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The country lacks a sound socio-economic infrastructure, the rule of law and mechanisms for public participation. Burma’s environmental regulations are weak, and those that exist are not enforced effectively. And then there is the military: in Burma, development projects typically involve an increase in the military presence in the targeted area, which leads to greater human rights abuses.

Sites are identified and studied without consultation with surrounding communities, troops are brought in to “secure” the area, people are ordered to move at gunpoint, then villagers are taken as forced unpaid laborers. Burma has a tradition in this regard. The building of Baluchaung No 2 hydro-power plant in Karenni State, which was completed in 1960, led to the forced relocation of local residents. Today the area is surrounded by landmines. Dam projects since have entailed the displacement of local residents.

The International Labour Organization reported that villagers were required to contribute labor to the Zawgyi Dam. Human rights abuses and environmental damage have been linked to projects along the Sittang, and forced labor has been reported in connection with dam construction at Shwe Gin.

Forced labor also has been documented at the dam project at Thaukyegat, which is likely to result in the forced relocation of residents in the area of its reservoir. More recently, independent Burmese media reported that four villages were ordered to be relocated and villagers’ land confiscated to make way for a dam on Paday Creek, a tributary of the Irrawaddy.

Given the difficulties in obtaining detailed, reliable information about such abuses in a secretive, authoritarian state like Burma, these few documented cases may be only the tip of the iceberg.

Serious concerns have been raised about the well-being of the environment and local residents near the projects on the Salween. The prospective dam at Tasang, for example, would mean the flooding of the gorge for 230 km upstream. There are reports that soldiers guarding the Tasang site forced local residents to porter and build military facilities.

The Chiang Mai-based Kachin Post reported in June 2004 that if the planned Myitsone, Kachin State hydro-project is built, “5,000 houses from 30 villages will be sunk and 8,000 people will become homeless.” Additionally, 18,000 arable acres, forests and natural resources will be submerged. The dam will destroy the Mali-M’mai confluence, which is regarded as the Kachin cultural heartland.

Financing the Dammed

Although the Burmese government currently does not receive any public multilateral development financing for hydro-power development, it has found other sources of funding, especially from Asian countries. In the absence of multilateral financing, bilateral assistance from Japan and China and investment by private companies from Japan, China, and Thailand have supported the regime’s efforts to build large dams.

In 2002 the Japanese government promised to rehabilitate Baluchaung No 2 hydro-power plant through its Official Development Assistance. This plant accounts for a large part of Burma’s installed hydro-power capacity. Japan has shown a particular commitment to developing hydro-power in Burma, and a number of prospective dam sites have been identified and studied by Japanese government agencies and companies. Apart from the EPDC, mentioned above, other Japanese firms have been involved with studies relating to potential dam sites on the Salween and elsewhere.

In August 2001, the Kansai Electric Power Company, or KEPCO, contracted with Burma to provide technical assistance for developing 12 hydro-power plants, including at least five sites on the Sittang—Yenwe, Khabaung, Pyu, Bogata and Shwe Gin. In its FY2003 business plan, KEPCO stated that it was negotiating with Burma about conducting feasibility studies for additional projects. The firm’s involvement in the Shwesaryay and Myitsone projects has been reported within the last year.

Moreover, between 1980 and 2000, Nippon Koei Co conducted pre-feasibility or feasibility studies for sites at Yeywa, Tasang, and Yenwe. In 2000-2001, Tokyo Electric Power Services Company, or TEPSCO, a subsidiary of Japan’s largest private electricity firm, the Tokyo Electric Power Company, conducted a feasibility study of the Shweli hydro-power project in Shan State. If and when Japanese ODA to Burma is fully resumed, Japanese companies will be well positioned to begin helping the regime with large-scale dam construction.

China is also a major player in promoting Rangoon’s hydro-power development.