The Shwe Gas Movement (SGM) strongly opposes a November decision by the Korean government to reject an international human rights complaint lodged against Korean-owned pipeline project in Burma, says a statement released by the group on Tuesday.
In both the statement and an interview IMNA on the same day, SGM’s Global Coordinator Wong Aung charged the Korean corporations – and by extension the Korean government – of complicity with abuses committed by the junta in pipeline areas.
“Daewoo and KOGAS are now on notice and will be held responsible for social and environmental abuses committed by Burmese junta against local communities in pipeline area,” reads the statement. “Today, they are aligning themselves with the brutal military junta and against the people of Burma.”
The complaint, which was filed with the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) by Earth Rights International, charged the Korean companies with violating six OECD Guidelines: failing to respect human rights, contributing to forced labor, failing to promote sustainable development, failing to disclose information about the project, failing to consult with local populations and failing to conduct an Environmental Impact Assessment.
“The Korean government has decided to ignore the reality of major resource extraction projects in Burma and the specific devastating effects of the Shwe project on the people in the pipeline regions,” reads the SGM statement, released on Tuesday. “In rejecting the complaint they are abdicating their responsibility to investigate violations and mediate disputes in line with the Guidelines; guidelines to which they have agreed to be obligated.”
Though the project is still in its early stages, Wong Aung said that abuses had already began. “Over 30 villagers mostly from Sittwe were arrested last April and May, just for expressing their opinions about exploring for gas in their area,” he told IMNA.
Villagers economic livelihoods have also been undermined, added Wong Aung. “The villagers who depend on fishing are facing difficulties because the companies don't allow them near the ocean drilling sites.”
The gas project has also cause the area to be increasingly militarized, Wong Aung told IMNA, and the number of army battalions posted in the area has increased has more than doubled in the last fifteen years, to over 60.
“The Shwe project has already lead to forced relocations, beatings, intimidation and other abuses against people and communities in the project areas and against local populations expressing opposition to the project,” reads the SGM press release. “If this project moves forward, we can expect to see these abuses increase exponentially.”
According to Ko Htoo Chit, director of Grassroots Human Rights Education and Development, the abuses related to the Shwe project will be similar to those documented near the Kanbauk gas pipelines in Tenesserim Division. “Villagers were forced to work for no pay and relocate their homes. The environment was destroyed,” said Ko Htoo Chit.
According to extensive documentation compiled by Earth Rights International and other human rights organizations, the Kanbauk pipelines resulted in extensive land and crop confiscation, as well as the use of forced labor and military portering. Abuses such as arbitrary arrest and torture were also documented, as well as sexual violence against women.
Though the human rights impacts of the Shwe Gas project threaten to mimic those of the Kanbauk pipelines, Ko Htoo Chit noted one important difference: For victims of the Kanbauk pipeline, proximity to the Thai border at least offered a chance to escape. Victims of the Shwe Gas project, especially those located in Arakan State which borders only the Bay of Bengla, will have no where to go.
