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The SPDC requires that farmers of every type of crop in Burma hand over a portion of their crop calling it ‘ta won kyay’ (‘obligation’). The quotas are set at a certain number of baskets of paddy or units of another crop per acre. Meetings are held each year to notify the villagers in each area as to how many acres they are expected to grow and the quotas they must pay per acre. The acreage and quotas are set whether the villagers can actually plant and harvest that much or not. ‘Paddy-buying’ officials go around the villages at harvest time to collect the quota. The quotas are usually set at 12-15 baskets of paddy per acre. Farmers are forced to sell their paddy at less than half the market price or face arrest. Corrupt officials steal much of the money by tacking on extra ‘fees’ and claiming the paddy has straw or impurities and the farmers end up receiving only 20% or less of the market price. The SPDC gets the crop quota, which it provides to civil servants or sells as an export, and the corrupt officials pocket much of the money.
Rice growing season in Karen State runs from June to November, depending on the rains. On hill fields, advance field preparation starts as early as January or February, but the ploughing of flat irrigated fields begins with the first rains in June. SPDC authorities dictate the overall paddy quotas for the townships in mid-year. These are then broken down by village tract, then village, and eventually to each acre owned by each farmer. Quotas are based on targets set at higher levels and on the acreage that the authorities say is available for planting. This often bears no relation to what the farmers are actually able to plant. Forced labour and SPDC extortion make it difficult for farmers to plant and tend their entire fields or obtain a full crop. No exceptions are granted for these difficulties or for natural disasters such as floods or droughts and the quotas increase with each year. Farmers who do not have enough seed or resources to plant can apply for cash ‘advances’ from the authorities to buy seed, hire buffaloes for ploughing, or other needs. These advances are later deducted from the already small amount paid for the rice quota.
In November, when it is almost time for the harvest, the Township Peace and Development Council appoints a “Township Paddy Buying Supervisory Group” and “Village Tract Paddy Buying Groups” for each village tract. The township group is responsible for going around the village tracts in January/February to collect the assigned quotas, pay out the required money, and arrange for the delivery of the quotas to the “paddy buying centres” in town. The Township Paddy Buying Groups are notoriously corrupt; the village officials are expected to treat them like royalty when they arrive, feast and entertain them, and they demand extra rice from the surrounding villages as well as pocketing most of the quota money which is supposed to be given to the farmers. The Village Tract Paddy Buying Groups are responsible for making sure that all the villages in their tract provide the specified quotas on time; some of these groups are also corrupt, and some are not.
Farmers who are unable to produce their full quota, and villages that are late in paying are issued a first warning. If the paddy quota still does not arrive, the letters become more threatening. Order #336 states that only farmers who have fully paid their paddy quota will be allowed to grind their own paddy to eat, and the machines will be turned off or confiscated if they are found to be grounding the paddy of villagers who have not paid. According to official paddy buying agreements which the village elders are forced to sign, if a farmer fails to meet the quota, even if it is because of natural disaster, the outstanding balance must be paid in paddy out of the next crop, plus interest (payable in paddy) calculated at an extortionate interest rate of 17% per annum. Under this system a farmer would never be able to catch up with the interest after just one bad crop. When the debt adds up the farmer may be faced with having his land taken by the State or arrest, although many villagers flee their villages before this happens. To avoid this farmers try to pay the full quota any way they can. In bad years this means borrowing from others or buying it on the open market (at double or triple the price they will get for the quota) to pay the quota while their families go hungry. The SPDC uses the quota rice to support its expanding Army, and sells some as an export to try and convince the international community that its economy is in good shape.
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Stamp: To Subject: Matter of granting permission to grind paddy only to the farmers who have fulfilled (their) duty1. To buy the year 2001-2002 paddy, each farmer from village tract / villages has a fixed quota of paddy to be sold. 2. The farmers who have finished selling the fixed quota paddy and have receipts of fulfilling the recommended duty by the Myanmar Agricultural Produce Trading [Company] will be allowed to grind their paddy at mills. Farmers who have not completed selling the quota of paddy will not be allowed to grind their paddy and if the paddy of those undutiful farmers is found being ground, actions such as the turning off of the grinding machine and confiscating it [will be taken]. [You] Are informed to distribute [this to] farmers from your section/village.
[Sd.] [This typewritten order was distributed to several villages in the area.] ______________________________________________________________________________ Order #337 (Papun)
Stamp:
Township Peace and Development Council Subject: Invitation to attend a meeting Regarding with
the matter of selling
paddy ,
[we] want to coordinate and discuss, so attend as the schedule below,
you are informed. Schedule Place:
TPDC, Chairperson’s house
[Sd.] ______________________________________________________________________________ Order #338 (Pa’an)
To:
Stamp:
Date: 21-1-2002___ Regarding the above subject, the Township Paddy Purchasing Group wants to coordinate and discuss the needs so come to xxxx monastery to arrive on 2002, January 22nd at 7 o’clock in the morning, you are informed.
[Sd.] [This was a typewritten carbon copied sent out to several villages.] ______________________________________________________________________________ Order #339 (Pa’an)
Stamp:
Subject: Must pay ta won kyay [obligation] paddy 1. Regarding the above subject, [you] must quickly paythe ta won kyay paddy from the elder’s [village] from xxxx Village Tract that remains to be paid to the Township Commercial Farm, you are informed. 2. Chairperson/Secretary any one must send the information to the Battalion Headquarters and must quickly send the firewood, bamboo that remains to be given, you are informed.
