Tuesday, June 2, 2009

Salween River Dam Construction Could Submerge Karen Village In Thailand


A Thai Army soldier takes a break in a small store in Ban Ta Tha Fang, Thailand.

Photo © John Brown All Rights Reserved

Ban Ta Tha Fang, Thailand is a community located on the Salween River along the Thai - Burmese (Myanmar) that is currently under siege. It's not being attacked by the neighboring Burmese junta but rather, planed dam construction by the Myanmar government set to get underway.

The small village is inhabited by 250 Karen people, half of whom fled their native Burma to escape war atrocities, as well as ethnic Karen who are natives of Thailand.

This small village on the shores of the Salween River could be submerged after "feasibility studies" currently underway are completed. The residents of the village have lodged formal complaints with the Thai government, which plans to purchase hydro-electric power from Burma once the dam is completed.

The US-based International Rivers Network (IRN) warned the dam could threaten some of Thailand's most precious eco-systems.

Buying and selling energy is a hot topic of discussion in Southeast Asia these days. Cambodia has received around 400,000 kWh of electricity from Vietnam per day this year and in Laos, 60,400 cubic meters of renewable water resources per capita is available, more than any other country in Asia. It's no surprise that 6 large mainstream Mekong River dams are being proposed in Laos.

Maybe the soldier should be on the lookout for construction equipment rather than Burmese Army soldiers. It seems that in the case of the small village of Ban Ta Tha Fang, Thailand, the Thai and Burmese governments are using new weapons.

John Brown Photojournalist On LIGHTSTALKERS
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