NUG vows to protect Ayeyarwady River as China and junta pushes to restart dam project

The National Unity Government (NUG) will work with resistance allies to protect the Ayeyarwady River and ensure its continued flow, NUG spokesperson U Nay Phone Latt said.

The resistance-run NUG’s stance comes amid China’s push, in collaboration with the coup regime, to revive a long-stalled mega dam project in the Myitsone area, north of the river.

U Nay Phone Latt outlined the NUG’s stance on the Myitsone Dam project in a message the NUG sent to the Myanmar people and the international community on January 6.

“The terrorist junta seized power illegally and is a regime without legitimacy, so it has no right to sell Myanmar’s natural resources or sign international treaties. Any agreement it signs will not be valid, and any resulting losses or damages will be borne solely by the junta and its partner investors,” he declared.

The junta and China are stepping up efforts to restart the Myitsone Dam project, and in December, junta authorities informed local communities in Kachin State, where the project is located, of plans to resume the project.

“If the dam bursts, towns and cities in Kachin State could be flooded instantly. Despite knowing this, the junta is still pushing to restart the Myitsone Dam project. In other words, it is sacrificing the heart of the country just to cling to power,” U Nay Phone Latt added.

The Myitsone Dam project could have catastrophic consequences. It may ruin farmland soil in the Ayeyarwady Region, disrupt the river’s natural flow, and allow seawater to intrude inland, causing severe damage to the region’s entire agricultural sector.

The Myitsone Dam project was temporarily halted during former President U Thein Sein’s tenure, but after the junta’s coup, it began trying to revive the project in collaboration with China.