Pinpet Mountain under imminent threat
as iron project speeds ahead....
"Excavation of Burma’s second largest iron deposit located
in southern Shan State is imminent as bulldozers begin
preparatory clearing on the iconic Pinpet Mountain, home
to 7,000 people. The 300 residents in Pang Ngo village are
in immediate danger from falling rocks and landslides as
machines uproot trees, clear brush and remove top soil on
the west side of the mountain. Farm fi elds at the foot of the
mountain may be covered with toxic waste soils once the

Myanmar/Burma:-
Mine Ban Treaty status: Not a State Party...
Pro-mine ban UNGA voting
record:
Abstained on Resolution 66/29 in December 2011, as
in previous years...
Participation in Mine Ban
Treaty meetings:
Attended the Eleventh Meeting of States Parties in
Phnom Penh in November–December 2011...
Key developments: Foreign Minister stated Myanmar is considering
accession to the Mine Ban Treaty. President Thein
Sein requested assistance for clearance of mines.

Summary:
"• Although Burma is rich in energy resources, the ruling military regime exports those
resources, leaving people with chronic energy shortages. The exploitation of natural
resources, including through mining, has caused severe environmental and social
impacts on local communities as companies that invest in these projects have no
accountability to affected communities.
• There are over 16 large-scale coal deposits in Burma, with total coal resources of over

Shwe Pipeline Brings Land Confiscation, Militarization and Human Rights Violations to the Ta’ang People.
The Ta’ang Students and Youth Organization (TSYO) released a report today called “Pipeline Nightmare” that illustrates how the Shwe Gas and Oil Pipeline project, which will transport oil and gas across Burma to China, has resulted in the confiscation of people’s lands, forced labor, and increased military presence along the pipeline, affecting thousands of people.

Only 40 kms north of the Thai border
in the mountains of eastern Shan State,
Thai investors are poised to begin
mining and burning large reserves
of coal at Mong Kok. Ihis
project — which will ravage a
pristine valley and poison
the Kok River, impacting
countless Shan and northern
Thai communities downstream
- must be stopped immediately.
The Italian-Thai Power Company has entered into
agreements with the Burmese military regime to
develop an open-pit coal mine and power plant at

Construction of Daewoo’s Shwe gas project, as well as CNPC’s Maday deep sea port and oil and gas pipeline have damaged our (local people’s) livelihoods and environment in Kyauk Phu Township since 2009. Additionally, there has been ongoing forcible land confiscation, providing no compensation or a limited amount of compensation for the confiscated rice farms and lands.

(Survey in NgaPhe` Township, MinBu District, Magway Division and Thipaw Township, Kyauk
Mae District, Northern Shan State)
By BadeiDha Moe Civil Society Organization.....

Conclusions: "Amnesty International’s latest research shows that hundreds of people close to the giant Letpadaung mine continue to face the risk of forced eviction from their farmland, and in the case of four villages, from their homes as well. In addition, thousands of people living in the area are at risk from Myanmar Wanbao’s inadequate management of environmental risk at the Letpadaung mine, which is situated in a flood and earthquake-prone area. The ESIA for the mine contains fundamental gaps and weaknesses, which Myanmar Wanbao has still not addressed.

Construction of various project components
to extract, process, and export the Shwe
gas - as well as oil trans-shipments from
Africa and the Middle East - is now well
underway. Local peoples are losing their land
and fishing grounds without finding new job
opportunities. Workers that have found lowpaying
temporary jobs are exploited and fired for
demanding basic rights. Women face unequal
wages, discrimination in the compensation
process, and vulnerabilities in the growing sex
industry around the project.

Ce profil pays présente les données de la Land Matrix pour République Démocratique du Congo et inclut les acquisitions de terres à grande échellequi:

• consistent en des transferts du droit d’exploitation ou de contrôle des terres au moyen bail ou de la concession;

• couvrent des surfaces de 200 hectares ou plus;

• ont été initiées depuis l’année 2000;

• impliquent une conversion potentielle des terres (souvent de pâturages extensifs et de services écosystémiques vers un usage agricole);

Land transformation has been at the centre of the economic growth of post-colonial Asia. In the 1990s, many Asian countries embraced economic liberalization and speculative business interests in land began to replace the state’s control of land for developmental purposes. The growing demand for land by corporations and private investors has fuelled several regional land rush waves in Asia, bringing them directly in conflict with communities that require these lands for their occupations and survival.

Includes a broader view of the global land grab; Southern Africa: under-utilised and opening up for business?; biofuels everywhere, but not enough to eat; extractive industries: mining and forestry; reversals and state capitalism in Zimbabwe; the next Great Trek? South Africans head north; where is the food?; towards a typology; reflecting on these trends: what fresh insights?; conclusions.