Villagers Ordered to Attend Kachin Dam Opening

Hundreds of local villagers were pressed to attend the opening of the Myitsone hydro power dam in Kachin State on Monday.  It's construction on the Irrawaddy River was widely opposed by locals and environmental groups.

The Myitsone dam, built by the China Power Investment Corporation, will produce 3,600 MW of power for export to China and is the first in a series of seven Chinese dams on the Irrawaddy and its main tributaries, according to Kachin environmental groups.

“Local villagers have made it clear that they do not want to move and do not accept this dam,” said Tsa Ji, the secretary of the Kachin Development Networking Group (KDNG), which has monitored developments at the dam site for the past three years.

“Yet, they are being forced to clap and cheer while the generals and their Chinese friends celebrate the construction of a dam that will flood their homes and destroy their lives forever,” Ji said. 

Many villagers were forcibly asked to greet the minister of Electric Power and minister of Energy during the ceremony on Monday at Lahpre village near Myitsone dam, sources said.

“We already reported to Naypyidaw that we did not want Myitsone dam. By doing this, they  show  they don't listen to us even though we repeatedly called to stop the dam,” said a villager in the Myitsone area.  

Leaders of the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO) called on Burma’s chief Snr-Gen Than Shwe and Chinese investors to halt the construction of the dam and prevent the forced displacement of 15,000 people.

“Villagers at least want compensation if they have to relocate,” said a KIO member in Myitkyina, the capital of Kachin State.  

Naw La, an environmental activist who works for KDNG, said about 40 villages will be flooded, and the  Kachin culture will be impacted.

Sai Sai, a coordinator of the Burma Rivers Network, said, “These dams threaten millions who rely on the Irrawaddy for fishing and farming, but no impact assessments have been done.”

The ceremony comes on the heels of a high-level visit by China’s Vice President Xi Jinping to Burma’s capital, Naypyidaw, on Sunday to discuss China’s expanding energy deals with its neighbor.