Khitar Non – The Tenasserim Division government has offered farmers whose land was confiscated only a single “house-hold plot” of land for every three acres of farmland seized by the divisional government. The farmland was seized by the Tenasserim government last year to construct the project, which is located in Dawei Town and includes a private hospital; government buildings; and some houses for locals.
Of the 300 acres of land seized, only 100 acres has been used for the project so far. The Tenasserim government is planning to give back the remaining 100 acres to farmers whose land was confiscated. However, the remaining land has been marked off in small “house-hold plots” equal to 40×60 ft. in size as part of the government’s re-distribution scheme.
Some farmers whose land was confiscated haven’t received their “house-hold plots” yet, which has led to many arguments with the authorities, according to U Tun Tun Win, chairman of the Dawei-based Farmers and Plantation Workers Union.
In an interview with IMNA, U Tun Tun Win said: “The farmers aren’t permitted to work on their old paddy fields. The farmers who lost their land have had it reassigned as ‘house-hold plots’ but the farmers do not accept this. They do not want their paddy field land reassigned.”
U Tun Tun Win also said that although the farmers sent a letter (along with a petition) to the relevant government department and President Thein Sein they haven’t received a response yet. He also told IMNA that “Today, about 30 farmers are sitting on the road. Some of them are afraid of having their land seized and have set up temporary makeshift huts where they are waiting, but no one from the government has come [today].”
One farmer who had his farmland confiscated, U Tin Maung, said that “It’s still good if we’re able to get back whatever we can, as we have already lost [the land], but it is sad for those farmers who lost their land and haven’t received any land in compensation.”
Last February, Burma’s parliament declared that the central government would resolve all land confiscations issues throughout the country by the end of September 2014.
