The Myanmar Development Resource Institute's Centre for Economic and Social Development (MDRI-CESD) and The Asia Foundation are pleased to present this fourth volume in the Subnational Governance in Myanmar Discussion Paper Series.

... Protected areas (PAs) are important tools for biodiversity conservation and sustainable development. PAs safeguard ecosystems and their services, such as water provision, food production, carbon sequestration and climate regulation, thus improving people’s livelihoods. They preserve the integrity of spiritual and cultural values placed by indigenous people on wild areas and offer opportunities of inspiration, study and recreation.

Contents:

What is land and why is it important? ...

Why is land such a burning issue in Myanmar? ...

How is land related to debates about development?...

Is there a human right to land?...

What steps are people in Myanmar taking to
express and assert their human right to land?

A new report by the Karenni Civil Society Network (KCSN) raises concerns about
international “peace support” programming amid
st increasing Burma Army militarization in
Karenni State after the2012 ceasefire with the
Karenni National Progressive Party (KNPP).
The report “Where is Genuine Peace?” exposes how a pilot resettlement project of the
Norway-led Myanmar Peace Support Initiative (MPSI) in Shardaw
Township is encouraging
IDPs to return to an area controlled by the Burma Army where their safety cannot be
guaranteed.

Information on a new flow of refugees from northeastern Pa'an District into Thailand. The villagers say that they fled their village in mid-January 2001 because SPDC troops are using them as porters, forced labour on an access road, and Army camp labour in order to strengthen the regime's control over this contested area. Worst of all, the villagers say they are being ordered to clear landmines in front of the SPDC Army's road-building bulldozer, and to make way for new Army camps.

[N.B. Only the 1st 2 and the last document were accessible, 30 July 2015] .....
National Land Use Policy 6th Draft (English Version)
English Version(6th draft).pdf...
ဆဌမအကွိမျ မွအေသုံးခမြှု မူဝါဒမူကွမျး (မွနျမာ)
myanmar version (6th draft).pdf...
ESIA (English) PartI...
ESIA (Englsih)PartI.pdf...
ESIA Letpadaung-Summary-Myanmar font...
ESIA Letpadaung-Summary-Myanmar font.pdf...
ESIA OF LETPADAUNG PROJECT ON NOV 21ST BY KNIGHT PIESOLD 2883 PAGES...

In 2004, Ngwe Yi Pale Company began coal mining in Nam Ma tract of Hsipaw township. The mining has destroyed farmlands and irrigation sources, and caused water and air pollution, mi-pacing over 3,000 people. The Nam Ma villagers have been calling for a stop to the mining since April 1, 2016, but the company has continued expanding the mining area. In May 2016, the Burma Army carried out an attack in the area to clear out the Shan State Progress Party/Shan State Army, and protect the mining operations. Villagers were killed, arrested and beaten.

The Asian Human Rights Commission has since mid-2012 closely followed, documented and reported on the struggle of farmers in the Letpadaung Hills of central Burma against the expansion of a copper mining operation under a military-owned holding company and a partner company from China.

Customary Tenure and Land Alienation in Myanmar:
"Customary communal tenure is characteristic of many local upland communities in S.E. Asia. These
communities have strong ancestral relationships to their land, which has never been held under
individual rights, but considered common property of the village. Communal tenure has been the
norm and land has never been a commodity. This is an age-old characteristic of many societies
globally. Prior to the publication in 1861 of Ancient Law by the English jurist Henry Sumner Maine,

Updating of cadastral maps were conducted using satellite image and the changes of ground features
were observed in comparison with satellite image and ortho photo. The cadastral maps were evaluated on the
basis of findings for effective land management and administration. The research tries to observe the
effectiveness of satellite imagery using GIS for land management and administration in Myanmar".....
Key Words: SLRD, GIS, Kwin Maps, Satellite Image, Ortho Ph

This photo set includes 18 still photographs selected from images taken by a community member from Bilin Township, Thaton District in January 2013. These photographs depict gold mining in Baw Paw Hta village and show village lands that were bought by the Mya Poo Company and subsequently damaged because of mining.

This Field Report includes information submitted by KHRG community members describing events which occurred in Hpapun District between January and December 2013. The report describes human rights violations, including sexual harassment, violent abuses, landmine incidents, forced labour, land confiscation, gold mining, arbitrary taxation, and theft and looting. In addition, fighting between Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA) and Border Guard Force (BGF) soldiers resulted in injury and displacement of villagers.