Not all Lao villagers happy to resettle for Nam Theun II dam

See construction progress

"We don't need to do much more than wait for the Nam Theun Company to give us jobs and cash," said Thongsay, a 50-year-old villager at Ban Sop On.

Thongsay joined more than 6,500 people from 1,250 households in 17 villages on the Nakai Plateau who left their old homes on the banks of the Nam Theun River. Their villages will be underwater when the Nam Theun II Dam is completed in two years time.

The Lao government and the Nam Theun Power Co have promised the villagers the dam will bring benefits.

"Of course, my life has changed a lot and it is better since we moved from our old home over a year ago," said another villager, Khamsy Sysa-ad.

Under the resettlement programme, each family got a new house on 0.66 hectares of land and three hectares for farming. The company provides them with food in the transition period before the dam is fully operational.

"I don't know how long the free food will last, but we are preparing to stand on our own feet when the dam becomes operational in the next two years or so," Khamsy said.

The 1, 070-megawatt hydropower project will export 995MW to Thailand, generating annual revenue of more than US$200 million (Bt6.86 billion). Direct revenue to the Lao government over the 30-year concession will reach $2 billion, which the communist government will spend on poverty reduction, said Bosaikham Vongdara, the minister for energy and mines.

However, not all villagers share the dream. At least 14 households in Ban Sop Hia on the banks of the Nam Theun River have refused to move to the resettlement site, saying they have no idea how life will be there. These people are Vietic animists who insist on being resettled within their "spiritual territory". They want their own Vietic village and do not want to mix with others.

The company has failed several times to convince them to move, despite giving them information about the flooding of their land, a company official said. "We explained the effect of the dam, but they still have no idea that their homes will be inundated forever," said Hoy Phomvisouk, deputy manager of the Resettlement Management Unit.

However, conservationist group International Rivers Network (IRN) said the villagers were not that naive, as the resettlement area for them was very dry and they would have to learn how to do new things like operate pumps.

The soil was also poorer than at their current site, according to an IRN report. "Their relatives [who have moved to the new site] can't find enough food and have to rely on rice provided by the company," the report said.

Independent consultants managed to move them above the reservoir level, a few kilometres away from the old village of Sop Hia, before the heavy rain, expected this month.

"By the time the reservoir is created in July next year, all 1,250 families will be relocated to new villages on the plateau to begin new lives," Hoy said.

Supalak G Khundee

The Nation

NAKAI PLATEAU, LAOS