April 18, 2006:The Day of Global Action Against Daewoo

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1 Bulletin Volume 1, Issue 11 April 2006 April 18, 2006:The Day of Global Action Against Daewoo Daewoo March 22, 2005 (SGB) The Shwe Gas Movement recently announced the 2 nd International Day of Action which will be held on April 18, 2006, against Daewoo International and its consortium partners in the Shwe Gas Project in Arakan, Burma. It is expected that human rights and environmental activists in over 20 countries around the world will gather to demonstrate at local South Korean Embassies and Daewoo International offices in support of protection of human and environmental rights which was absent during the construction of the Yadana-Yetagun pipelines. Daewoo International is the major stakeholder in the Shwe Gas Project. The Shwe Gas Movement participants stated as follows: We will stand in solidarity with Burma s victims of severe and systematic human rights violations and environmental destruction. We will tell Daewoo International and the governments of South Korea, China, and India that their Continue to page-8 INSIDE (ALD) Editorial - page 2 Editorial / Oil Workers Injured in Exploration - page 2 Activists met Korean Ambassador - page3 Chinese s Oil Exploration: Pumping Blood?- page 3 Unocal: More Gas Profit Found at Gunpoint Myanmar - page offshore 4 blocks- page 4 S-Gas Project Requires News Record - page EIA- 7 page5 Indian President s Visit- page 6 Anti-Shwe Protest Photos Groups - page Want7 Daewo Continued out from of Burma- Page1- page page 88

2 The Shwe Gas Bulletin Lives Suffering from Oil Companies need Support Indian President A. P. J. Abdul Kalam left Burma after his recent three day visit with a signed Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for Burma to sell Shwe natural gas through a pipeline to India. The terms were identical to the MoU signed with China in December However, President Kalam, a leader of one of the world s largest democratic countries, said nothing about Burma s leader of the democracy movement, Aung San Suu Kyi, in his talks with the leaders of Burma s military junta, even though just a week earlier, India and the United States issued a joint statement calling for the release of Burma s democratic leader during President George W. Bush s visit to India. Instead, energy thirsty India s relationship with Burma s brutal military regime warmed up, the Indian president expressing his desire to explore onshore and offshore oil and gas exploration and extraction in Burma. Currently the Indian corporations Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) and Gas Authority of India Limited (GAIL) are partners in the Shwe Gas Project, an Arakan offshore gas exploration and extraction consortium, with South Korean corporations Daewoo International and Korea Gas Authority Limited (KOGAS). The private Indian corporation Essar Oil Limited has secured rights to explore onshore Block L in Sittwe, Arakan State. Two Chinese corporations, China National Offshore Oil Company Myanmar Ltd. and China Huanqiu Contracting and Engineering Corporation and Singapore s Golden Aaron Pvt. Ltd. are currently starting exploration for oil in onshore Block M in Arakan State. The oil will be transported by pipeline to Kunmin, Yunan Province in China from Kyauk Phyu, Arakan State. While foreign corporations are conducting exploratory drilling for natural gas and oil and planning pipelines from Arakan Sate to India and China, local Arakanese and Chin people along the onshore pipeline route areas are suffering from the local military s land confiscation, forced labor, portering and forced relocations. The exploration for oil and natural gas in Arakan State not only impacts the lives and livelihood of local people, it also will increase the power and control of Burma s military junta over the lives of the people in Arakan, Chin and Shan states, through which the pipelines will traverse. Arakanese activists in exile in cooperation with international human rights and environmental activists have launched a campaign against the Shwe Gas Project. During the 1 st International Day of Action in October last year, demonstrations were held around the world against Daewoo International and its consortium partners. On April 18, regional and international environmental and human rights activists in a 2 nd International Day of Action will again demonstrate, this time in over 20 countries, against South Korea s Daewoo International and its consortium partners, to raise international awareness and to support the protection of human life and the environment in Arakan, Chin and Shan states in Burma. They need our support. Seven Burmese and Two Chinese Officers Injured in Mine Explosion Narinjara News 3/26/2006 Two Chinese engineers and seven Burmese drillers were injured in a mine blast during the drilling of an oil well in a village of Rambree