Myanmar: Thousands flee fighting near site of dam backed by Thailand

Myanmar: Thousands flee fighting near site of dam backed by Thailand

AS MANY as 10,000 people in Kayin State in Myanmar have been displaced due
to fighting over the Hat Gyi Dam construction site, as plans move forward to
begin building on the Salween River.

Activists have reported a human rights crisis in the area as more than 1,000
refugees have been trapped in two small villages near the border with
Thailand and lack proper housing, basic facilities and food.

Fighting erupted last month between the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army
(DKBA) insurgent group and the government-affiliated Border Guard Force
(BGF) in an area opposite Mae Tha Waw in Tak's Tha Song Yang district (Kayin
State was formerly known as Karen State after the ethnic group that have
long inhabited that area).

Karen Cultural and Development Centre director Surapong Kongchantuk said
thousands of people had been forced to leave their homes and were struggling
to survive in wartime conditions without substantial aid from international
human rights organisations.

"My co-workers have found two villages that were packed with crowds of
refugees. They have to live in temporary shelters made from bamboo and tent
fabric. They are unable to sustain themselves and have no access to
fundamental services," Surapong said.

He said most of the refugees were women and children, many of whom were
babies who needed proper food. At present, the refugees only food supply is
rice and salt contributed by outside aid.

"The villages heavily depended on help from volunteer groups. My co-workers
were there to help refugees with food and supplements from Thailand. Our
team also has medical personnel, who can perform basic health checks and
provide medical advice to the refugees, but that is all that we can do," he
said.

Meanwhile, a Karen volunteer in the area who asked not to be named said many
people had tried to flee to Thailand but were barred at the border, although
some Myanmar nationals had managed to cross into the Kingdom.

"The refugees have nowhere to go. They cannot go forward and they cannot
return. Right now people in Naw Tak and Htee Thay Kee village survive just
because of our help," the source said.

"There is still no humanitarian aid from any official agency or
international organisation. These people are in a very desperate situation."

The source added that people could not forage for food in the forest because
of landmines in the area that have killed and injured many people.

She said many of the refugees told her they had fled from the Hat Gyi Dam
construction area, which had become a battleground between the DKBA and BGF,
with some walking for almost 24 hours to seek safety.

"We estimate that as many as 10,000 people were affected by the fighting to
secure the dam construction site and we believe that there are many more
villages that are crowded with refugees in other areas," she said.

"The people want peace more than anything."

Surapong urged stakeholders, such as Thailand's EGAT International (EGATi),
the main investor in the dam project, to work together to stop the
bloodshed.

EGATi is one of four investors of the project, along with China's Sinohydro
Corporation, Myanmar's Ministry of Electric Power and the International
Group of Entrepreneurs. EGATi has an estimated Bt100 billion investment.

Hat Gyi Dam, sited on the Salween 47 kilometres downstream from Ban Sop Moei
in Mae Hong Son, is supposed to produce 1,360 megawatts of electricity.

Under the project proposal Thailand would import electricity generated at
the dam, as well as irrigation water to fill Bhumipol Dam for drought
relief.

Surapong said fighting was spurred by an effort to clear the area of DKBA
influence to establish a safe zone for dam construction.

"Not only is there the humanitarian crisis caused by the dam construction,
if the dam is built, large areas will be flooded and large numbers of people
displaced forever. Areas in Thailand will be affected as well, including Ban
Sop Moei," he said.

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Ref:
http://www.nationmultimedia.com/national/Thousands-flee-fighting-near-site-o
f-dam-backed-by-30297474.html

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John Diecker
APT Consulting Group Co., Ltd.

www.aptthailand.com