• Burmese
Saturday, July 12, 2025
No Result
View All Result
NEWSLETTER
The Irrawaddy
29 °c
Ashburn
  • 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

Letpadaung Farmers’ Crop Compensation Demands Denied

Thu Zar by Thu Zar
January 27, 2016
in Uncategorized
Reading Time: 2 mins read
0 0
A A
Letpadaung Farmers’ Crop Compensation Demands Denied

Locals look out at mounds of dirt piled at the Letpadaung copper mine project in May 2014. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy)

3.6k
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

RANGOON — The Chinese firm Wanbao’s Burma subsidiary has reportedly told locals in the Letpadaung mine area that it has no plan to compensate them further, after hundreds of would-be farmers sought payment for crops forgone last year due to the project.

On Tuesday, responsible officials from Wanbao and Sagaing Division’s security and border affairs minister, Col. Kyaw Thant Naing, told the locals that compensation would not be provided in lieu of the money that a 2015 harvest might have yielded, according to Mar Mar Cho, a resident of Tonywa village.

The controversial copper mine is a joint-venture between Myanmar Wanbao Mining Copper Limited and the Burma Army-owned Union of Myanmar Economic Holdings Ltd. (UMEHL).

RelatedPosts

Plundering Paradise: China’s Role in Myanmar’s Environmental Crisis

Plundering Paradise: China’s Role in Myanmar’s Environmental Crisis

January 24, 2025
1.7k
Bitter Harvest for Rakhine Rice Farmers

Bitter Harvest for Rakhine Rice Farmers

December 20, 2024
1.5k
Junta Boss Grabs China’s Lifeline; Crackdown on Draft Dodgers; and More

Junta Boss Grabs China’s Lifeline; Crackdown on Draft Dodgers; and More

November 9, 2024
2.1k

Affected farmers, many of whom have not accepted compensation for their confiscated lands, were given recompense for their crops ranging from between 200,000 kyats (US$154) and 400,000 kyats per acre in December 2014, after Wanbao had fenced off their lands.

Since December of last year, locals have similarly been demanding a year’s compensation for crops for 2015, as well as jobs. They are seeking payment for the crops that they would otherwise have grown on their land if it had not been confiscated and fenced off.

“Around 300 locals met the responsible person of Wanbao and the security and border affairs minister. They said they would not pay compensation because there was no crop grown on the farmlands,” Mar Mar Cho told The Irrawaddy.

“How can we grow crops while they have forcibly fenced off our farmlands since last year? Since the last rainy season, we asked them to let us grow on our lands. But we could not as they did not allow it,” she added. “Now, we are arguing with them as they say they will not pay compensation because we did not grow crops.”

Asked by The Irrawaddy whether the company planned to offer compensation, Dong Yunfei, a manager of Myanmar Wanbao Mining Copper Limited in Rangoon, told The Irrawaddy on Tuesday that it would depend on the decision of the Burmese government.

“We have no plan to give compensation for this. It is the responsibility of the government to handle this. I think the government has not made a decision yet. Only after the government has made a decision, we’ll act on it,” Dong Yunfei told The Irrawaddy.

The Letpadaung copper mine is being implemented on more than 7,000 acres of land, and the former owners of two-thirds of seized farmlands in the area have refused to take compensation for the acreage confiscated.

Locals from 10 villages within the copper mine area have been demanding compensation for forgone crops since last December and 65 of them, including Mar Mar Cho, have been charged with Article 18 of Burma’s Peaceful Assembly Law.

Long-standing local opposition to the project prompted Wanbao to rejigger its arrangement with the government in 2013, in an attempt to assuage the concerns of affected populations. Under revised terms, the company agreed to pay 51 percent of profits to the Burmese government, and contribute $2 million annually toward programs aimed at addressing environmental concerns posed by the project, as well as 2 percent of net profits toward corporate social responsibility initiatives benefitting affected communities.

Those moves have not been enough to quell lingering resentment, however, a fact tragically highlighted by the death of Khin Win, a woman in her 50s who was killed in December 2014 when police opened fire on farmers who were protesting efforts by Wanbao to fence in their farmland as part of the project.

Your Thoughts …
Tags: A_FactivaAgricultureNatural Resources
Thu Zar

Thu Zar

Similar Picks:

Struggling to Control Rice Prices, Myanmar Junta Orders Sellers to Register Warehouses
Business

Struggling to Control Rice Prices, Myanmar Junta Orders Sellers to Register Warehouses

by The Irrawaddy
July 5, 2024
3.1k

The move is aimed at stabilizing prices, the Commerce Ministry said, warning legal action against those who fail to comply.

Read moreDetails
Junta Boss Grabs China’s Lifeline; Crackdown on Draft Dodgers; and More
Junta Watch

Junta Boss Grabs China’s Lifeline; Crackdown on Draft Dodgers; and More

by The Irrawaddy
November 9, 2024
2.1k

Also this week, Min Aung Hlaing touted Myanmar as solution to global food insecurity amid UN warning of famine.

Read moreDetails
Price Controls Trigger Turmoil in Myanmar’s Rice Market
Business

Price Controls Trigger Turmoil in Myanmar’s Rice Market

by The Irrawaddy
August 29, 2023
2.1k

Junta’s latest effort to control soaring food inflation suffers pushback from wholesalers.

Read moreDetails
Farmers in Myanmar’s Mon State Warn of Severe Decline in Monsoon Harvest
Burma

Farmers in Myanmar’s Mon State Warn of Severe Decline in Monsoon Harvest

by Mi Ei Thinzar Myint
June 24, 2024
1.8k

High costs, a shortage of workers and the lack of loans are forcing farmers to reduce the amount of land...

Read moreDetails
Plundering Paradise: China’s Role in Myanmar’s Environmental Crisis
Guest Column

Plundering Paradise: China’s Role in Myanmar’s Environmental Crisis

by Vaishali Basu Sharma
January 24, 2025
1.7k

China’s aggressive resource extraction in Myanmar is leaving a trail of environmental destruction and debt dependency in its wake, warns...

Read moreDetails
Inspiring Women of Burma  
Burma

Inspiring Women of Burma  

by The Irrawaddy
March 18, 2016
33.6k

The contributions of some of Burma’s leading female figures are highlighted in the final part of a series that ran...

Read moreDetails
Load More
Next Post
NLD Creates Parliamentary Affairs Committee from Among Its Ranks

NLD Creates Parliamentary Affairs Committee from Among Its Ranks

Thousands Homeless After Demolition in Rangoon

Thousands Homeless After Demolition in Rangoon

No Result
View All Result

Recommended

‘Reforms Are Not Optional’: Prominent Activist Urges NUG to Act Before It’s Too Late

‘Reforms Are Not Optional’: Prominent Activist Urges NUG to Act Before It’s Too Late

2 days ago
1k
Trump’s Tariffs to Hit Myanmar’s Garment Manufacturers Hard

Trump’s Tariffs to Hit Myanmar’s Garment Manufacturers Hard

3 days ago
1k

Most Read

  • Chinese Investment Reshapes Myanmar’s N. Shan as MNDAA Consolidates Power

    Chinese Investment Reshapes Myanmar’s N. Shan as MNDAA Consolidates Power

    shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Myanmar Junta Deploying Conscripts in Major Push to Reclaim Lost Territory

    shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Myanmar Junta Chief Thanks Trump for Shutting Down VOA and RFA

    shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • KIA Denies Rumor Chief Under House Arrest in China

    shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • ‘Not a Witch Hunt’: Upholding Survivor-Centered Justice in Myanmar

    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.