Island in Arakan State on Friday, said a businessman from Kyaukpru. Mr. Ranchaung Kyan, 39 years old, and Khai Yanshin, 40, from China National Offshore Oil Corp., or CNOOC, were seriously injured in the mine explosion and have been admitted to Kyaukpru district hospital. The seven injured Burmese drillers were identified as: Chit Lwin, aged 50; Zin Lin Ko, aged 22; Zaw Win, 31; Tun Tun Win, 27; Myaint Maung, 21; Chan Min, an officer of geology aged 21; and Kyaw Myint Aung, 21. They were also shifted to Kyaukpru district hospital from Rambree hospital around noon on Friday. Among the seven, Chin Lwin and Zin Lin Ko were seriously injured and their condition remains unstable, said a report. According to sources, the mine explosion occurred while they were drilling an oil well at Atwin Byin Village under Rambree Township. Mr. Ranchaung Kyan s health is steadily deteriorating due to his serious injuries. The Burmese army authorities from Kyaukpru are now arranging to send him to Rangoon via army helicopter, said an official from Kyaukpru. # NO WAY, NO SHWE! (A slogan of Shwe gas campagin) Page 2

3 Volume 1, Issue 11 Chinese Oil Exploration: Pumping Resident s Blood? The Chinese- Singaporean consortium s oil workers have operated with virtually no environmental and public health control in the on shore blockm, Kyaukphyu District. (March 25, 2006) A Chinese-Singapore consortium s current onshore oil exploration in the Kyaukphyu District, Arakan State, has had an adverse impact on the region, affecting resident s livelihood and causing environmental damage. Two Chinese corporations, The China National Offshore Oil Company Myanmar Ltd. and China Huanqiu Contracting and Engineering Corporation, and Golden Aaron Pvt.Ltd of Singapore were awarded exploration and extraction rights in 2004 for oil in onshore Block M, a 3,007 square mile area in Kyaukphyu District. The Chinese-Singaporean consortium s agreement with Burma s military junta provides for transporting the oil from Kyuakphyu District to Yunan Province in China.. Narinjara News reported this month that two Chinese engineers and seven Burmese oil workers were injured during a blast while drilling an oil well in a village on Rambree Island in Kyaukphyu District. According to local sources, the consortium began exploration last year and some local farm land located within the 3,007 square mile Block M were confiscated for exploration by the local military. Local private boats were often taken by the military without compensation to porter the local military s equipment and consortium officials and workers. Oil workers also cleared the forest for roads. The landowners were not compensated for the loss of their land or trees. Altogether 150 employees of the Chinese-Singapore consortium and 600 employees of Asia World Company are involved in drilling in the region. Asia World is one of the largest Burmese construction companies and is owned by former drug kingpin Lo Hshing Han s son who received a sub-contract from the consortium partners. In Block M, Kyaukphyu District, many families have been engaged in oil drilling by hand for their survival since 1824 when the British took control of the Arakan region. The local people have always drilled for oil anywhere around their villages, providing one-seventh of the profit they earn from selling the oil to the land owner. Traditionally, local people dig for oil using bamboo and metal pipes. It is a difficult manual labor process which is repeated again and again. About one liter of oil is extracted each time they drive the tube deep into the earth. Three to four people digging together produce about 1,000 gallons of crude oil every day. Over a thousand oil wells are presently being drilled by local people in Kyaukphyu District according to a local source. The survival of these people is threatened by the Chinese-Singaporean consortium s drilling in the whole region with modern equipment. One person from the region commented, People are very worried about their future because of the Chinese-Singaporean consortium with modern equipment will pump out much more oil in far less time. The Chinese-Singaporean consortium s oil exploration/ production at this time is without any environmental or public health safeguards because Burma s military junta has not adopted any safeguards. People s lives and livelihoods and the local environment are being threatened.// (SGB) TAB Page 3

