FRIDAY, March 29, 2024
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144 squatter huts crushed for commercial development

144 squatter huts crushed for commercial development

More than 1,000 people used heavy equipment to demolish 144 squatter huts in Dagon Myothit (Seikkan) Township on January 30, to pave way for the development of an industrial zone.

Officials from the township’s administration department, labourers and the police were involved in the operation. 
Tin Nyunt, an evictee, said: “We are staying by the road as we have nowhere to go. The authorities forcibly evicted us. We are Myanmar citizens. In the past, this was a vacant field with many snakes. But now it will be turned into an industrial zone. But the authorities did not designate this place as a restricted area. No reply has been received to our requests for a place to live.” 
There were clashes between the authorities and evictees with one squatter lying in front of a bulldozer while his house was demolished. Children’s exercise books were left torn on the ground.
Squatter Yi Yi Maw said: “We accept that the authorities do it in accordance with the law. But we were dismantling our homes ourselves so we can reuse the wood and roofs. But now we can get nothing back. We’ve been there 14 years. We have to pay monthly fees to the wards. They have even scolded us for not paying our fees regularly. It is a week before a student in my family has to sit an exam. How can they do that without a place to live? We will have to stay by the roadside until we find a place to live.” 
The Yangon regional government intends to develop the Kyisu industrial zone at the site. The government has already paid compensation to 19 farmers whose land is included in the project area. Under section 21 (a) of the colonial-era Lower Burma Town and Village Lands Act (1898) and section 68 of the Municipal Act, notification letters have apparently been sent telling the remaining squatters to move. 
Similarly, the authorities demolished five of 30 squatter huts on land owned by the Myanma Port Authority in Kamarkasit ward of Dala Township on the morning of 28 January. 
 
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