Top firm involved in landgrab cases returns farmlands

A large private company in Myanmar has returned farmlands it had seized from local farmers and officially handed over its land rights back to the government. 

More than 40,000 acres of farmlands were divided among the farmers who have formed farm cooperative societies after U Te Za, chairman of Ayeya Shwe Wah Co Ltd, signed an agreement on July 26. 

The farmlands have been returned both to the farmers doing business with the company in mutual interest as well as those wishing to do independently. 

Yangon Region has seen a series of land-grabbing cases in which some private companies seized land from the local farmers in Ayeyawady Region by threatening them or paying only a small fraction of the actual price as compensation. 

The company, which was set up in 1998, started to reclaim 41,200 acres of vacant, virgin land in wetland areas of Ayeyawady Region. Some uncultivable farmlands were turned into fish farms, according to officials of the company. 

In its statement released to the government, the company mentioned 35,886.64 acres of land had been reclaimed for cultivation, 1205.5 acres dug for fish farming and 4,813 acres of natural ponds in five townships. 

A company official said that all the farmlands, except 100 acres the company bought, had been returned to the local farmers. It reclaimed tens of thousands acres of land, spending a huge amount of money. The company gave out loans for two to three years to the farmers, risking losses. 

He also revealed that although 30 companies had started farm business in the region with government permission, there were only about five companies left as many had suffered big losses. 

With the reclaimed farmlands in the hands of farmers, capital was necessary to do cultivation. But it would be more convenient if the government or the international community provided financial aid, he added. 

“We welcome the decision of Ayeya Shwe Wah Co to return the farmlands,” said Ko Wai Phyo, chief editor of The Weekly Eleven News Journal. “Other companies should also do so no matter what privilege they received in the past. Anyone is welcome if they are to serve the public interest. It does not matter if full taxes are paid to the State. There is always a rich-poor gap. But the problem is that some have become extremely rich in a dishonest way while most others live in poverty due to exploitation and oppression.”

Some of the companies involved in the land-grabbing cases are now planning to give back their seized land plots to those who want to do business on the basis of mutual interest. 

Max Myanmar, another company involved, said that it was running its business with farmers in mutual interest and would continue the business only if the farmers were satisfied with it. 

In mid-July, as many as 200 farmers staged a protest in Yangon against Zay Kaba Co’s move to re-plough its seized farmlands in Shwenantha Village, Mingaladon Township, which had already been put under monsoon paddy cultivation.