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An End to Illegal Timber Exports in Myanmar?

Myanmar is a country rich in natural resources, but fifty years of internal conflict over the control of its natural riches have thwarted effective development of their economic use. Timber, the country's primary natural resource, has been unscrupulously exploited by the elite of Myanmar and neighbouring countries. In October 2005, Global Witness released a report on the devastating effect of the unsustainable timber harvest to Myanmar's northern forests. The report stated that over 95% of the wood being exported to China was illegal. In the past four months illegal logging and timber trade at the China-Myanmar border has come to a near stop.

In the mid-1800s Myanmar came under control of the British Empire, which was keen to control the vast natural resources in the region, especially the rich teak forests. British rule amplified ethnic differences in the territory, resulting in conflicts that continue to this day. The Global Witness report, A Conflict Of Interest writes, "The inequitable exploitation of natural resources by the British colonial authorities in Burma’s border areas, caused great resentment amongst the ethnic communities who live there and was a primary cause of the ethnic insurgency at the time of Independence in 1948. Burma has been at war ever since, in large part due to the desire of the combatants to control access to these natural resources. Countries such as China and Thailand have supported the insurgent groups, often in exchange for access to natural resources including timber."

The report further notes, "Burma is one of the most biologically diverse countries in mainland Southeast Asia and has a large number of endemic species… Part of Burma’s global conservation significance derives from the fact that it contains ecotypes, such as lowland peninsular rainforest, that are already depleted in neighbouring countries, and its forests and other habitats are unusually rich in plants and animals… Commercial logging is probably the main threat to Burma’s forest resource particularly because of the increasing demand from neighbouring countries such as China, India and Thailand."

Illegal trade has brought social ills as well as environmental degradation into Myanmar and adjacent areas, including Yunnan in China. Whether the current suspension of illicit timber trade is an effort by China to reign in the unsustainable forestry practices devastating the area or just a strategic move in the long conflict remains to be seen.

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Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 12:08 AM on January 24, 2006