Rising Public Concern over Vacant Land Law Amendment Goes Unaddressed
Rising Public Concern over Vacant Land Law Amendment Goes Unaddressed
The Irrawaddy, 21 Feb 2019
URL: https://www.irrawaddy.com/opinion/rising-public-concern-vacant-land-law-amendment-goes-unaddressed.html
CHIANG MAI, Thailand – The six-month window for the registration of vacant, fallow and virgin land for the use of agribusiness in accordance with the newly amended Vacant, Fallow and Virgin (VFV) Land Management Law will come to a close on March 11.
One month after the amended law was passed by the Union Parliament last September, the government began efforts in raising awareness about the law, using state-run media to urge the public to register land despite a lack of information on specific bylaws.
The law gave rise to public outcry from those who condemned it as unfair and a threat to land rights of the ethnic minority groups who practice traditional customary tenure and who fear losing their lands which they own without legal statutory tenure.
Likewise, hundreds of civil society groups and land rights networks from ethnic Karen, Kachin, Shan, Chin, Karenni and Mon communities have been expressing their concerns over the laws.
Many of those in the ethnic areas want to continue their practice of shared land ownership which includes freehold lands, community forest reserves and customary tenure for rotational farming practice.
For example, in KNU-controlled areas in Tannitharyi Region and Karen and Mon states, there is an estimated 3 million acres of land regarded as community forests, wildlife sanctuaries and forest reserves, according to Padoh Mahn Ba Tun.
Which amendments to the law are causing concern?
The amended law stipulates that lands under customary tenure do not need to undergo registration. Article 30 (a and b) of the amended law specifically mentions that lands to be registered would not include (a) those under customary tenure of the local indigenous people or (b) public land including religious compounds, socio-economic buildings and roads.
Members of the ethnic minorities have decried the lack of details on how the customary tenures would be exempted and through decades of experience with difficult bureaucratic structures, many do not trust on the laws.
Lands in Myanmar are constitutionally owned by the state in accordance with the 2008-military backed Constitution and every land user is required to seek registration from the land records department.
Some 45 to 50 million acres of land in Myanmar is regarded vacant, fallow or virgin. Some 82 percent of this land lies in the ethnic states, according to a November statement published by Land In Our Hands, a non-government land rights group which cited data from the government’s department of farmland management and statistics.
The law says the government is carrying out the land registration process with the aim of boosting economic development in the country and to create job opportunities for landless citizens by using the vacant, fallow and virgin lands for agriculture, animal husbandry, mining and other legal businesses. The main crop is to be rice grown for both export and domestic consumption.
As of May 2018, figures from the agriculture ministry show 5.9 million farmers were given certificates to use 24.86 million acres of farmland after they registered their lands.
The law says small hold farmers can apply for up to 50 acres of land for their home business of agriculture or animal husbandry.
The law stipulates punishments for those who fail to register their land—those found working or living on unregistered land will be considered trespassers and could also face a punishment of up to two years’ imprisonment or a 500,000-kyats fine.
The deputy permanent secretary of the agriculture, livestock and irrigation ministry U Myo Tint Htun recently told The Irrawaddy that the ministry is doing their best to get the information about the updated law to the people in rural areas because many are still unaware of the amendment.
One month after the amended law was passed by the Union Parliament last September, the government began efforts in raising awareness about the law, using state-run media to urge the public to register land despite a lack of information on specific bylaws.
The law gave rise to public outcry from those who condemned it as unfair and a threat to land rights of the ethnic minority groups who practice traditional customary tenure and who fear losing their lands which they own without legal statutory tenure.
Likewise, hundreds of civil society groups and land rights networks from ethnic Karen, Kachin, Shan, Chin, Karenni and Mon communities have been expressing their concerns over the laws.
Many of those in the ethnic areas want to continue their practice of shared land ownership which includes freehold lands, community forest reserves and customary tenure for rotational farming practice.
For example, in KNU-controlled areas in Tannitharyi Region and Karen and Mon states, there is an estimated 3 million acres of land regarded as community forests, wildlife sanctuaries and forest reserves, according to Padoh Mahn Ba Tun.
Which amendments to the law are causing concern?
The amended law stipulates that lands under customary tenure do not need to undergo registration. Article 30 (a and b) of the amended law specifically mentions that lands to be registered would not include (a) those under customary tenure of the local indigenous people or (b) public land including religious compounds, socio-economic buildings and roads.
Members of the ethnic minorities have decried the lack of details on how the customary tenures would be exempted and through decades of experience with difficult bureaucratic structures, many do not trust on the laws.
Lands in Myanmar are constitutionally owned by the state in accordance with the 2008-military backed Constitution and every land user is required to seek registration from the land records department.
Some 45 to 50 million acres of land in Myanmar is regarded vacant, fallow or virgin. Some 82 percent of this land lies in the ethnic states, according to a November statement published by Land In Our Hands, a non-government land rights group which cited data from the government’s department of farmland management and statistics.
The law says the government is carrying out the land registration process with the aim of boosting economic development in the country and to create job opportunities for landless citizens by using the vacant, fallow and virgin lands for agriculture, animal husbandry, mining and other legal businesses. The main crop is to be rice grown for both export and domestic consumption.
As of May 2018, figures from the agriculture ministry show 5.9 million farmers were given certificates to use 24.86 million acres of farmland after they registered their lands.
The law says small hold farmers can apply for up to 50 acres of land for their home business of agriculture or animal husbandry.
The law stipulates punishments for those who fail to register their land—those found working or living on unregistered land will be considered trespassers and could also face a punishment of up to two years’ imprisonment or a 500,000-kyats fine.
The deputy permanent secretary of the agriculture, livestock and irrigation ministry U Myo Tint Htun recently told The Irrawaddy that the ministry is doing their best to get the information about the updated law to the people in rural areas because many are still unaware of the amendment.