Asia | Banyan
Dammed if they do
China's hydropower plans are a test of its avowed good neighbourliness
|
IN YUNNAN in south-west China the biggest floods in a dozen years have ended a long, brutal drought. For months here in Xishuangbanna, a glassy Mekong had merely sauntered towards the border with Laos. River trade came to a halt as vessels ran aground. But for two or three weeks now the Mekong has been back to its usual roiling brown, and the cargo boats throw up a huge bow wave as they inch upstream.
This article appeared in the Asia section of the print edition under the headline "Dammed if they do"
From the July 10th 2010 edition
Discover stories from this section and more in the list of contents
Explore the editionMore from Asia
Japan and South Korea are struggling with old-age poverty
Their problems may be instructive for other countries
The Philippines bans some genetically modified foods
But golden rice could help thousands of nutrient-deficient children
Meet the maharajas of the world’s biggest democracy
Indian officialdom still treats citizens like subjects