[Sd.] ______________________________________________________________________________ Order #340 (Pa’an)
Stamp:
1. Regarding the above subject, Elder’s village tract must pay quickly ta won kyay [obligation] paddy to the Township Commercial Farm, you are informed. 2. The 4 villages from the Elder’s village tract must come quickly (quickly) to send the firewood, bamboo that remains to be paid, you are informed.
[Sd.] ______________________________________________________________________________ Order #341 (Pa’an)
Stamp:
Township Peace and Development Council
To: Subject: The matter of completely selling the specified paddy. 1. In Myawaddy District, Myawaddy Township, keep aside enough paddy for the region’s own consumption, buy completely the specified paddy, organize the paddy buying committee step by step and then urge and carry it out. 2. We urged and bought like this until 1-3-2002, [but] in the register of paddy bought from each section/village, we checked and saw that xxxx village had to sell 1,632 baskets of paddy but only 789 baskets were bought and received. 3. Therefore, for buying and receiving the complete specified paddy, sell the paddy that remains to be sold completely on 8-3-2002 and from each of your villages gather and report the register of what was finished being sold today, you are informed.
[Sd.] Copy to: ______________________________________________________________________________ Order #342 (Pa’an)
To: Subject: Informing of attending a meeting A coordinating meeting will be held about the matter of buying paddy from the commercial farm at #548 Light Infantry Battalion on year 1363, Ta Boung La San 11st , 24-3-2002 Sunday, at 8 o’clock in the morning, the Elder yourself attend without fail (without fail), you are informed.
Stamp: ______________________________________________________________________________ Order #343 (Pa’an)
Stamp:
Myanmar Farm Product Sale and Export Subject: Announcement of opening the Goods Buying Centres Starting in year 2002 November 1st, Myawaddy Township, Myanmar Farm Product Sale and Export will accept and buy the rainy season paddy that the farmers in Myawaddy Township planted in 2002-2003 at the buying good centres shown below, you are informed. (a) Myoh Ma Centre - Myoh Ma paddy buying center is open near the new General Administrative Chief Department Office Mi Choung Gone, Section #( ) in the farm product paddy store at Myawaddy Town. (b) Thin Gan Nyi Naung Center - Thin Gan Nyi Naung paddy buying Center is open at the main Myawaddy-Kawkareik road near the communications (telephone) office and artillery unit in Thin Gan Nyi Naung village.
[Sd.] Copy to: ______________________________________________________________________________ Order #344 (Pa’an)
Township
Peace and Development Council
Date: 6-11-2002 Subject: Invitation to a meeting Regarding the above subject, [we] are going to celebrate and hold a meeting according to the aims below, so attend (without fail), you are informed. Aim :
The matter of buying
paddy
[Sd.] [This invitation was sent out to several villages in the area.] ______________________________________________________________________________ Order #345 (Pa’an) Attached Record of the people who attended a coordination meeting for buying paddy work in year 2002-2003 that was held in year 2002, November 10th at 1300 hours in Myawaddy township, Peace and Development Council at the Chairperson’s office.
Stamp: 1. Deputy Police Commander
Than Htun Member (1) TPDC Objective In the year 2002-2003 paddy buying season, each village must sell the specified paddy baskets totally. Township Peace and Development Council Member (1) gave the opening address 1. In the opening address of Township Peace and Development Council Member (1) Township Police Troop Commander, Deputy Police Commander Than Htun, called a paddy buying meeting for the villages that couldn’t attend on 7-11-2002, Htee Law Thi village signed an agreement [to sell] 3,160 baskets in this year, Khaw Koh village had sold 80 baskets in year 2000 and we also want them to sell at least 80 baskets this year. [We] want the villages of Meh P’Leh, Bpaw Law - Than P’Ya,, Kway Shan, Htee Kya Ra each to quickly sell the specified paddy, because the paddy insects are destroying in other villages and [the paddy] is becoming less. It will covered if the other villages can sell more. To complete the estimated 30,000 baskets of paddy, if VPDC and farmers carry it out together, [it] will be achieved. The paddy buying center is open starting on 1-11-2002, so if the respective villages [collect] and sell [the paddy] just once it is better. The paddy that was finished being bought should arrive under the roofs on time. Trade and Agriculture [Department] needs to arrange and carry it out. The paddy that is bought now is for the government servants to eat. He discussed it and spoke. Responses and Reports 2. Myo Ma and Thin Gan Nyi Naung paddy buying centres opened starting on 2002 November 1st. They plan to buy 5,000 baskets [of paddy] in November, do not sell by each village as the year before. We need every village to sell at the same time. We have specified [the paddy] should be sold at the latest on 31st of March 2003, but the insurgents will have military activity, so all the villages have to sell the specified paddy by the end of February 2003. They discussed and presented. 3. The decisions of the meetings are below.
4. Closed the meeting at (13:35) hours.
[Sd.] Letter # x / x -
xx / Oo x Distribution
Copies to: ______________________________________________________________________________ Order #346 (Pa’an)
Township Peace
and Development Council
Date:
18 -11-2002 To: Subject: Invitation to a meeting Regarding the above subject, [we] are going to celebrate and hold a meeting according to the aim below, so attend (without fail), you are informed. Aim : The matter of buying
paddy
[Sd.]
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