About 40 ethnic activist groups are calling on the government, ethnic militias and the international community to address a surge in land-grabbing, as companies move into Burma’s ethnic regions following recent ceasefire agreements…[The] organizations from across Burma and groups based on the border in Thailand held a series of meetings in Rangoon…to discuss the growing number of land disputes in ethnic regions. The meeting was the first of its kind in Burma and had become possible because of recent political reforms…[E]thnic activists voiced deep concern over the lack of legal protection of land rights of ethnic communities, who are increasingly losing farmland to mining or agro-industry firms…“There are many benefits to the peace process for them, they no longer have to fear violence, rape and forced labor by the military,” [said a researcher]…“But at the same time there is a massive increase in unregulated mining and agro-business.”