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Rice paddies seized for Thilawa SEZ
Thousands of acres of rice fields in the Thilawa Special Economic Zone (SEZ) project area near Rangoon are being confiscated by junta authorities leaving thousands of farmers landless, reports Chai Sayam from the border:
No.06 - 3/2007
14 March 2007
Human Rights
Rice paddies seized for Thilawa SEZ
Thousands of acres of rice fields in the Thilawa Special Economic Zone (SEZ) project area near Rangoon are being confiscated by junta authorities leaving thousands of farmers landless, reports Chai Sayam from the border:
The seized land is being sold to Chinese, Japanese and Indian investors by auction. Junta announcements have also promised a round-the-clock water and power supply to the entrepreneurs.
Land seized by authorities covers adjoining areas of Syriam (Thanlyin) and Kyauktan townships southeast of Rangoon. One paddy field owner, Daw San Yi, 54, who lived at Bogyoke village in Syriam, took suicide by leaping into a reservoir near her home on 6 March after losing her land.
According to Xinhua, 2 November 2006, the Thilawa SEZ, designed by Chinese experts, covers an area of 12.8 square kilometers (3,200 acres).
Villagers tortured for "not seeing" the rebels