Zarni Phyo

The land, which was seized from 351 farmers, was ostensibly to be used for a contract farming project.

The farmers, from Htaung Ta Lote, Sit Pin, Thone Khwa and Ywar Thar Gyi villages in East Dagon township, protested outside the offices of Dagon International, Yuzana, Myint Zeya and Sin Shweli special rice companies.

The protesters held signboards with slogans calling on the government to settle land disputes quickly, and asking for the end to legal action against farmers by companies that occupy the land, which has been seized under the military regime.

Farmer U Tin Aye, who had 30 acres of land confiscated, said people in the area were deceived.

"When President U Thein Sein was prime minister, he came to us with the four companies and said that they would do contract farming with us," he said, "which would provide us with interest-free loans and also technological and technical support."

He added that U Thein Sein had told farmers that their land would not be confiscated. And yet within one month "we were kicked off our land and have not been able to return until now", said U Tin Aye. He added that his land had been seized by Sin Shweli Company.

Several farmers who took part in the protest told The Myanmar Times that the confiscation had left them with no hope because they had few other career options.

"We hope to rebuild our lives, after years of living on nothing," said U Tin Sein, whose 10 acres were seized by Yuzana.

"We want our land back so that we can return to work. We just want a fair resolution of this conflict," he said.

With a number of major companies recently announcing that they would return seized lands to its original owners – including Htoo Group and Max Myanmar – farmers across the country are stepping up efforts to get fair compensation or have their land returned.

"We heard that Max Myanmar already paid compensation of K2.8 million an acre, and at South Dagon they are negotiating with farmers," said U Tin Win, an organiser of the protest whose 40 acres were appropriated in Htaung Ta Lote village. "We hope that [the four companies] will come to us and negotiate. The last time that we tried to negotiate with the companies, we asked for K3.5 million an acre but the companies did not respond.

"If the companies don't want to pay compensation, we want our land back."

Spokespersons for the companies said the land had been officially handed to them by the government, and they had borne the financial risk of contract farming the land. As a result, they said during a meeting with the farmers and the national parliament's land dispute investigation commission that they have no intention of returning the land.

U Khine Maung Yi, a member of the commission, said the companies had lost money from the contract farming.

"When we were negotiating with the companies they said that they had made losses through contract farming because the farmers never paid back their loans," he said. "And because the government officially gave the companies the right to farm the land, the companies say they cannot return it."

But U Hlaing, who also lost 40 acres to Sin Shweli after trying to do contract farming for two years, said few farmers were ever likely to succeed under the agreements they were forced to sign.

"Only a few farmers owned machinery and the company made the farmers pay back 10 baskets of rice for each acre as the rental fee," he said. "And we had to pay back the loans too."

U Khine Maung Yi said the military government had tried to use contract farming to boost agriculture production by mechanising farming, adding that the farmers should be asking the government for compensation – not the companies.

"If land is confiscated for a project that fails, then the land should be returned. But the government should manage this problem."

Source: http://www.news.myanmaronlinecentre.com/2013/07/09/yangon-farmers-protest-land-dispute/