Deep in the forested highlands of northern Myanmar, where the Irrawaddy River rises from two tributaries in the hills of Kachin state, a contentious infrastructure project is stirring again – and threatening to reopen wounds that never fully healed.
The Myitsone Dam, a US$3.6 billion Chinese-financed hydroelectric megaproject that was shelved more than a decade ago after igniting a storm of popular fury, is back on the table.
Myanmar’s military rulers have begun holding public consultations on resuming construction, a move analysts say risks a fresh confrontation with the Kachin Independence Army (KIA), a powerful ethnic armed group that controls much of the surrounding territory.
The push to restart the project reportedly came on the heels of a high-profile visit to Naypyidaw in April by Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, who pledged deeper investment ties and support for the country’s newly formalised leadership.
Min Aung Hlaing – the general who led the coup that toppled Myanmar’s democratically elected government in February 2021, plunging his country into diplomatic isolation and civil war – was sworn in as president a little over two weeks before Wang’s visit.
When the Myitsone Dam was initially shelved, it represented a rare moment of political responsiveness in Myanmar. Thein Sein, another ex-general turned president, suspended the project in 2011 following a fierce backlash.
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