Profits dwindle under cane and cattle tax

September 16, 2009

HURFOM: Burmese army soldiers have been extorting money from northern Tenasserin Division residents trade efforts. As a result, residents have collected less profit from trading their products throughout the area.

A local resident from Kaleingaung sub-township, northern Tenasserin Division, described how Burmese army Light Infantry Battalion (LIB) No. 273, have demanded payment of arbitrary taxes from the residents and are fining residents who run businesses in the area.

On August 28th, LIB No. 273 implemented the collection of a cane sugar trading and production tax in the Kaleinaung sub-township area. Soldiers have been collecting this arbitrary tax from both cane produces and cane traders. Ko Aung Ngwe,30, a Yapu village cane trader, explained about his experience being fined at the border. “Now we have to pay the military a cane trading tax. The troops are not easy. Even though we paid them the money, they didn’t allow us to go immediately – they wasted our time by asking us more questions.”

LIB No. 273 has been taxing two parts of the cane cutting and trade process. Farmers cutting and the collecting cane are forced to pay 5,000 kyat for 1 cow cart to transport the cane into the village. Generally cow carts can hold between 2,000 and 2,5000 kyat. A cane buyer then buys that cane for an average of 22 kyat per piece, from the cutter. The cane traded takes this, and other harvests of cane purchased from cutters, to the town for resale. LIB No. 273 then collects a tax of 1 kyat per piece.

“Because we don’t have jobs to do in the areas, we are cutting cane to make our daily income,” explained Kyaw Myint, Kyauktalin villager who cuts cane in the jungle. “Now we also have to pay the cane tax, so there’s just a little money left from the cutting cane task. If we don’t pay the tax, they would not allow us to carry cane into the village.”

Additionally LIB No. 273 has been targeting cattle owners with fines, by arresting villages that trade the cattle and buffalo throughout the area and to the Thai Burma border. Because of the threat of arrest, cattle traders avoid traveling by day, instead moving the cattle at night to avoid LIB No. 273 troops stationed in the area.

Zaw Lwin,40, a buffalo trader, said, “This time will be the last time for me to trade cattle. If the [troops] catch you with cattle, you will go to prison. But you know, that depends on the boss. If your boss has money to pay, you’ll be fine. If he doesn’t have it, we will end up in jail.”

Cattle owners hire residents from the area to herd the cattle to the border, paying them between 60,000 to 80,000 kyat for the trip. Moving cattle from Kaleingaung sub-township to the Thai-Burma border takes 2 to 3 days. Zaw Lwin continued, “They know we are trading cattle but they can’t arrest us without evidence. If the get you with the evidence, you’re sure to have to choose between offering money or staying in prison.”

Written by HURFOM · Filed Under News