A deadly protest

A woman in her fifties was killed and several others were injured in the latest clash between police and protestors at the Letpadaungtaung copper-mine in Sagaing Region on December 22.

Violence erupted when police and Myanmar Wanbao Mining Copper Co's workers tried to erect a fence on land for which local villagers claim they have not received compensation.

"They have been here since morning. They came along with bulldozers and materials to put up a fence on our land. The police started firing their guns in the afternoon as villagers tried to stop them. They used catapults and beat up the villagers. Many villagers had their eyes injured by the catapults. The woman shot to death was Khin Win Oo from Moegyopyin village," said a local protester. 

The villagers said they tried to stop the fencing around Moegyopyin and Sede villages using whatever weapons they could get, including sticks, swords, catapults and rocks, in order to prevent their lands from being seized. 

The local witnesses said the police deployed a 1000-strong force as well as Chinese security guards during the fencing. 

This is the first recorded death in the dispute over the lands around the Letpadaungtaung mine. 

"We see it as a sad moment because a woman died during this conflict," information minister Ye Htut told AFP.

He said police had opened fire but did not immediately confirm that their bullets killed the woman. The minister said he believed some protesters had used slingshots to attack workers at the mine and had briefly detained 10 members of staff.

"We will review how the police handled (the clash)," Ye Htut said.

State media reported Monday that nine protesters and 11 police officers had also been injured during the protest. 

In November 2012, police used smoke bombs to disperse demonstrators and carried out night raids on villages nearby. Earlier this month, there was a clash with security forces and rubber bullets injured two villagers. 

The clash occurred on the day that Myanmar Wanbao released a statement, saying that it would commence with the project following a two-year delay. The company, a joint venture of China’s Wanbao and military-controlled Myanmar Mining Enterprise, said that it has undertaken necessary social and environment procedures. It estimated that the project, once operational, would generate an annual US$140 million in taxes, royalties, and production share, and an additional $150 million per year in local procurement. 

In a statement issued after the tragic event, Wanbao insisted that the construction could commence because of approval from the vast majority of villagers near the project. 

“You should know that 71 per cent of consulted villagers in 35 villages have given us the green light to continue our project and they support it and that 91% of impacted villagers in 27 villages who were consulted through door to door consultations have also supported us. So we have achieved great strides in our community relationships…This is what makes this senseless death even more painful and poignant. The mining project is there to help people like the lady who has passed away,” it said.

While expressing condolences to her family, the company urged police to start investigating the events leading up to her death. 

“This event is especially awful given the great turnaround in our relationship with our community. We have achieved amazing progress because we received popular approval for our project through two large community consultations carried out from May until November 2014,” it said. “We are unwavering in our commitment to peaceful dialogue, and we oppose any violent and dangerous activity that jeopardises the safety of the villagers, the protestors, our staff or the police.”