Forced Labor Used in Delta

By KYI WAI

LAPUTTA—Burmese military authorities have conscripted cyclone survivors in the Irrawaddy delta to construct a road in exchange for international aid, according to villagers.

Local sources said people have been conscripted to work by military officers with Light Infantry Division No 66. An order was received in 17 villages in the Pyinsalu Village Tract, located in the coastal area of Laputta Township, saying one person from each family would be required to work on the construction of the Laputta-Thingangyi-Pyinsalu road.

Ma Nwe, who is four months pregnant and lives in Wabokhone village, told The Irrawaddy that she was conscripted to work on the road project, and her husband was conscripted to work on a government building in the city of Pyinsalu.

She said they had no choice but to do as ordered. "So I came here,” she said. “I can't refuse their order."

The village headman of Khonegyi village said he knew of 50 people were who sent to construction sites in Pyinsalu. The laborers have worked since September 16, he said, and no one knows how long the construction projects will continue.

According to villagers, the army said the workers will receive aid from INGOs and the government. Sources said the aid included a basic family water kit from UNICEF, "dignity kits" of clothes and personal hygiene items from the United Nations Population Fund, rice, food, and medicine.

In the areas of Laputta, regime-friendly companies such as Ayear Shwe Wah, Max Myanmar and Wah Wah Win have involved construction projects in Laputta Township, according to sources.

Ayer Shwe Wah was established by Aung Thet Mann, the son of junta member Gen Thura Shwe Mann, who has been accused of using his position to win contracts for construction work in the capital, Naypyidaw.

In June, London-based Amnesty International said the military regime has forced cyclone survivors to do menial labor in exchange for food, and authorities in several cyclone-hit areas continue to divert international aid to be used for regime-friendly projects, or to be sold in black markets.

Meanwhile, the United Nations' flash fundraising appeal for the survivors of Cyclone Nargis remains 50 percent unfunded, according to a statement issued by the Tripartite Core Group, which has coordinated relief efforts since June and is comprised of representatives from the military government, UN agencies and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.