Myanmar: Land Disputes Leading Cause of Human Rights Complaints

Nov 12, 2014 | Nobel Zaw, The Irrawaddy
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RANGOON — The Myanmar National Human Rights Commission (MNHRC) has said that nearly 45 percent of the total complaints it has received this year stem from land disputes, the highest proportion of such complaints since the commission was founded three years ago.

From January to the end of August this year, 547 of a total 1,220 complaints received by the MNHRC were land disputes. Officials said that the disputes are related to the 2012 Farmlands Act, which requires farmers to seek permission to cultivate their land from their township.