Statement by RNK on Attempts to Resume the Myitsone Dam Project

Pajau Media

18 December 2025

The people of our country are those who have protected and preserved natural heritage for many generations. Despite this long standing protection, successive governments and those calling themselves the military have continued, up to the present time, to unjustly exploit the country’s natural heritage excessively and to engage in illegal sales.

The Myitsone confluence of the Ayeyarwady River, which is the lifeblood not only of the Kachin people but of all ethnic groups living in our country, is a natural heritage site. At this location, the Chinese government and the military junta are attempting to restart the Myitsone Dam Project. This project is one that successive governments have tried to implement, and it is evident that it is being pushed forward under pressure from the Chinese government.

The Myitsone Dam Project is a project that the entire public has opposed for more than 20 years. Therefore, our organization, River Network Kachin (RNK), hereby issues the following statement:

1. To respect and value the traditional culture and natural resources of local communities.

2. To immediately halt the implementation of the Myitsone Dam Project by the military junta that seized power.

3. To immediately stop the pursuit of the Myitsone Dam Project for the self-interest of China (or) any particular group.

4. To announce that our organization, together with the people, will continue to oppose this project through various means.