4 The Shwe Gas Bulletin More Gas Found in Myanmar Offshore Block KN News (March 6, 2006) Natural gas deposits have been found at the Mya field in block area A-3 in western Myanmar s Rakhine offshore area, said a report of the official newspaper New Light of Myanmar Monday. Successful drilling of the Mya test well No. 1 at the block in the offshore area was carried out with gas burning on Sunday. It was estimated that the Mya field contains 2 trillion cubic-feet ( TCF) or billion cubicmeters (BCM) of gas being explored by a consortium of foreign oil companies, led by South Korea s Daewoo International Corporation. Myanmar is planning to sell gas produced from the Mya field along with two other fields Shwe and Shwephyu in block A-1 to neighboring countries such as India and China through pipelines, the report said. The exploration on the block A-3 was conducted under an agreement reached in February 2004 between the Myanmar Ministry of Energy and the consortium, in which Daewoo holds a 60-percent stake, while South Korea Gas Corporation 10 percent, ONGC Videsh Ltd of India 20 percent and Gas Authority of India Ltd (GAIL) 10 percent. Adjacent to the block A-3, which has an area of 6,780- square- kilometer (sq-km), there lies block A-1 where two deposits of natural gas, known as the Shwe field and the Shwephyu field, had already been found by the same consortium in January 2004 and April 2005 respectively. The Shwe field holds a gas reserve of 4 to 6 TCF or to 170 BCM, while the Shwephyu 5 TCF or BCM. And the whole block A-1 is estimated to yield up to 14 TCF or BCM of gas. Meanwhile, Indian company the Essar Oil Ltd has also reached a contract with Myanmar to undertake gas exploration activities at Block A-2 in the same Rakhine offshore area and Block-L in the coastal region of Sittway. Moreover, three more available blocks off Myanmar s southern Tanintharyi coast are also under natural gas exploration with test wells being planned for drilling by Malaysia s Petronas Company covering blocks M-16, M- 17 and M-18 with areas of ranging from about 13,000 sqkm to 14,000 sq-km. Recent years have seen foreign oil companies increase engagement in oil and gas exploration in Myanmar. Thailand s PTTEP, for example, has covered a number of blocks such as M-3, M-4, M-7, M-9 and M-11 under contracts, while another consortium made up of Chinese and Singaporean companies are also engaged in oil and gas exploration in some onshore and offshore areas. With three large offshore and 19 onshore oil and gas fields, Myanmar possesses a total of 87 trillion cubic-feet (TCF) or 2.46 trillion cubic-meters (TCM) of gas reserve and 3.2 billion barrels of recoverable crude oil reserve, official statistics show. The figures also indicate that in the fiscal year of , Myanmar produced 7.48 million barrels of crude oil and billion cubic meters (BCM) of gas. Gas export during the year went to 9.5 BCM, earning over 1 billion U.S. dollars. Since Myanmar opened to foreign investment in late 1988, such investment in the oil and gas sector had reached 2.61 billion dollars as of the end of 2005, dominating the country s foreign investment. Foreign oil companies engaged in the oil and gas sector mainly include those from Australia, Britain, Canada, China, Indonesia, India, South Korea, Malaysia and Thailand.// Page 4

5 Volume 1, Issue 11 The Shwe Gas Project Requires an EIA Now Part I: Sustainable Development Requires an EIA by Lars Thompson ( March 27,2006) Through our human activities, we have demonstrated our capacity to degrade our planet, having caused the deterioration of the ozone layer, the extinction of species, and mass deforestation and desertification. Economic projects in Burma such as the Yadana-Yetagun gas pipeline project by Unocal and Total have caused very significant detrimental effects on natural resources and people. Severe human rights abuses by the Burmese military on the Yadana-Yetagun gas pipeline project included forced and uncompensated relocation of thousands of local villagers, forced labor, rape and torture. Unocal and Total benefited from these actions by the Burmese military which resulted in affected villagers receiving multimillion dollar settlements from both Unocal and Total. Significant environmental degradation was caused by Unocal and Total. Mercury was discharged into the Andaman Sea as part of the extraction process, adversely affecting the fish and surrounding waters of the Andaman Sea, and deforestation occurred in clearing the pipeline route and building roads necessary to construct the pipelines. Without adequate environmental planning through the EIA process, the Yadana-Yetagun gas pipeline project disrupted social harmony, caused the loss of human livelihood and life, destroyed natural resources, and is currently using up a non-renewable resource. The preconditions for similar human rights violations and environmental degradation currently exist with respect to the Shwe Gas Project. The Shwe Gas Project is not sustainable because the above mentioned consequences negate the positive effects of economic development. In Burma and other developing countries, economic development has focused on immediate economic gains, environmental protection not being a priority or even a concern. Economic losses from degradation of the environment are often not felt until years after the development occurs. Unregulated and unplanned economic growth, through