• Burmese
Saturday, June 21, 2025
No Result
View All Result
NEWSLETTER
The Irrawaddy
25 °c
Yangon
  • Home
  • News
    • Burma
    • Politics
    • World
    • Asia
    • Myanmar’s Crisis & the World
    • Ethnic Issues
    • War Against the Junta
    • Junta Cronies
    • Conflicts In Numbers
    • Junta Watch
    • Fact Check
    • Investigation
    • Myanmar-China Watch
    • Obituaries
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Opinion
    • Commentary
    • Guest Column
    • Analysis
    • Editorial
    • Stories That Shaped Us
    • Letters
  • Junta Watch
  • Ethnic Issues
  • War Against the Junta
  • In Person
    • Interview
    • Profile
  • Books
  • Donation
  • Home
  • News
    • Burma
    • Politics
    • World
    • Asia
    • Myanmar’s Crisis & the World
    • Ethnic Issues
    • War Against the Junta
    • Junta Cronies
    • Conflicts In Numbers
    • Junta Watch
    • Fact Check
    • Investigation
    • Myanmar-China Watch
    • Obituaries
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Opinion
    • Commentary
    • Guest Column
    • Analysis
    • Editorial
    • Stories That Shaped Us
    • Letters
  • Junta Watch
  • Ethnic Issues
  • War Against the Junta
  • In Person
    • Interview
    • Profile
  • Books
  • Donation
No Result
View All Result
The Irrawaddy
No Result
View All Result
Home News Burma

Land Dispute Resolution Plagued by Graft: Lawmakers

May Sitt Paing by May Sitt Paing
May 29, 2015
in Uncategorized
Reading Time: 3 mins read
0 0
A A
Land Dispute Resolution Plagued by Graft: Lawmakers

Farmers tend to a paddy field in Irrawaddy Division. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy)

3k
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

RANGOON — Lawmakers have expressed concern that some low-level bureaucrats are misappropriating lands confiscated by the government that are supposed to be returned to their former owners—and in the process lining their own pockets.

The 2012 Vacant, Fallow and Virgin Lands Management Law requires local land use management committees, which are under the Union-level Central Land Use Management Committee, to handle the returning of confiscated lands to their claimants.

Under the law, government departments that have made land-grabs must return the lands through the respective land use management committees, which are formed with local officials of concerned General Administration Departments, and departmental personnel and lawmakers.

RelatedPosts

Chameleon Crony: How Myanmar’s ‘Baby’ Tycoon Thrived Across Four Eras

Chameleon Crony: How Myanmar’s ‘Baby’ Tycoon Thrived Across Four Eras

June 10, 2025
4.4k
The Hidden Costs of Relying on Chinese Military Hardware

The Hidden Costs of Relying on Chinese Military Hardware

May 30, 2025
1.6k
Naypyitaw Parliament Crumbles as Myanmar Junta’s Grand Ambitions Collapse 

Naypyitaw Parliament Crumbles as Myanmar Junta’s Grand Ambitions Collapse 

April 24, 2025
1.4k

The misappropriation, explained lawmaker Ye Htun from Hsipaw Township, occurs when land claimants do not have land ownership certificates and have only receipts for the taxes they have paid to the government for using the land. Land use management committees do not recognize those receipts, rendering those lands legally ownerless and allowing corrupt bureaucrats to instead grant ownership to other interested parties who pay them for a land title, he said.

“I have never heard of such corrupt staff members being punished, and in some cases [they] can cheat in line with law,” said Ye Htun.

During a parliamentary session this week, 27 lawmakers discussed actions taken by the Central Land Use management Committee in response to reports of a parliamentary Land Acquisition Investigation Commission.

The discussion called for providing fair compensation to those who do not get back their lands and the drafting of a law that ensures original landowners get back their lands and tackles corruption of low-level bureaucrats.

“Returned lands should really get back into the hands of their original land owners. Though the government [land use] committee said that they are returning [the lands], the situation is totally different on the ground. The government [land use] committee does not report that how much lands were confiscated from farmers,” said Lower House lawmaker Min Thu from Ottarathiri Township.

