OCTOBER 1996 · VOLUME 17 · NUMBER 10
L E T T E R S T O T H E E D I T O R
Against Sanctioning Burma
IN RESPONSE TO THE JUNE 1996 article, "Sanctioning
Burma," I'd like to
again set the record straight on three key points regarding the Yadana natural
gas development project in Myanmar.
Fact: There has never been and will never be any forced labor on our
project. All work is paid labor and formalized through labor contracts. Workers
receive their pay directly, with payment stringently documented.
- From November 1995 through February 1996, almost 1,200 villagers from 12
villages have been hired by the project. Approximately US$290,000 has been paid
in local wages.
- Wages ranging from 200 kyats to 300 kyats per day have been set for
unskilled, semi-skilled and skilled workers. These are superior to prevailing
local average wage scales and, based on a recently completed cost-of-living
survey of 13 villages, can adequately support a family of five.
Fact: The project consortium is constructing all infrastructure
required to complete the Yadana project. We do not need nor will we use any
infrastructure not built by us.
- About 15 miles of graded roads have been constructed to support this
project. This regional system established the first major all-season
transportation network linking three principal villages.
- We have constructed all-weather, concrete-and-steel bridges over the
Heinze and Tavoy rivers, and three new bridges in two other villages.
Fact: The government of Myanmar will not receive $400 million in
annual revenue from this project.
- For the four project co-venturers -- including MOGE, the national
petroleum company -- the cumulative cash flow will not be positive until about
2001-2002.
- Government revenues in cash -- in the form of bonuses, tax revenues and
royalties -- will be reduced by the value of the domestic gas deliveries
(payment in kind). Additionally, the $1 billion development cost of the project
is being shared pro-rata by all four partners.
Unilateral sanctions only hurt the very people they're intended to help by
depriving them of jobs, education, medical care and economic opportunities.
The real priority must be to find ways to bring countries like Myanmar into
the family of nations, not isolate them further. U.S. corporations, through
their values and practices, support this cause.
The economic and political challenges facing Myanmar are complex, but progress
has begun. Foreign investment and governmental dialogue -- not isolation --
will make continued progress possible.
David Garcia
Senior Public Relations
Representative,
Unocal
El Segundo, California
# END #