activities such as the Yadana-Yetagun gas pipeline project and now the Shwe Gas Project, have not and will not alleviate poverty and improve the quality of life of local affected residents. There is a strong interconnection between environmental deregulation, poverty and unregulated development. Sustainable development occurs only when environmental, economic and social needs are integrated to increase the standard of living in the short-term, with a net gain among human, natural and economic resources to support future generations. An EIA involves examining, analyzing and assessing a proposed activity in order to maximize the potential for environmentally sound and sustainable development by integrating environmental issues into development planning. An EIA is generally required when a proposed activity is likely to significantly impact the environment, the EIA process generally ensuring that prior to the approval of a proposed activity, the following will occur: Appropriate authorities will have fully identified and considered the environmental effects of the proposed activity under their jurisdiction; and Affected citizens will have had the opportunity to understand the proposed activity and will have been able to express their views to the decision makers. An EIA has yet to be prepared by the partners in the Shwe Gas Project consortium. Local residents of Arakan State, where the exploration activities are occurring, have not been consulted or permitted to express their views.// Please read Part II in the next edition Part II of this six part series will explain why the Korean consortium partners are required to prepare an EIA now before additional exploration occurs, and prior to extraction and further construction of the Shwe Gas Project. Lars Thompson is a freelance environmental journalist residing in Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA. Citations availalbe upon request (larsthomp@yahoo.com). (SGB) ( The Shwe Gas Movement) Page 5

6 The Shwe Gas Bulletin In Myanmar Vist, Indian President Jockeys with China for Energy (AFP) 12 March 2006 YANGON - India s president left Myanmar this weekend with a new deal on natural gas, joining China in a race for the country s resources that weakens international demands for democratic reforms, analysts said on Sunday. Myanmar is under a patchwork of US and European sanctions, imposed over human rights abuses by its military rulers and to press for the release of pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi. Neighbours in Southeast Asia have become increasingly vocal in their concerns about Myanmar s failure to deliver on promised reforms. Despite regional frustration at repeated delays in a visit by an envoy from the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), analysts said there s only so much the region or the West can do. The geopolitical situation favors the Burmese military a lot. ASEAN is limited, in that Burma can do a lot because of China and India engaging the Burmese military, political analyst Aung Naing Oo said, referring to Myanmar by its former name. Myanmar, which borders both China and India, possesses signficant untapped natural gas reserves off its western Arakan Coast. Neighboring Thailand already pipes natural gas from Myanmar s offshore reserves in the southeast in the Andaman Sea. Energy-hungry China and India hope for a similar arrangement from the reserves off Arakan. China signed a deal with Myanmar in November to consider building a pipeline from the Shwe field to its Yunan province. Indian President Abdul Kalam left Yangon on Saturday with a similar agreement to explore transport options. India has been trying to negotiate a three-billion-dollar deal to run a pipeline from Myanmar across Bangladesh to the eastern Indian city of Kolkata, but failed to make headway in the talks. The agreement signed Thursday would allow studies into running a much longer pipeline through northeast India, which borders Myanmar, or converting the gas to liquefied natural gas for shipping. But the scramble for Myanmar s natural resources has immunized the junta from the pain of western sanctions and demands for reforms, Aung Naing Oo said. Although India always claims they are a great democracy, they want closer ties with the Burmese military, he said. During Kalam s trip, Indian officials said the president never mentioned Aung San Suu Kyi in his talks with the generals, even though India and the United States made a joint statement calling for her release during President George W. Bush s visit just one week earlier. Aung San Suu Kyi, whose party won 1990 elections but was never allowed to take office, has spent more than 10 of the last 16 years in detention. Myanmar political analyst Win Naing said India couldn t afford to talk directly about Aung San Suu Kyi or specific human rights abuses, for fear of alienating the generals and losing ground to China. The