Over 50 villagers from Thandwe Township’s Jade Taw Village staged a demonstration demanding the return of land which various government agencies confiscated years ago but still haven’t developed.
U Kyaw Zaw, who led the demonstration, said that nearly 1,000 acres of farmland in the villages of Jade Taw and Kyauk Ket were confiscated by an ex-Army General’s family and officials from the Navy and the Ministry of Livestock, Fisheries and Rural Development.
“Daw Marlar Tin, wife of former Army General U Khin Maung Than, confiscated 8.89 acres of mountain land near Jade Taw village in 2007 to construct a hotel there. But no project has been built on the plot yet, so we want our land back for the benefit of the villagers’ livelihoods,” said U Kyaw Zaw.
In addition, different units of the Burmese Navy confiscated 96.64 acres of land in Kyauk Ket Village prior to Burma’s transition to a quasi-civilian government in 2011. Finally, the Ministry of Livestock, Fisheries and Rural Development confiscated 6.53 acres of land in 2005.
“Only 20 acres of the confiscated land has been used by government agencies so far; that’s why we decided to hold a protest to demand the return of our land,” added U Kyaw Zaw.
The demonstration started at noon in Jade Taw Village and the protestors later marched to Mya Byint Village.
Ko Nay Zaw, a freelance journalist, said the villagers shouted slogans as they marched on a road that was flanked by banners criticizing the land confiscation.
Initially, the villagers decided to hold a demonstration in the nearby town of Thandwe—one of Burma’s largest seaports—but the authorities refused the villagers’ application to hold a demonstration there. The villagers then decided to demonstrate in their home villages because they received permission from local authorities to do so.
