Chiang Mai (Mizzima) – Ninety-eight shop owners who had businesses in the Pyi Myanmar department store in Rangoon are seeking damages after the building’s owner, the Economics and Commerce Ministry, evicted them from the store.
The building has been auctioned and the shop owners were evicted on March 24.
The Economics and Commerce Ministry sold the seven-story building by tender to Myanmar Marketing Research and Development Co. Ltd. (MMRD) and AA Medical Product Co. Ltd. for 41 billion kyat (US$ 51 million) on March 24.
Because of the shop closures, about 300 employees were fired and the shop owners lost their investment in terms of renovation and other costs, shop owners said.
“If we were in other places, we would have already moved from our shops but here we spent a lot of money for renovation (interior decoration) and maintenance and had our businesses here for over 17 years. So we asked them to give us either damages or substitute shops. But we have not yet received anything from them,” said shop owner Soe Myint Aung.
Under a directive from the Economics and Commerce Ministry, the shops had to do major renovation and maintenance two times in 2005 and 2008. Shop owners are seeking damages of 98 million kyat (US$ 122,500) for 98 shops.
“We rented and ran our business here for over 17 years but now they evicted us and ordered us to move from our shops within two weeks. That’s hard to do,” said shop owner Tin Maung Htwe, who added that he has moved his belongings from the shop but he has not yet surrendered the shop to the ministry.
The two successful bidders were MMRD Co. Ltd. owned by Moe Kyaw and AA Medical Product Co. Ltd. owned by Zaw Moe Khaing.
The shop owners have submitted a petition to the President’s Office, the Rangoon Region government and the Economics and Commerce Ministry asking for damages and new shops.
Shop owners said about 35 domestic media reporters have interviewed them about the eviction but very little news has appeared in the local media so they are trying to gain attention through the exile media.
Myanmar Thamadi journal covered the story last week but the Economic and Commerce Ministry sent a warning to them and an objection, according to an account on Facebook by Myitmakha media.
The ministry started renting the shops in 1996 and reportedly earned more than 5 million kyat a month in rent, according to a letter sent to Mizzima by a committee of shop owners.
The letter said, “It is grossly unfair to give only 14 days notice for eviction from the premises when the shop owners have had businesses there for more than 16 years.”
