Village in Mudon township forced to repair pipeline ruptures.

June 16, 2009

HURFOM: 100 villagers are being forced to perform unpaid manual labor to repair the Yadana/Yetagun gas pipeline. Many villagers have complained that the repair project is disrupting their regular work.

On June 10 Light Infantry Battalion LIB No.209 ordered the Village Peace and Development Council (VPDC) of Ah Khon village, Mudon Township, Mon State, to make every single household, excluding woman and children, work on fixing the pipeline. The orders for forced labor came after villagers reported the gases line rupture to their headman on June 10th. LIB No. 209 also ordered that if someone was unable to work they would have to pay 10,000 kyat. It is not clear how long the gas pipeline was leaking before the break was discovered.

According to a villager, workers had to dig a 2 foot wide and 4 foot deep trench, a length of 150 meters, as the pipe was ruptured in three sections. Workers then had had to dig and remove the ruptured pipe, carry it to the railway station, return with the replacement pipe, and place it in the trench by hand.

“It is time for working on the farm, but I have to leave my farm have to work on the pipe. It is a rushed time for farmers to work on their farms because it is planting season and we are going to be late”, said Nai Rot, a local farmer who is 44 years old.

Gas pipeline breaks are frequent in this area, and every time villagers are requisitioned to make repairs without receiving compensation or pay. “We don’t know why we have to work; it is not for our profit – it is the government that profits, and should use its own labors, not us,” said Nai Mon, a 35 year old farmer.

The Kanbauk to Myaing Kalay portion of the gas pipeline leaks or explodes nearly every month, after which villagers living near the damaged portion of the pipeline have to work, without compensation, to make repairs. Additionally villagers who live near the pipeline must pay for security to protect the pipeline every single month

Editors note: All villager and farmer names have been changed for security purposes.

Written by HURFOM · Filed Under News