By Nichole Dodson, SFSU, 2021
In 2001, Chinese-owned company, Wuxi Huaguang, received permits to build a coal-fired power plant in Tigyit, an agricultural village located in Shan State, Myanmar [1]. This village is home to several ethnic groups such as the Shan and Pa-Oh [2]. Myanmar’s military regime ordered the Shan State local military to force Tigyit villagers off their land for construction [3]. Since then, the Wuxi Huaguang power plant has perpetuated environmental harm and injustice onto the villagers of Tigyit.
Tigyit villagers’ water supply and air are being tainted by pollution from the coal-fired power plant [4]. A majority of the villagers have complained of several health conditions that are linked from pollution [5]. It was reported that half of the village population has experienced skin rashes as a result of fly ash exposure [6]. Moreover, villagers have developed serious respiratory illness and terminal cancers from consuming polluted water.
The root of environmental justice in Shan State traces back to the region’s resource wealth as well as lack of local control maintained by military power and exploitation colonialism. The Shan, Pa-Oh, and other villagers near the Tigyit power plant have been sacrificed for resources and forced to endure the impacts of the country’s resource curse. Today, the power plant continues to destroy their land, health, and livelihoods.
Myanmar’s Resource Curse
“Resource curse” is a phenomenon often applied to countries or specific regions that are rich in natural resources, but also face high rates of poverty [7]. The “curse” arises when these places lack local control over natural resources [8]. The villagers of Tigyit are victim to the resource curse as Shan State is abundant in coal [9]. The mass of coal reserves near Tigyit influenced Wuxi Huaguang to occupy the area, in order to build the coal-fired power plant [10].
The Tigyit coal-fired power plant has influenced the rise in poverty in Shan State. The Myanmar Information Management Unit released a statement that revealed that almost 40 percent of the Shan State population lives below the poverty line [11]. Studies conducted show that the rise in poverty in Shan State correlates to land dispossession, loss of livelihood, and deterioration of health–which are all cases caused by the Tigyit power plant [12]. Many of the villagers, who were farmers, lost their agricultural land–their only source of income [13]. Moreover, air and water pollution from the coal mine and power plant left villagers with critical health issues, preventing them from returning to work [14].
Becoming A Sacrifice Zone
Tigyit villagers face major environmental disadvantages but despite this, the Myanmar government continues to be adamant about maintaining the coal operation as it not only generates power to citizens but also generates revenue as a portion of the electricity is exported to other industrial sectors [15]. Because of this, Tigyit is subjected to becoming a sacrifice zone.
The theory of sacrifice zones describes how communities are sacrificed for energy production, and then suppressed by the idea of “the greater good” [16]. This theory can be applied to Tigyit villagers, who have lost their farmland to the Wuxi Huaguang coal-fired power plant. Wuxi Huaguang was granted permits by the Ministry of Electricity and Energy to build a power plant in Shan State, Myanmar [17]. In 2015, it was reported that over 500 acres were taken from the villagers and used to expand the power plant [18].
Myanmar politicians are responsible for the injustice in Tigyit as they push a narrative that justifies sacrificing the village for “the greater good.” The villagers, alongside the Pa-Oh Youth Organization, have expressed their concerns to the Shan State government, but have been silenced by politicians [19]. U Ko Ko, a House of Nationalities representative, complained that the people of Myanmar “can’t be choosy about where the electricity comes from especially when it can benefit the country and people. It is not the time to say no to coal when only 35 percent of our country’s population have access to electricity” [20].
Deputy Minister of Electricity and Energy Khin Maung Win has also denounced the villagers of Tigyit as he declared his support for the power plant at a parliamentary meeting. He stated that “while the power generation is not very efficient for the region, we do benefit from this plant as it is capable of distributing…electricity to the people.”[21]. Myanmar politicians are a major barrier to protesting the power plant. They emphasize the benefits of the plant so that the public will overlook the oppression of the Tigyit villagers and instead, focus on the “greater good.”
References
[1] PYO and KAN (2011) “Poison Clouds: Lessons from Burma’s largest coal project at Tigyit”. Pa-Oh Youth Organization (PYO) and Kyoju Action Network (KAN) https://burmacampaign.org.uk/images/uploads/PoisonClouds.pdf
[2] PYO and KAN (2011)
[3] PYO and KAN (2011)
[4] Htun, Thiha (2018) “Myanmar Government Rejects Motion to Shutter Polluting Chinese-Owned Coal Plant”. https://www.rfa.org/english/news/myanmar/plant-05192020150555.html
[5] Htun, Thiha (2018)
[6] PYO and KAN (2011)
[7] Patrick (2012) “Why Natural Resources Are a Curse on Developing Countries and How to Fix It.” https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2012/04/why-natural-resources-are-a-curse-on-developing-countries-and-how-to-fix-it/256508/
[8] Patrick (2012)
[9] PYO and KAN (2011)
[10] PYO and KAN (2011)
[11] Myanmar Information Management Unit (2021) “Kachin and Northern Shan Emergency Situation.” https://themimu.info/emergencies/kachin
[12] Mohanty, S.K., Rasul, G., Mahapatra, B. et al. (2018) Multidimensional Poverty in Mountainous Regions: Shan and Chin in Myanmar. Soc Indic Res 138, 23–44 https://doi.org/10.1007/s11205-017-1662-9
[13] Mohanty, S.K., Rasul, G., Mahapatra, B. et al. (2018)
[14] Mohanty, S.K., Rasul, G., Mahapatra, B. et al. (2018)
[15] PYO and KAN (2011)
[16] Scott, R. (2010). Removing Mountains: Extracting Nature and Identity in the Appalachian Coalfields. University of Minnesota Press. Retrieved May 20, 2021, from http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.5749/j.ctttsd37
[17] PYO and KAN (2011)
[18] Kritsanavarin, Suthep (2015) “Myanmar Villagers Say Coal Projects Leave Them Landless and in Poor Health”. https://resourcegovernance.org/blog/myanmar-villagers-say-coal-projects-leave-them-landless-and-poor-health
[19] Thant, Htoo (2019) “Myanmar continues coal-plant plans”. https://www.mmtimes.com/news/myanmar-continues-coal-plant-plans.html
[20] Thant, Htoo (2019)
[21] Htun, Thiha (2018) “Myanmar MP Denounces Govt’s Extension of Controversial Coal Power Plant Operation”. https://www.irrawaddy.com/news/myanmar-mp-denounces-govts-extension-controversial-coal-power-plant-operation.html
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