Resource information
China’s plans to build a giant industrial
zone at the terminal of its Shwe gas
and oil pipelines on the Arakan coast
will damage the livelihoods of tens of
thousands of islanders and spell doom
for Burma’s second largest mangrove
forest.
The 120 sq km “Kyauk Phyu Special
Economic Zone” (SEZ) will be managed
by Chinese state-owned CITIC group
on Ramree island, where China is
constructing a deep sea port for
ships bringing oil from the Middle
East and Africa. An 800-km railway
is also being built from Kyauk Phyu
to Yunnan, under a 50 year BOT
(Build-Operate-Transfer) agreement,
forging a Chinese-managed trade
corridor from the Indian Ocean across
Burma. Investment in the railway
and SEZ, China’s largest in Southeast
Asia, is estimated at US $109 billion
over 35 years.
Construction of the pipelines and
deep-sea port has already caused
large-scale land confiscation. Now 40
villages could face direct eviction from
the SEZ, while many more fear the
impacts of toxic waste and pollution
from planned petrochemical and metal
industries. No information has been
provided to local residents about the
projects.
It is urgently needed to have stringent
regulations in place to protect
the people and environment before
projects such as these are implemented
in Burma.
