RANGOON — A coalition of 107 nonprofit organizations has demanded that the Kyaukphyu special economic zone (SEZ) project be suspended until power has been transferred to a government led by the National League for Democracy (NLD), as incumbent President Thein Sein urged just the opposite on Monday.
Khaing Kaung San, chairman of the Wunlark Development Foundation in Sittwe Township, Arakan State, told The Irrawaddy on Monday that the organization held a meeting—the All Arakanese Civil Society Organization Forum—from Dec. 18-20 in Kyaukphyu, also located in Arakan State. More than 200 people participated in the forum and drew up a list of 12 points detailing why the government ought to halt construction of the project.
Myint Thein, deputy minister for rail transportation and head of the Kyaukphyu SEZ management committee, outlined the project, billed as Burma’s western economic gateway, to Lower House lawmakers on Dec. 3, urging that it be carried out quickly. The state-run Global New Light of Myanmar on Tuesday reported that Thein Sein also urged acceleration of the tendering process for the project, “so that the next government can continue to implement the project in easy way,” during a meeting the day prior with the Myanmar Special Economic Zone Central Working Body, which he chairs.
Announcement of the tender winner for the project has been beset by a series of delays.
Although the president this week pushed for speedier implementation of the Kyaukphyu SEZ, locals worry about the project’s societal impacts, particularly for farmers, who often lose out as a result of such large-scale, land-heavy developments. (Courtesy of Irrawaddy)
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