Lawmakers said that the report of the government’s central land use committee does not provide the name list of recipients of returned lands. They suggested holding a tripartite meeting between the Central Land Use management Committee, Parliament and farmers whose lands have been grabbed. They added that the report fails to mention the prosecuting and imprisonment of farmers who have been jailed in recent years for staging land-grab protests.

The parliamentary Central Land Use management Committee received 14,499 complaints of land-grabs between Nov. 11, 2013, and May 15, 2015. The Central Land Use management Committee has handled 7,697 of them and 6,802 remain unresolved, according to lawmakers.

Brig-Gen Kyaw Zan Myint, secretary of the Central Land Use management Committee and deputy minister for home affairs, acknowledged during a parliamentary session on Monday that land policy in Burma has proved fertile grounds for corruption.

“We’ll continue investigating the remaining cases. We have to be very careful because of ownership disputes. It is very complicated. … It is everyone’s knowledge that some are taking advantage of this [complicated situation].”

In Rangoon alone, there were 1,738 complaints about land-grabs between 2012 and March 2015, with 925 cases yet to be resolved.

“Farmers [in Rangoon] who filed complaints said that authorities have come to their places three or four times to investigate, but still they do not receive a response,” said Aung Thein Lin, a Lower House lawmaker from South Okkalapa Township.

“If [the committee] made public which complaints have been handled and how many acres have been returned, we’d be able to respond to victims,” he said.

On May 21, a 62-year-old man self-immolated in protest against the Burma Army’s confiscation of large areas of land in a village in Taunggyi, Shan State.

Land confiscations by the government have dogged Burma for decades but only in recent years, with the greater freedoms afforded by the quasi-civilian government, has the issue been brought to the fore.

Parliament’s Farmland Investigation Commission was established in 2012 to probe the issue and allow victims of land-grabs to lodge claims with the government.

Your Thoughts …
Tags: A_FactivaCorruptionParliament
May Sitt Paing

May Sitt Paing

The Irrawaddy

Similar Picks:

General Close to Myanmar Junta Boss Placed Under House Arrest, Interrogated for Corruption
Burma

General Close to Myanmar Junta Boss Placed Under House Arrest, Interrogated for Corruption

by The Irrawaddy
September 14, 2023
28.7k

The arrest of ‘kickback king’ Lt-Gen Moe Myint Tun, once seen as a possible successor to Min Aung Hlaing, comes...

Read moreDetails
Post-Coup Myanmar is a Family Business: Min Aung Hlaing & Co
Burma

Post-Coup Myanmar is a Family Business: Min Aung Hlaing & Co

by David Aung
February 8, 2024
17.9k

Min Aung Hlaing is an opportunistic businessman in military uniform and his children are more mercenary than the offspring of...

Read moreDetails
Myanmar Junta Reportedly Set to Prosecute High-Profile Businessmen for Corruption
Junta Cronies

Myanmar Junta Reportedly Set to Prosecute High-Profile Businessmen for Corruption

by The Irrawaddy
October 18, 2023
15.9k

Regime cronies Thein Win Zaw and Mu Mu Shein are set to follow former lieutenant general Moe Myint Tun as...

Read moreDetails
Unholy Alliance: Myanmar’s Mercedes Monks and the Men in Green
Commentary

Unholy Alliance: Myanmar’s Mercedes Monks and the Men in Green

by Aung Zaw
June 7, 2024
12.9k

Myanmar’s monks once led the fight against colonialism and dictatorship. Today, many prefer to collect fancy cars in return for...

Read moreDetails
By Almost Every Measure, Myanmar Junta Ranks Among World’s Worst Regimes
Analysis

By Almost Every Measure, Myanmar Junta Ranks Among World’s Worst Regimes

by Khin Nadi
February 2, 2024
10.8k

The Irrawaddy unpacks the regime’s three-year track record of violence and rights abuses, as assessed by leading global organizations and...

