“Protecting profits over people”, 24 November 2014

Myanmar is in the process of formulating an investment law and a land use policy that when combined will lay the foundations of development for the country. As it stands, these proposed instruments could have an adverse impact on human rights, and in particular land rights. With these texts being shaped by international financial institutions and foreign governments, the concern is that these instruments will undemocratically privilege the “rights” of the powerful over the rights of those affected by their investments…The NLUP [National Land Use Policy] should first address the discrepancies between protecting vulnerable peoples’ land use rights and claims before creating an enabling investment environment. The draft investment law, meanwhile, must be opened for civil society consultation and debate. The results of both should ensure that the people of Myanmar are the primary beneficiaries of investment and economic development…