Cha Khan villagers, homes bulldozed to make way for deep sea port
The Italian-Thai Development Company (ITD) bulldozed the homes of Cha Khan residents’ in Yephyu Township, Tenasserim Division, to make way for the Dawei deep-sea project.
Speaking to Karen News, a Cha Khan villager said.
“At the end of January, the ITD Company bulldozers began clearing Cha Khan village. Now, only 15 houses are left. The land owner victims have no place to live.”
Villagers alleged that they did not get paid any compensation for their bulldozed lands and houses from the ITD Company or any other organization. Cha Khan villagers were not the only people to suffer, homes of residents from Pyin Ni village in the Nabule area, located in the project area were also destroyed by ITD Company bulldozers.
The Tavoyan Voice, an advocacy group working on human rights in the region, allege on their website states that the ITD Company bulldozed the villager’s lands without paying compensation. In response, villagers and civil society groups held a meeting in early January to demand compensation for the loss of their land be paid.
The Tavoyan Voice website, claims that Thailand’s largest electronic power company, the PTT Company, will invest USD 4 million in the Dawei deep seaport, a 3,000 megawatt coal-fired power project of the ITD Company.
