This is part III of a series on the 'Stans from the Asia Times, November 12, 2019:
In the ‘Stans, BRI debt traps, broken promises, corruption and Xinjiang persecution generate resentment and violence
It is just a tiny grocery store in a decrepit, Khruschev-era five-story apartment block in Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan – but it is flooded with shoppers, 24 hours a day.
Located just off the busy Oruzbekov Street, surrounded by poplars and
oaks, Dostyk (“Friendship”) is run by Bakyt Akylbekov, a bearded, broad-shouldered man in his 60s. Bakyt has run the business since the Gorbachev era of the late 1980s green-lighted the first private stores.
From there, the proprietor witnessed the break-up of the Soviet Union, the Kyrghyz independence declaration, two coups, three popular revolts and a “color revolution.”
Now, Dostyk’s days are numbered.
Bakyt had rented the annex for decades – until the new owner wanted to renovate the entire property. That’s when the Chinese showed up.
The “generous” Chinese offered to renovate the premises – as long as they could open a travel agency in Dostyk’s wing.
Bakyt was helpless in the face of the “confident and arrogant Chinese with pockets full of money,” he told Asia Times. He is bitter about these “guests from the east” – and he is not alone.
The downside of investment
In September, Bishkek shopkeepers and farmers tried to protest. They were quickly dispersed by China-friendly authorities, while local media maintained a blackout of the event – for protest is not the official narrative of the Chinese influx.
That narrative was visible on October 1, when thousands of Chinese across Central Asia – not to mention many millions beyond – celebrated their National Day by organizing parades, concerts and festivals. One event, at Kyrghyz National University, included music, concerts and film screenings.
And at the 2nd Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) Forum that ran from April 25-27 in Beijing, Chinese and Central Asian leaders were all smiles. They talked about progress and development – and indeed, there are plentiful examples of major Chinese investments across the region.
No one mentioned simmering anti-China sentiment. But on the ground in the ‘Stans, that force is emerging in anger, protest – and violence......MUCH MORE
Angst is fueled by multiple issues: unfulfilled hopes, debt traps, excessive deployment of Chinese capital and labor and a belief that Beijing is prioritizing its own interests.
Yet another bone of contention was Beijing’s treatment of its Muslim minority in Xinjiang – a minority many Central Asians feel an ethnic and religious kinship with.
Great expectations unfulfilled
When, in 2017, the leaders of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan arrived in Beijing for the BRI Summit, they hopefully presented long lists of potential projects to their hosts....
To read part one of this series, on the recent rise of Uzbekistan, please click here.
To read part two of this series, on the Chinese investment upside in the region, please click here.