Indian president might discuss with our senior general about democracy and national reconciliation, but only in loose terms, Win Naing said. India is striving for better bilateral relations with Myanmar by competing with China. Myanmar businesses are also keen to boost trade with India, a country that many here see as a natural partner because of its significant Indian community, estimated at about one million people. Two-way trade currently stands at about 400 million dollars, one-third the level of Myanmar s trade with China, Sein Win Hlaing, head of Myanmar s chamber of commerce, told AFP. It doesn t mean that these two countries are competing to influence Myanmar. We all benefit from it, Sein Win Hlaing said. Whether the new gas reserves in western Myanmar go to India or to China or a combination the profits will go directly to the military at the expense of the nation s impoverished people, analysts said. The riches from sales of natural resources always disappear into thin air. We don t know how this money is spent, Aung Naing Oo said. The Shwe Gas Bulletin is also available online at shwegasbulletin.html Page 6

7 Volume 1, Issue 11 Protest against state visit of India president Abdul Kalam to Burma by the exile Burmese people in Janta Mantar, Parliament Street of New Delhi on March 10, The memorandum also gives to the president of India and The Prime minister of India by The Shwe Gas Pipeline Campaign Committee (India). (SGB) Photo-Aye Aye Win Three pro-democracy Burmese staging 100 hours hunger strike in New Delhi against India s economic corporation with Burma military junta. (Taken from Mizzima.com) Arakan Gas Research Team K.Kyaw Khaing (Jockai) Lars Thompson (Volunteer) Claudia (Volunteer) Layout & Designed by Herman Thanks to BRC for Their Support Contributions of pictures, articles, news, or research papers are welcome. Any suggestions or advice to improve the quality of news and information sharing from you are most valuable to us. Page 7

8 The Shwe Gas Bulletin From page-1 involvement with Burma s military junta in the Shwe Gas Project is unacceptable. We will tell them that they will be held responsible for any violations associated with the project. Burma s military junta in two separate Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) agreed to sell Shwe natural gas and deliver it through pipelines from Arakan State to both India and China. The people of Arakan and Chin states along the proposed pipeline route to India have already begun suffering from the local military s uncompensated land confiscations, forced and uncompensated relocations, and forced labor for road construction. The proposed China pipeline will travel from Arakan State across central Burma s dry zone, where 25% of Burma s population resides, through mountainous Shan State and to Kunming, Yunan Province.. Shwe gas activists have stated that if the pipeline to China is built, substantial environmental damage and human rights abuses will result, Burma s military junta and the Tatmadaw under its control being internationally recognized as constant and consistent violators of human and environmental rights. Burma s military junta in the early 1990s partnered with Unocal, a US corporation, and Total of France to AYNG AYNG Arakanese women on India-Burma proposed pipeline route were forced to harvest Burmese military s groundnut field. construct the Yadana-Yetagun pipelines through southern Burma. The construction of the pipelines caused increased militarization and systematic abuses of human and environmental rights by Burma s military junta. Forced labor was widely used along the pipeline routes to build access roads, helipads, and military Photo: barracks. Kaya&Susan Land was confiscated from local farmers without compensation and communities were forcibly relocated. In addition, Tatmadaw soldiers committed rape, torture, and extrajudicial killings in the area of the pipelines. The Shwe Gas Project is potentially the single largest source of revenue for Burma s military junta. Analysts have observed that the military junta squanders the income from oil and gas sales and other foreign investments for military arms purchases, military expansion, and prolonging their own military power. The gas in Blocks A1 and A3 in the Bay of Bengal is being developed by an international consortium of private and state-owned companies from South Korea and India in partnership with Burma s military junta. Daewoo International in South Korea is the largest stakeholder with a 60 per cent share. Korean Oil and Gas (KOGAS), a South Korean mostly state-owned corporation, holds a 10 per cent share. In India, the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) holds a 20 per cent share, and the Gas Authority of India Ltd. (GAIL) has a 10 per cent share.// Arakan Gas Research Team PO.Box 184, Mae Paing Post Office, Chiang Mai Thailand Shwenews@yahoo.com: Phone: Monthly Bulletin To: