Moves made to restart Myitsone Dam project

What was hailed as a landmark victory for Myanmar’s democratic reform two years ago could be on the verge of reversal, with moves reportedly being made to restart the suspended Myitsone Dam project on the Ayeyarwady River. 

Contractors China Power Investment Corporation (CPI) invited 21 Kachin MPs to visit the dam project site in the northern Kachin State on Sunday, as part of ongoing efforts to allay local concerns.  

The dam is being built by China’s CPI and local conglomerate Asia World.

The delegation, including journalists from state-owned media, was led by deputy Speaker of Kachin state parliament Sai Myint Kyaw, and met with the CPI vice-chairman.

“They [CPI] have been inviting us for a long time now. They showed us images of the Ayeyarwady River’s upper reaches and basin on a projector. They also explained how they had relocated local residents to Aung Myin Thar model village and told us how much it had cost to construct,” said Kachin MP Sai Aung Myat.

The dam project stirred controversy in Myanmar due to the enormous area it was expected to flood – 766sq km including 47 villages home to more than 10,000 ethnic Kachin – its environmental impact on the Ayeyarwady River, and its location on the earthquake-prone Sagaing fault line.  

Domestic campaigns against the project have brought together political activists including opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi, conservationists, scholars, poets and journalists.

On September 30, 2011, President Thein Sein announced the Myitsone dam project was to be suspended. Western powers, including the US and the EU, welcomed the decision. Then, in April last year, Eleven Media reported ongoing activities by the CPI and Asia World at the project site. This was followed by reports that construction on the dam may resume this year, which came amid renewed efforts by the CPI to win over public opinion. 

“They told us that the project is not affecting local residents. In my opinion, [the CPI] want to restart Myitsone Dam project,” said Sai Aung Myat. “We told [the CPI] that the state parliament could not decide on whether to allow construction to continue because the project concerned the entire country.”

He added that residents of Aung Myin Thar had expressed a desire to return to their original village because they have already faced many difficulties after being relocated.