Myanmar's natural resources include gems, industrial minerals, oil, and offshore natural gas reserves estimated at 10 trillion cubic feet. The extractive sector accounted for 39 percent of exports in 2010, yet despite its mineral wealth, Myanmar is one of the least developed nations in the world. Its extractive industries are infamously opaque. In the April 2012 elections, the main opposition party won seats in the parliament, a development that could lead to improved transparency...

...In February and March 2002 Amnesty International interviewed some 100 migrants from
Myanmar at seven different locations in Thailand. They were from a variety of ethnic groups,
including the Shan; Lahu; Palaung; Akha; Mon; Po and Sgaw Karen; Rakhine; and Tavoyan
ethnic minorities, and the majority Bamar (Burman) group. They originally came from the Mon,
Kayin, Shan, and Rakhine States, and Bago, Yangon and Tanintharyi Divisions.(1) What follows
below is a summary of human rights violations in some parts of eastern Myanmar during the last

Burma is situated in Southeastern Asia, bordering Bangladesh, India, China, Laos and Thailand. The
majority of its population lives in rural areas and depends on land as a primary means of livelihood.
Because all land in Burma ultimately belongs to the state, citizens and organizations depend upon use
-
rights, but do not own land.
Burma’s laws grant women equal rights i
n some respects and also recognize certain customary laws that
provide women equal rights in relation to land. In practice, however, the rights of many women are

It is estimated that the overall number of Burmese migrants in Thailand is somewhere in between 800,000 and one million.
Cross-border migration into Thailand has steadily increased in recent years. Since the 1960s, hundreds of thousands of Thais
have gone to work abroad. Refugees from Burma, Laos and Cambodia have since filled this labour shortage in Thailand.
However, many of them are undocumented, illegal workers and thus constitute the most vulnerable section of the work force.

This note is meant to serve as a quick reference for local authorities and NGOs to
acquire an understanding of relevant land laws and the context of land-use in
Myanmar. All land and all natural resources in Myanmar, above and below the ground,
above and beneath the water, and in the atmosphere is ultimately owned by the Union of
Myanmar. Although the socialist economic system was abolished in 1988, the existing Land
Law and Directions were not changed in parallel, and thus these are still in use today in

Provisional English title.

Provisional English title.

Executive Summary:

BURMA ACT III, 1907 25th May. 1907.....GENERAL DUTIES OF HEADMEN AND ELDERS...GENERAL DUTIES OF RESIDENTS...PWES, BILLIARDS SALOONS, PAWN-SHOPS, ETC.

Land Core Group Shifting Cultivation Meeting
Yangon, Myanmar
17 June 2016 .....Legal Framework = Tools in a Toolbox...Where to start? Constitution...What tools exist in various laws?...Association Registration Law...Farmland Law (Strengths)...Farmland Law (Weaknesses)...Forest Law and CFI (Strengths)...Forest Land and CFI (Weaknesses) ...Vacant, Fallow and Virgin Land (VFV) Law ...Need for a new tool...

Background Introduction ...Legal and Regulatory Framework...Registration of Land Tenure...Customary or Informal Tenure Arrangements...Public Access to Accurate Land Information...Land Dispute Resolution Realities...Public Participation in Decision Making Process...Difficult Situation, Not Impossible...