Read moreDetails
Planeload of Cronies Accompany Myanmar Junta Boss on Russia Trip
Business

Planeload of Cronies Accompany Myanmar Junta Boss on Russia Trip

by Hein Htoo Zan
March 7, 2025
10.7k

Regime-linked businessmen are set to cash in on deals flowing from the 10 agreements signed between Russia and the Myanmar...

Read moreDetails
Load More
Next Post
Govt Ministers Meet Ethnic Leaders in Lead-Up to Ceasefire Summit

Govt Ministers Meet Ethnic Leaders in Lead-Up to Ceasefire Summit

Blast from the Past a Window to the Present

Blast from the Past a Window to the Present

No Result
View All Result

Recommended

Myanmar Tourism Sector Mocks Junta’s Russia Tourist Drive

Myanmar Tourism Sector Mocks Junta’s Russia Tourist Drive

1 week ago
1.8k
Untested Commander Takes Charge as Myanmar Military Faces Toughest Challenge in Decades

Untested Commander Takes Charge as Myanmar Military Faces Toughest Challenge in Decades

1 week ago
1.8k

Most Read

  • Myanmar’s Aging Leaders Continue to Suffer in Junta Jails

    Myanmar’s Aging Leaders Continue to Suffer in Junta Jails

    shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Trade and Traffic from Thai Border Region Dwindle as Checkpoints Multiply

    shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Mon Groups Vow to Boost Attacks on Myanmar junta

    shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • The Lady Myanmar’s Generals Can’t Defeat

    shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Thai PM Faces Growing Calls to Quit in Cambodia Phone Row

    shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0

Newsletter

Get The Irrawaddy’s latest news, analyses and opinion pieces on Myanmar in your inbox.

Subscribe here for daily updates.

Contents

  • News
  • Politics
  • War Against the Junta
  • Myanmar’s Crisis & the World
  • Conflicts In Numbers
  • Junta Crony
  • Ethnic Issues
  • Asia
  • World
  • Business
  • Economy
  • Election 2020
  • Elections in History
  • Cartoons
  • Features
  • Opinion
  • Editorial
  • Commentary
  • Guest Column
  • Analysis
  • Letters
  • In Person
  • Interview
  • Profile
  • Dateline
  • Specials
  • Myanmar Diary
  • Women & Gender
  • Places in History
  • On This Day
  • From the Archive
  • Myanmar & COVID-19
  • Intelligence
  • Myanmar-China Watch
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Food
  • Fashion & Design
  • Videos
  • Photos
  • Photo Essay
  • Donation

About The Irrawaddy

Founded in 1993 by a group of Myanmar journalists living in exile in Thailand, The Irrawaddy is a leading source of reliable news, information, and analysis on Burma/Myanmar and the Southeast Asian region. From its inception, The Irrawaddy has been an independent news media group, unaffiliated with any political party, organization or government. We believe that media must be free and independent and we strive to preserve press freedom.

  • Copyright
  • Code of Ethics
  • Privacy Policy
  • Team
  • About Us
  • Careers
  • Contact
  • Burmese

© 2023 Irrawaddy Publishing Group. All Rights Reserved

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • News
    • Burma
    • Politics
    • World
    • Asia
    • Myanmar’s Crisis & the World
    • Ethnic Issues
    • War Against the Junta
    • Junta Cronies
    • Conflicts In Numbers
    • Junta Watch
    • Fact Check
    • Investigation
    • Myanmar-China Watch
    • Obituaries
  • Politics
  • Opinion
    • Commentary
    • Guest Column
    • Analysis
    • Editorial
    • Stories That Shaped Us
    • Letters
  • Ethnic Issues
  • War Against the Junta
  • In Person
    • Interview
    • Profile
  • Business
    • Economy
    • Business Roundup
  • Books
  • Donation

© 2023 Irrawaddy Publishing Group. All Rights Reserved

This website uses cookies. By continuing to use this website you are giving consent to cookies being used. Visit our Privacy and Cookie Policy.