On this episode of China Uncensored,
prostitution and gambling?!
Now that's an investment!
Hi, welcome back to China Uncensored.
I'm your host Chris Chappell.
You know, people love a good story.
And there are really only a handful of stories
that get told over and over again.
Boy meets girl,
hero goes on a quest,
Chinese Communist Party buries a country in a debt trap.
Yeah, that last one never gets old.
In fact, it's being repeated once again in Cambodia.
Chinese investment is everywhere.
Because Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Sen loves Chinese investment.
Hun Sen used to a member of the Khmer Rouge--
the communist regime that killed millions of Cambodians in the 1970s.
But don't worry, he left the Khmer Rouge...
to avoid being purged.
And then he became prime minister of Cambodia.
For the next 33 years.
Now after leaving the Khmer Rouge,
he had once called China "the root of everything evil."
But you know, after being dictator of Cambodia for three decades,
and forcing the supreme court to dissolve the main opposition party,
...and winning a sham election again and again,
...your attitude toward the Chinese Communist Party changes a bit.
Sure, they supported the Khmer Rouge that literally killed
a quarter of your fellow countrymen in the 70s,
but now the Chinese Communist Party wants to support you!
Water under the bridge!
Bodies under the floorboards!
Because the Chinese regime is supporting Hun Sen with a lot of money.
Cambodia is one of the poorest countries in southeast Asia.
They struggle with basic power and sanitation issues.
But in just four years,
China had invested over 5 billion dollars in Cambodia.
That's more money than Cambodia's own government
invested in the country during that time.
The Chinese Communist Party even pledged 100 million dollars in military aid.
All this is tied to Chinese leader Xi Jinping's Belt and Road Initiative,
a trillion-dollar project with the goal of
connecting countries around the world with China.
Now all that sounds good, right?
Well, it's kind of like how the McRib sounds good.
Looks delicious right?
Until you go just beneath the surface and realize that bun
is made out of the same stuff they use to make yoga mats.
And yet, even though Chinese investment is a giant multibillion dollar McRib,
authoritarian dictators can't help but say, "I'm lovin' it."
So to look into China's McRib in Cambodia,
we hired a local to shoot some footage for us
in the sleepy seaside town of Sihanoukville.
Well, it's not so sleepy anymore.
Chinese investment has been flooding in,
in the form of skyscrapers, bridges, hotels,
casinos, restaurants and apartment blocks.
Construction is going on 24/7.
China has pumped in over a billion dollars here.
A joint-country economic zone has been set up
that has brought in hundreds of Chinese companies,
some owned by the Chinese government.
The southern coast of Cambodia is now home to more than four billion
dollars worth of Chinese power plants and offshore oil operations.
Sihanoukville is also becoming a lynchpin for China's Belt and Road Initiative.
A new highway will connect the city to China's vast global trade network.
Not only that, in June, a one billion dollar joint venture between
a Chinese-Malaysian company was announced that will create a massive resort,
complete with water parks, hotels, and even more casinos and malls.
Ha, sounds like a knock off Disney World.
What are they going to call it, Wisney World?
Haha, what's that Shelley?
Are you kidding me?!
That is what they're calling it?!
Well, I guess it will be the wappiest place on Earth.
Now obviously, all this investment has brought some benefits.
And "Cambodian workers on Chinese construction sites
earn three times what they used to on local projects."
But no matter how good this McRib looks from the outside,
on the inside it's still made out of yoga mats.
The same story that has played out in countries may be replaying here.
Although the roads in Sihanoukville may not have as many potholes as before,
now they're being used by Chinese nouveau riche driving Mercedes.
Chinese nationals have flooded Sihanoukville--
rich business owners, as well as workers.
Chinese make up about 20% of the population now.
And they don't mix much with the local Cambodians.
Many of the new jobs go to Chinese immigrants,
who are driving up housing and food prices,
which then drive out the local Cambodians.
Rooms that once went for 500 dollars a month now cost 4500 dollars.
And all those casinos?
The Cambodians can't use them.
Because it's actually illegal for Cambodians to gamble.
In fact, a Cambodian man recently won 130,000 dollars at a casino,
but the Chinese owner refused to pay him because of the law.
Although I'm sure if the Cambodian guy had lost 130,000 dollars,
the Chinese casino owner might have been a bit more flexible.
Anyway, all the gambling has brought some...
shall we say...less than legitimate business.
Like prostitution.
And increasing crime.
And according to the regional governor,
it's "in part due to an influx of 'Chinese mafia [who] disguise themselves
to commit various crimes and kidnap Chinese investors [...]
causing insecurity in the province.'"
Now this isn't exactly making the locals very happy.
In fact, ethnic tension is on the rise.
I don't want to see the Chinese
do whatever they want in Sihanoukville
or the whole country of Cambodia.
Not only that, but they create crime.
They break into cars.
There are now Chinese thieves who steal in Sihanoukville.
They are involved in the drug trade, in murders.
City authorities aren't capable of controlling their criminal activity.
And guess what?
All this development in Sihanoukville
also includes a 99-year lease on a deep water port nearby--
a port that could eventually be used by the Chinese navy.
Wait, where have I heard that before?
Oh yeah.
Vietnam.
And Sri Lanka.
So if all of this sounds familiar, it should.
This is a pattern we see worldwide as the Chinese Communist Party
comes in with their bags of money:
Promise big investment, build a bunch of things,
"oops it wrecked the local economy and now you're deep in debt",
"no problem, hand it over to us, ok?"
But if the Chinese regime and Hun Sen aren't careful in Cambodia,
it could actually backfire on them.
Sure, Prime Minister Hun Sen seems powerful now,
Cambodia could one day see a situation like Malaysia--
where a corrupt prime minister gets kicked out in favor of
a new guy who rejects Chinese investment.
And that could have serious ramifications for the future of the Belt and Road.
So what do you think?
Leave your comments below.
And now it's once again time for me to answer a question from a fan
who supports China Uncensored on the crowd funding website Patreon.
The GunSlinger has a question for the China Uncensored crew:
"what hobbies do you have in your free time?
Any activities you do outside of your two news channels?
Haha, free time.
Between China Uncensored,
America Uncovered, the China Unscripted Podcast
and the America Uncovered podcast,
I don't have a whole lot of it.
But, with what little free time I do have,
I like learning more about China and its culture.
I meet friends at a traditional Chinese tea house.
I read books about China.
I practice Chinese martial arts.
I also make steak.
Shelley, what do you do in your free time?
You kick butt and chew bubblegum?
And you're all out of gum?
Huh.
Thanks for your question.
Remember, China Uncensored is only still around
because of support from viewers like you who contribute on Patreon.
So head over to pateron.com/chinauncensored.
Besides getting to ask me questions,
we'll also give you some neat perks.
Thanks for watching this episode of China Uncensored.
Once again I'm your host Chris Chappell.
See you next time.
Want to hear more of my thoughts on China?
Check out the China Unscripted podcast!
I give you my full thoughts on China in a weekly podcast
you can get on YouTube, iTunes, Spotify and Stitcher.
It's great.
Also, Shelley's on it.
And Matt.