The Issue of Land Acquisition/Grabbing-Induced Displacement in Myanmar: The Exacerbation of the Lives of Rohingyas

The violence against Rohingyas has intensified over the past several years in Myanmar, especially since 1948. In the relentless humanitarian catastrophe triggered by the massacres, riots, and mass displacement, socio-political factors always appeared in the front-line, but what is sometimes missed or rarely acknowledged are the economic aspects behind Rohingyas’ narration of expulsion. The crisis of Rohingyas in Myanmar not only has social (ethnic and religious) and political aspects. It also, deep down, has economic aspects, such as land acquisition laws and economic development, as contributing factors to forced displacement. Land acquisitions and subsequent land disputes/conflicts are among the significant contested, complicated and disturbing problems in today’s Myanmar’s shifting socio-political and economic environment. Keeping in view the laws and economic development, this paper considers the issue of land acquisition or grabbing-induced displacement in Myanmar. It examines laws on land questions in Myanmar that failed to achieve the desired goals and somehow became a medium to facilitate land acquisition in the state. It also highlights the economic development boom to increase foreign direct investment in the country, leading to land conflicts and land acquisitions in the State. Finally, the paper would like to shed light on how the land laws and land disputes/conflicts of land acquisition/grabbing-induced displacement impacts Rohingyas’ lives in Myanmar and force them to leave their country.

Available for download

Working Paper