Summary: "Despite its recent suspension of the Irrawaddy Myitsone dam, Burma?s regime, together with Chinese and Swiss companies, is planning to build two mega dams on the Shweli, a tributary of Burma?s great Irrawaddy River. The Shweli is a critical river for the economy and culture of Shan State, particularly for the Ta?ang (Palaung) people. • Nearly 15,000 people will be impacted by the planned Shweli dams. Over 3,000 people have been ordered to move out by 2013 without any guaranteed compensation. • Over 700 acres of local farmlands and community forest areas have already been seized during the construction of new roads and establishment of military camps near the dam sites. Burma Army soldiers deployed to the dam sites have put local fi shing grounds off limits, and forced women to restrict their movement. Rampant and unregulated logging by Burmese and Chinese companies has destroyed large sections of forests near the dam sites. • Battles between the Kachin Independence Army and Burma?s military troops broke out in a village between Shweli Dam 1 and Dam 2 in June 2011, forcing Chinese workers to fl ee. To date no one has returned, clashes continue in the area, and access to the Dam 2 site is prohibited without military permission. • Construction of the fi rst dam on the Shweli, completed in late 2008, led to increased militarization, forced labor and land confi scation. The vast majority of electricity generated at Shweli Dam 1 is exported to China. • A completed dam and two planned dams on the Shweli River are already having a series of negative impacts while providing little benefi t to local peoples. There is almost no public information about the dams, affected peoples have not been consulted, and no impact assessments have been disclosed. Therefore any further plans to dam the Shweli must be stopped."