Thai environmental and human rights activists are worried about the impact of constructing the Tavoy Deep Seaport in southern Burma, as it will destroy large area in Tavoy while there is no proper law protection for the environment in Burma.

A construction site at the Tavoy Deep Seaport and Industrial Zone (Photo:Eleven Media Group)

 Speaking at a fact-finding meeting with Mon human rights activists in Sangkalaburi, Kanchanaburi province, on December 2, Premsak Buawattana, a senior member of the Foundation for Ecological Recovery, said, “Thai people have to suffer from the population even though we have laws protecting the environment in Thailand.

“Burmese people have to suffer from this project, as Burma does not have proper laws for environmental protection,” he said.

The Foundation for Ecological Recovery is attempting to collect facts about the Tavoy Deep Seaport project and its potential impacts, including effects to civilians such as damage to the environment, human rights abuses, damaged livelihoods of the people, and rights to participate in the project.

Beerawat Dheeraprasart, Chairman of the Foundation for Ecological Recovery, said, “We do not see a lot of information printed in the media about this project, even though it is huge project.

“They [the company] hides information within the company. No one exactly knows which businesses are involved with this project, and how much individuals have invested in it,” he said.

The Burmese and Thai governments agreed and signed a contract in May 2008 to build the Technical Zone for the Tavoy Deep Seaport.

The project of the Tavoy Deep Seaport is 8 times larger than the Map Ta Phut Industrial Zone in Rayong, Thailand, and is run by the same company, according to the Foundation for Ecological Recovery.

The amount of investment in Map Tha Phut is 370,000 million baht (10.5 billion US$), and the estimated amount of investment for the Tavoy industrial zone is 303,000 million baht (8.6 billion US$).

“We have learned that they [the previous Thai government] signed a contract for 60 years with the Burmese government. After this, they can renew their contract again if they want to continue to run the project,” said Beerawat Dheeraprasart.

The Foundation for Ecological Recovery reported that the Thai Investment Board offered money to build the Tavoy Deep Seaport and Industrial Zone in the meantime, and it requires 4,000 megawatts of electric power to run industries zone. It plans to build a coal industries zone, which will destroy the environment and the livelihoods of the local people.

Hathuethai Kongkoun, another senior member of Foundation for Ecological Recovery, said, “Some people may think the investment may benefit the people. But, in fact, all benefit goes directly to the company. The people have become displaced and unemployed after their land was confiscated.”

According to the Human Rights Foundation of Monland, there are about 20 villages with an estimated population of 4,000 people living in the area of the deep sea project. The Burmese authorities have already forced villagers to move from the villages in the planned area of the Tavoy Building Industries Zone.

 

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