Squatting in Myanmar explained

Following the 1962 coup d'état, Myanmar was ruled by a military dictatorship under which squatters were often evicted. In 2016, Aung San Suu Kyi led a civilian government and the first major eviction of squatters took place the following year at Hlegu Township, located northeast of Yangon; these squatters claimed they had bought their land legally.[1]

Hlaing Tharyar Township was founded in 1989 as a place in western Yangon where refugees and displaced squatters could be housed. It expanded dramatically after Cyclone Nargis hit Myanmar in 2008 and by 2021, it was estimated to contain 181 informal settlements with around 124,000 inhabitants.[2] Following the 2021 coup d'état, squatters protested against military intervention and were punished by evictions. Between 50 and 100 squatters were killed by State Administration Council (SAC) forces in February and by October, 8,000 families were facing eviction. Squatters under the Bayinnaung Bridge were evicted.[3] In another township in eastern Yangon known as Dagon Seikkan, there were 53,358 squatters in 2020.[4]

The Department of Urban and Housing Development stated in 2017 that Yangon had over than 440,000 squatters, living mainly in Dagon Seikkan and Hlaing Tharyar.[5] The Yangon Region Government announced in 2021 that it was building 6,000 homes in which to rehouse squatters, who would pay for the construction by monthly repayment.[6] The Mandalay Region Government said there were thousands of squatters living beside streams, roads and railways in places such as Amarapura, Chanmyathazi Township and Pyigyidagun Township.[7]

Notes and References

  1. News: Gerin . Roseanne . Myanmar Authorities Level Homes of Yangon 'Squatters' to Make Way For Residential Housing . 10 May 2022 . Radio Free Asia . 12 June 2017 . en . 28 March 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210328052105/https://www.rfa.org/english/news/myanmar/myanmar-authorities-level-homes-of-yangon-squatters-to-make-way-for-residential-housing-06122017161118.html . live .
  2. Book: Forced Evictions of Squatters during the Coup in Hlaing Thayar, Yangon: From Squatting to Homelessness . 2021 . UCL . 1–18 . 10 May 2022 . 6 February 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220206093954/https://www.ucl.ac.uk/bartlett/development/sites/bartlett_development/files/hty_oct_2021.pdf . live .
  3. News: Hlaingthayar Squatters face accommodation difficulties . 10 May 2022 . Eleven . 26 October 2021 . en . 26 October 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20211026143133/https://elevenmyanmar.com/news/hlaingthayar-squatters-face-accommodation-difficulties . live .
  4. Mar Yee Khin . Than Mu Mu . Lint Kyi . Patterns of Squatting and Determinants in Dagon Myothit (Seikkan) Township, Yangon City . Modern Environmental Science and Engineering . 2020 . 6 . 1 . 167–172 . 10.15341/mese(2333-2581)/01.06.2020/016 . 31 January 2024 . 2333-2581.
  5. News: Hein Ko Soe . For Yangon's squatters, a better life still out of reach . 9 May 2022 . Frontier Myanmar . 26 September 2017 . 8 March 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220308005632/https://www.frontiermyanmar.net/en/for-yangons-squatters-a-better-life-still-out-of-reach/ . live .
  6. News: Yee Ywal Myint . Yangon govt to build 6000 residential units for squatters . 10 May 2022 . The Myanmar Times . 6 January 2021 . 21 January 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220121103241/https://www.mmtimes.com/news/yangon-govt-build-6000-residential-units-squatters.html . live .
  7. News: Phyo Wai Kyaw . Govt urged to keep pressure on squatters this year . 10 May 2022 . The Myanmar Times . 1 January 2019 . 19 February 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210219052635/https://www.mmtimes.com/news/govt-urged-keep-pressure-squatters-year.html . live .

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