China pledges responsible investment
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Investment projects that are detrimental to local people's welfare in Myanmar will be avoided in the future, the Chinese Communist Party has pledged to a delegation from Myanmar visiting China.
A group of Myanmar politicians paid an eight-day visit to China at the invitation of the Communist Party and met with Chinese officials to discuss controversial Chinese projects in Myanmar.
“With regard to the contracts [of controversial projects], they had agreement with the former [military] government, they will ensure that future contracts do not cause negative impacts on the lives of local people,” Zaw Aye Maung, the Rakhine National Affairs Minister for Yangon Region Government, said on his return last week.
Chinese leaders also told him that they have instructed their companies to conduct environmental and social impact assessments with international standards, and to act in accordance with assessment reports.
He showed some confidence in the above statement because he noted that most Chinese businesses are state-owned and private organisations are also under strict government control.
“In China, the government is under the [Chinese Communist] party.
The party has all departments such as the foreign affairs department and commerce department. Each department has a minister, deputy minister and so on. They formulate the policies and the government has to implement them. If some go against the policy, the government takes immediate action against them,” he explained.
Communist Party officials also admitted to the Myanmar delegates that illegal goods such as poor quality food and drugs were being traded along the China-Myanmar border, but they pledged to take measures against those illicit activities.
The Myanmar delegation to China included representatives from political parties such as the National Democratic Force, Rakhine Nationalities Development Party, Shan Nationalities Democratic Party, and National Unity Party. They met with senior officials including the deputy minister and director-general from the foreign affairs department of Chinese Communist Party.
China is the largest foreign investor in Myanmar with some US$14.2 billion (Bt422 billion) invested in 44 businesses, as of March 31.
