In April a law banning raw timber exports will be adopted in Myanmar, It could have a detrimental effect to the lives of those who work in the logging industry.
Thaketa port in Yangon is a hub of activity and draws many people looking for work.
Every day at the port in Thaketa, people of all ages clamber over the huge piles of logs – scraping off the bark to sell. They take the bags of bark to the shop to sell as firewood. A good size bag of bark gets you about 40 cents says one of the child workers.
“I sell around there. I can at least sell about 20 bags, one bag for 200."
Many people have set up illegal huts around the logging port. Whole families work day and night, stripping the logs of their bark. Than ThanNwe is one of the residents here. She says she must work all day to support her family. On a really good day she can get 10 US dollars for her efforts. But not every day is like that. “If I can't work, I can’t get food and I go into debt. Sometimes I wash clothes as well. I have a husband but he doesn't work and feed us. So, I have to work for my three children.”
The huskers are working here illegally. But authorities turn a blind eye because they know they are poor. But there are plenty of other things to worry about. As more people seize the opportunity to make money this way, the area has become crowded and competitive. To help, Than ThanNwe’s mother, Daw Tin Ei, picks up the pieces of bark that fall so that other poeple don’t nick them.
“I use a small bamboo stick to pick at the logs, like this. I tied some iron to the bamboo to make a spear. In the slum we have to earn our living this way.We don’t earn much.”
The job is dangerous and many people have been injured by falling logs or by getting trapped between them. If there is an accident the authorities block the area for a while. But the huskers can’t care too much about the danger. Another huskers, Daw Mya says, every bag of bark is another day’s food.
“Grandma doesn’t work every day. On a Saturday the children have to go to school. But even an extra day of work can contribute to the household expenses.”
In April a new law will come into affect that bans the exporting of raw timber. Trucks full of logs like this will be a thing of the past. Daw Tin Ei already notices there are fewer trucks now than even a few months ago. “When there is no wood, I do laundry. If I cannot find wood, I will live on washing clothes."
The family takes a lunch break and escapes the heat of the day. But soon enough they all head back out to scrape off more bark and to earn a bit more money.
