"Refugees in Myanmar's Shan State Fear Losing Untended Land to China Projects"

Refugees from conflict in the northern part of Myanmar's Shan state say they are worried that their land could be confiscated for Chinese-backed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI)-related infrastructure projects while they are unable to return because of fighting.

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The fighting has caused nearly 17,000 IDP to seek shelter in Namtu, Kutkai, Namhkam and Mong Yawng townships....These IDP are worried because they don't have the proper legal documentation for lands that they consider to be ancestral.

Seng Tu, an internally displaced person (IDP) living in the Kutkai refugee camp, and a member of the IDP farmland committee, told RFA's Myanmar Service that fellow refugees are very concerned and want a freeze on the Chinese projects.

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Plans for a reservoir on the Nam Khai river in Kutkai township, along with agricultural and livestock zones in the area, were reported in local news, but the government has made no official announcement on the projects.

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Upon hearing about these projects, the IDP farmland committee, consisting of IDP delegates from 36 camps in the region, released a statement...for the non-implementation of any project on their ancestral land until they can return home, a promise not to designate their lands as vacant or forest, a stop to all projects that have already started, and a refrain from mining or logging activities on their lands.

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