Myanmar govt to compensate villagers for loss of land over Kyaukphyu SEZ

16 February 2020
Myanmar govt to compensate villagers for loss of land over Kyaukphyu SEZ
A sign marking the location of an underground gas pipeline along a rice paddy in Kyaukphyu, Rakhine State. Photo: Ye Aung Thu/AFP

A Myanmar government official says the government will pay compensation to local residents for more than 1,800 acres they have had to forfeit for the construction of the Chinese-supported Kyaukphyu Special Economic Zone in Rakhine State, according to RFA.

Much of the land for the SEZ is being confiscated and the local residents are calling for compensation, according to the report.

Myanmar’s Deputy Minister for Commerce Aung Htoo told parliament this week that compensation will be given to residents for the China-backed project in Rakhine, much like compensation is awarded to those who lost land to the Thilawa SEZ.

The amount of compensation has not been publicly announced. In the case of the Japan-backed Thilawa SEZ, local residents continue to dispute the deal they were awarded for the loss of land. The track record of compensation in the country falls short of adequate, according to reports.

The Kyaukphyu SEZ  in Rakhine part of the China-Myanmar Economic Corridor and the China Belt and Road Initiative being rolled out at great expense by Beijing.