PLEASE CLICK ON THE IMAGE TO ENLARGE
he Burmese military junta has intervened and imposed curfew in an oilfield, after the dispute between a private oil company and local oil producers in Myaing Township, Magwe Division in central Burma.
The trade dispute occurred between local oil producers and 'Kaung Zaw Hein' Oil Company in Hnaw Bin oilfield in Bahin village tract, Myaing Township, Pakokku District, Magwe Division. After the skirmish between them, the local army unit LIB 247 imposed dusk to dawn curfew in this area.
"Now no one can go outside after 7 p.m. They have imposed curfew. The district police officer is now in this area. Moreover, the police are questioning many people. The Myaing Township Peace and Development Council (TPDC) Chairman has been organizing door to door campaigns to sell their oil only to this private company," a local oil producer and oil-well owner told Mizzima.
The local people from Bahin village tract, Myaing Township, produce oil by hand-drilled oil wells. But the private company 'Kaung Zaw Hein' entered the market and tried to exploit the producers, which ignited the discontent among them.
"They collected heavy taxes and slashed the oil price and moreover they told us to sell the oil only to them. Then the dispute turned to a brawl and later a riot. The people set the company office on fire including two company-owned vehicles. Then LIB 247 fired warning shots, which injured the wife of a cow cart owner from Shandong village, Ma Win Mar in the thigh," an eyewitness from this oilfield said.
Earlier, the oil producers had to pay Kyat 2,000 per barrel as tax for area development fund to the district authority. Then this company collected Kyat 8,500 per barrel as tax from these producers, the local people said.
"We must pay money as tax to them otherwise we cannot take our oil out of the oilfield. Moreover they forced us to sell oil only to them but they paid only Kyat 25,000-30,000 per barrel, when the market price is Kyat 55,000 per barrel. We then asked them to stop this practice," a local added.
The local authority is hunting down the labour and oil producers, who led this protest. Some are still at large and over 20 people have been detained by them so far.
Initially, they were held at Bahin police station and then they were taken to Myaing, it is learnt. Their exact whereabouts are not yet known, an oil producer said.
He said the condition of Ma Win Mar, who was injured by a gun shot, was also not known. Ma Win Mar was not admitted to the hospital immediately. They argued that it was not a gun shot wound, just accidental bruises and cuts incurred when she was on the run by bamboo spikes. It was only the next day that she was taken to Myaing and her whereabouts too are not known.
Under the current tense circumstances, the local oil producers are finding it difficult to continue their production. They could not take even a bottle of oil out from their oilfield.
"They told us that pay tax or do not produce oil here. We cannot do anything under this tight security. We are in a waiting and watching mode. No one is satisfied with the current situation," he said.
The producers can get at least one barrel per day if the oil output is good.
The Myaing TPDC office refused to answer the phone, when Mizzima contacted them to ask about this incident. They just said that they had no information on it and hung up the phone.
No comments:
Post a Comment