Written question asked by John Bercow (Conservative) on Monday, 7 November 2005, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Wednesday, 9 November 2005. It was answered by Ian Pearson (Labour) on Tuesday, 15 November 2005 on behalf of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

Burma

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (1) what assessment he has made (a) of the announcement by Burma's military junta that it has begun to move ministries to Pyinmana and (b) its implications for civilians in the Shan, Chin and Karen states;

Answer: Diplomatic Missions in Rangoon were formally notified of the Burmese authorities' decision to relocate the seat of administration to Pyinmana on 7 November. The State Peace and Development Council claims that moving to a more central location will enable the government to carry out the development of the whole nation more effectively.It is too early to assess the full impact of the move on human rights or on populations locally or in the ethnic areas. We are aware of reports of forced relocations of villages in the construction area. It appears that in most cases some compensation was paid for land that was requisitioned, although not at full market rate.We are also aware of press reports of the use of forced labour during the construction. Forced labour has been used in the past for large scale infrastructure projects. Our position on forced labour is well known.

Secondary information

Type: Written question
Reference: 27013; 439 c1181W;439 c1181W
Session: 2005-06
Related items: Burma
Tuesday, 15 November 2005
Written questions
House of Commons; Burma
Tuesday, 15 November 2005
Written questions
House of Commons; Burma
Tuesday, 15 November 2005
Written questions
House of Commons; Burma
Thursday, 9 February 2006
Written questions
House of Commons
Subjects: Human rights Government departments Forced labour Location Myanmar
Link: View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk