Soldier shot dead officers over sharing extortion money at Irrawaddy project

KNG

The Burmese soldier, providing security to Chinese inspectors at the Myitsone dam project of the Burma-Asia World Co., Lt. in Irrawaddy River confluence in Kachin State in Northern Burma, shot dead three army officers over a dispute relating to sharing extortion money on June 6, local sources said.

The soldier Phoo Zaw shot dead the officers in the military post beside Asia World Co., Ltd. camp, 17 miles north of Myitkyina the capital of Kachin State at about 9 p.m. local time after he came back from security duty, residents of Myitsone area told KNG today.

Two corporals died in the military post and a sergeant was seriously injured. He died later in Myitkyina Public General Hospital, the villagers of Tang Hpre in Myitsone said.

All soldiers in the military post were from Burma army's Infantry Battalion No. 297 based in Shahtuzup village in Hukawng valley and they arrived at the Myitsone since early last month, the locals said.

According to local Burmese military, the shooting had nothing to do with security of the dam project. It was a fall out of an argument between soldiers and officers over sharing extortion money.

In the name of providing security at the Irrawaddy Dam project, the Burmese military post forcibly collected money from civilians in the Tang Hpre (Myitsone) ferry station. The soldiers collect money for all goods on ferries crossing the Myitsone Ferry Station. Rafts made of timber sail on the water and the soldiers stop it and collect money. Money is also extorted from gold mines around the Myitsone, a local businessman told KNG.

The soldiers extorted least 1 million Kyats (est. US $ 889) monthly from the Myitsone ferry station alone and they also collected money from cane trucks from Putao on the Myitkyina-Putao car road, local businessmen added.

Last year on November 23, a senior Chinese engineer fell to his death on the Mali-N'mai Rivers' confluence (Irrawaddy Confluence) while he was on inspection.

Rev. Brang Nu, Chief Baptist pastor in Tang Hpre village talking about the death of the Chinese engineer and the latest shooting at the Burmese army post said, "I believe that these incidents are unusual and are the acts of God because we Tang Hpre villagers pray every time and we also observe no food prayer service programme monthly for a halt to the dam project at the Myitsone."

Rev. Brang Nu said that the Myitsone also called Mali-N'mai Zup in Kachin is an invaluable natural heritage and they have decided to pray till the dam project stops. This is all we can do at the moment, he added.

Ethnic Kachins and residents of Myitsone officially appealed to Burmese junta supremo Senior General Than Shwe through the Kachin National Consultative Assembly (KNCA) to stop the Myitsone hydroelectric power project in 2006 but no response has been received yet, according to villagers of Tang Hpre.

Jointly the Ministry of Electric Power (1) of the Burmese junta and China's China Power Investment Corporation (CPI), have planned to build seven hydropower plants in Mali River and N'mai River in Kachin State.

Of them Myitsone is the biggest project and will generate an estimated 3600 MW of electricity, according to the junta's state-run media.

Till now, the killer soldier has not been captured and Burma Army's Myitkyina Military Strategic Command has been ordered to find the killer soldier by the junta's Kachin State Command Commander Maj-Gen Ohn Myint.