Asia Times Online is carrying a long article that overviews the construction of roads, and particularly the refurbishment of the Stilwell Road, linking India to China across the mountains of northern Burma. Little in this article will surprise New Mandala readers who closely follow developments in that part of the world.
The report notes that:
Of the three countries through which the Stilwell Road runs, it is Myanmar that is the linchpin of the project. Without its consent, the plan to link Ledo with Kunming by road is a non-starter. Unfortunately, it is Myanmar that has resisted the reopening of the Stilwell Road the most. This is partly because of the military junta’s traditional wariness of opening the country to outsiders. Besides, the road runs through territory controlled by Kachin rebels.
What is somewhat heartening is that the three countries are repairing the parts of the road that run across their territory. China’s segment has been upgraded, India’s small stretch is being fixed and China is said to be pitching in to renovate the long stretches in Myanmar.
This article, written by Sudha Ramachandran, “an independent journalist/researcher based in Bangalore”, gives a distant account of developments throughout the Sino-Indo-Burmese borderlands. What is clear from the general proliferation of articles on road construction in that part of the world is that World War II era roads have become a key part of the international mythology of contemporary infrastructure construction.
It is the nuts and bolts of current road construction that are worth much further and, dare I say it, scholarly enquiry. Really understanding the local and national politics of highly sensitive infrastructure projects is not a simple task. This is especially the case when the planned roads will link Burma to China through the Kachin State.
Across northern Burma, sections of the Stilwell Road, and other World War II era roads, are, I can confirm, definitely being refurbished. However, it remains to be seen what local agendas and priorities underpin these efforts to improve transport infrastructure.
3 responses so far ↓
1 aiontay // May 17, 2007 at 1:54 pm
Who is doing the refurbishing in Northern Burma? Is it companies with toll concessions from the regime?
2 Nicholas Farrelly // May 17, 2007 at 9:17 pm
Aiontay,
The best evidence suggests that roads in the Kachin state are being refurbished as part of a multifaceted four-way collaboration.
The basic pattern is as follows:
The (1) Burmese government consents to their construction while (2) various ceasefire interests provide “Kachin” moral and political legitimacy (as far as is possible under current political conditions). The construction of roads is then funded by concession deals with (3) local business interests who, generally, seek to make money through mega logging projects, agribusiness or new mining ventures. Some of these new (or refurbished) roads will open up remote areas for economic activity, particularly in the “Triangle area”. The equipment and most labour for construction almost always comes from (4) China. Chinese businesses have strong relationships with the Kachin who are investing in the new roads and they also seek to profit from the new economic activities that will result.
Toll concessions (as predominate in some areas of the Shan state) are not, as far as I am aware, part of these four-way deals. Tolls are collected on other businesses who use roads for timber extraction but that is worked out as part of other commercial relationships. Tolls are also informally collected on some stretches of road but, to the best of my knowledge, these provide funds to various Burmese government installations (and are not part of the higher level negotiations).
The big toll gates that are seen, for example, on the Tachilek – Keng Tung road are not part of the Kachin state’s current transport landscape. In this context, there are many other ways to use new roads to make money.
Best wishes to all,
Nich
3 Jon Fernquest // May 18, 2007 at 12:47 pm
Thanks for that info, Nicholas.
China’s logging and its potential for eliminating large forests quickly is a big international news item. I wonder how long the local truces or ceasefires will last, in the past not very long. When peace is a quid-pro-quo for doing business, i.e. I won’t shoot you if you let me operate my natural resource extraction business in peace, it may be hard to get out of a cycle of local warlordism.
BTW Christopher Bayley and TIm Harper’s book “Forgotten Armies” besides being the absolute best history of WWII era Burmese politics, also has great background on these WWII roads in northern Burma.
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