Tuesday, December 30, 2014

Murder at Myanmar Copper Mine

"Woman fatally shot at Myanmar mine protest" Associated Press  December 23, 2014

YANGON, Myanmar — A woman was fatally shot Monday during a crackdown on protesters at a controversial Chinese-backed copper mine in northwestern Myanmar.

Khin San Hlaing, a lawmaker from the National League for Democracy party, said the confrontation at the Letpadaung copper-mine project occurred as police and Chinese workers erected a fence on land that the villagers claimed as theirs.

She said a woman in her 50s was shot in the head, though it was not clear whether she was shot by police or mining company security personnel. Photos taken at the scene showed the dead woman bleeding from her head, and a wounded man sitting with blood on his thigh. Khin San Hlaing said 12 people were wounded, with nine hospitalized, including two in critical condition.

An official from the mine expressed sorry Tuesday at the death and said it will impact the company’s relationship with the community. “We have lost a member of the Letpadaung family and we feel very sorry,’’ said Cao Desheng, a public relations officer from Wanbao Mining Copper Ltd.

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