Farmers from Ma-Htaw-Khu will face hardships if they are not given farmland to replace their land that was seized by the police force to use for training.
U Say Reh from Zayat-Phyu Village said “if they will not give us the land back or reject our claim they will have to pay us enough to replace our farmland because working the land is our livelihood.”
According to villagers last year Lawpita Police Station seized 58 acres of land owned by 12 farmers and forbade them from using it so that it could be used for police training.
The 12 farmers are from Zayat-Phyu, Thatta-Palu, Nam-Pwar and Law-Da-Lay villages under the Ma-Htaw-Khu Village Tract, Loikaw Township, Karenni State. They said that the police have surveyed the seized land and marked it out with flags.
One farmer said: “This is our only land, if they seize it we will face hardships because we rely on this land. If they give us compensation it should be enough to buy new land.”
He said the main crops grown on the seized land are corn and rice. Each acre of land produces either 1250 viss (about 2,040kg) of corn or 40 tins (about 1,635 liters) of rice.
To try and get their land back the farmers have sent petitions and letters of complaint to the State Government Office and other state departments.
