Burma-Myanmar: Clashes erupted near Tavoy between army and Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA)’s Brigade 4
Clashes have erupted along a key overland route that will link the Tavoy deep-sea port megaproject in southern Burma to Southeast Asian economies, once again highlighting the volatility of large-scale infrastructural ventures in Burma.
Burmese troops have been stationed along several locations between the port and the Thai border where work is underway to build a multi-lane highway to the town of Kachanaburi, and then on to Bangkok.
Fighting broke out on Tuesday last week close to the town of Myitta, through which the road will pass.
Territory controlled by the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA)’s Brigade 4 lies close to the region of Tavoy that is being transformed into Southeast Asia’s largest industrial complex, and the group has actively opposed the project:
Zipporah Sein, the general secretary of the KNLA’s political wing, the Karen National Union (KNU), told Karen News Group in July that companies that did not get the group’s permission to enter the region “will be regarded as military dictatorship-backed companies”.