South Mon State: the military return confiscated land
South Mon State: the military return confiscated land
Mizzima Daily, 02 Apr 2014
URL: http://www.thithtoolwin.info/2014/04/blog-post_2872.html
According to the land utilization committee, the military division based in Ye township, south Mon state is returning more than 8,000 acres of land to its original owners.
U Aung Cho, chairman of the land utilization committee, said that 887.38 acres of land Township which was confiscated by four military battalions in Ain-Din village,Duyar village, Mawt Ka Nin village and Bay La Maing village in Ye would be returned to the original landowners.
“Confiscated lands which are not being cultivated by the Mon state government is being returned to the previous owners, the government plans to return more than 2,000 acres of land in Mawlamyaing district”
However, one landowner said that the plots of land which is being returned do not correspond to what was originally confiscated and the majority of land owners have yet to have their land returned to them.
“Our entire confiscated land plots are not being returned. And in some cases no land is returned at all. Some people are having lands returned to them. Their land was confiscated by the army, however the land was not utilized or in some cases it was leased out for cultivation. They confiscated land without providing any reason and now they are returning it which is at least better”, said one landowner who had his lands returned.
Mi Myint Than, parliament representative, and a member of the Parliamentary Land Investigation Committee said that in the majority of land confiscation cases in Ye township, land was seized by the military.
The Human Rights Foundation of Mon Land released a statement saying that the largest occurrence of land confiscations took place during 2000 – 2005. The army confiscated land in Ye, Thanbyu Zayat ,Kyike-Ma-Yaw and Ye Byu township in Mon state to establish new bases and for business purposes . As of 2011, a total of more than 20,000 acres of land had been confiscated.
U Aung Cho, chairman of the land utilization committee, said that 887.38 acres of land Township which was confiscated by four military battalions in Ain-Din village,Duyar village, Mawt Ka Nin village and Bay La Maing village in Ye would be returned to the original landowners.
“Confiscated lands which are not being cultivated by the Mon state government is being returned to the previous owners, the government plans to return more than 2,000 acres of land in Mawlamyaing district”
However, one landowner said that the plots of land which is being returned do not correspond to what was originally confiscated and the majority of land owners have yet to have their land returned to them.
“Our entire confiscated land plots are not being returned. And in some cases no land is returned at all. Some people are having lands returned to them. Their land was confiscated by the army, however the land was not utilized or in some cases it was leased out for cultivation. They confiscated land without providing any reason and now they are returning it which is at least better”, said one landowner who had his lands returned.
Mi Myint Than, parliament representative, and a member of the Parliamentary Land Investigation Committee said that in the majority of land confiscation cases in Ye township, land was seized by the military.
The Human Rights Foundation of Mon Land released a statement saying that the largest occurrence of land confiscations took place during 2000 – 2005. The army confiscated land in Ye, Thanbyu Zayat ,Kyike-Ma-Yaw and Ye Byu township in Mon state to establish new bases and for business purposes . As of 2011, a total of more than 20,000 acres of land had been confiscated.