The New Colonialism of Special Economic Zones in the Mekong Subregion

Announcing: Walsh, John, “The New Colonialism of Special Economic Zones in the Mekong Subregion,” Journal of Language and Culture, Vol.41, No.2 (December, 2022), pp.25-45, available at: https://so03.tci-thaijo.org/index.php/JLC/article/view/265364/176026.

Abstract: Historically, colonialism was conducted by states acting in their own interests or through commercial organizations licensed to act as an instrument of the state. More recently, new forms of colonialism have taken place as a result of the actions of coalitions of economic interests involved in spreading capitalism to new areas or to intensifying its actions where it already existed. The places at which their processes occur are commonly configured as special economic zones (SEZs), which are areas in which the prevailing legal system is varied to provide extra privileges for capital and fewer for labour in a temporally and spatially-bounded location. This phenomenon is particularly evident in the Mekong Subregion (i.e. Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam), where governments have chosen a path towards rapid economic development that passes through export-oriented, import-substituting intensive manufacturing based on low labour cost competitiveness. Sovereignty over SEZs is routinely given, albeit to varying extents, to combinations of economic actors, many of whom will represent overseas interests. This gives rise to a variety of different types of new colonialism, depending on a variety of location and governance factors for the purpose of extracting resources from the location for repatriation. This paper investigates the different forms of colonialism taking place on SEZs in the region and attempts to analyse their significance.

Keywords: capital, labour, Mekong Subregion, new colonialism, special economic zone

The New Colonialism of Special Economic Zones in the Mekong Subregion

Yesterday I presented my paper The New Colonialism of Special Economic Zones in the Mekong Subregion at the International Conference on Transnationalism, Colonialism and Authoritarianism in Modern Southeast Asia (online) at the Research Institute for Languages and Cultures of Asia at Mahidol University, here in sunny Thailand. It was nicely organized and some people seemed interested in what I was saying, which is always gratifying.

There is some opportunity to publish the full-text of the papers in a special issue of the Language and Culture journal of the RILCA, which I hope will come about in due course (it will be next year). I was glad to have the opportunity to participate, since being locked down at home constantly reduces the opportunity to interact with other people with related research interests and also to help raise the profile of Krirk University, in a small but definite way.

Transnationalism, Colonialism and Authoritarianism in Modern Southeast Asia

Do feel free to attend. It looks like an interesting set of papers, apart from my own, obviously.

The New Colonialism of Special Economic Zones in the Mekong Subregion

My abstract on The New Colonialism of Special Economic Zones in the Mekong Subregion has been accepted for presentation at the Conference on Transnationalism, Colonialism and Authoritarianism in Modern Southeast Asia. It is going to be hosted online on July 31st this year by RILCA (Research Institute for Languages, Culture and the Arts) at Mahidol University.

Here is the abstract:

Walsh, John, “The New Colonialism of Special Economic Zones in the Mekong Subregion,” paper to be presented at the Conference on Transnationalism, Colonialism, and Authoritarianism in Modern Southeast Asia to be held online at RILCA (Research Institute for Language, Culture and the Arts) (Mahidol University, July 31^st, 2021).

Abstract

Historically, colonialism was conducted by states acting in their own interests or through commercial organizations licensed to act as an instrument of the state. More recently, new forms of colonialism have taken place as a result of the actions of coalitions of economic interests involved in spreading capitalism to new areas or to intensifying its actions where it already existed. The places at which their processes occur are commonly configured as special economic zones (SEZs), which are areas in which the prevailing legal system is varied to provide extra privileges for capital and fewer for labour in a temporally and spatially-bounded location. This phenomenon is particularly evident in the Mekong Subregion (i.e. Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam), where governments have chosen a path towards rapid economic development that passes through export-oriented, import-substituting intensive manufacturing based on low labour cost competitiveness. Sovereignty over SEZs is routinely given, albeit to varying extents, to combinations of economic actors, many of whom will represent overseas interests. This gives rise to a variety of different types of new colonialism, depending on a variety of location and governance factors for the purpose of extracting resources from the location for repatriation. This paper investigates the different forms of colonialism taking place on SEZs in the region and attempts to analyse their significance.

Keywords: capital, labour, Mekong Subregion, new colonialism, special economic zone

John Walsh, Director and Associate Dean, English Language Programs, International College, Krirk University, June 2021

Look forward to seeing you all there.

Special Economic Zones, the Belt and Road Initiative and the Future of Kachin Development

Earlier today I attended the 8th International Conference on Asian Studies (ICAS), which was nominally held in Bangkok but took place entirely online. This would normally have been a significant affair with numerous scholars sharing their research in a wide range of subjects. This time was much smaller, of course, although there was still a good variety of subjects and of places from which people joined.

My own paper was “Special Economic Zones, the Belt and Road Initiative and the Future Development of Kachin State.” The abstract is below:

Kachin individuals and organizations operate within a dense and complex web of domestic and cross-border links that integrate them into a series of network relationships with communities around them. Problems with governance, lack of ability in terms of nation-building and the prevalence of high-risk economic activities have been some of the factors that have constrained economic growth for the State, which represents a similar situation for other spatially outlying people of Myanmar such as the Naga and the Chin. Some limited attempts have been made to create coherent economic organizations so as to help to promote peaceful governance of the land and the needed replacement of opium growing offers an opportunity for cash crop production and exporting that has been successfully exploited elsewhere. However, limitations to the labour force and to resource management capability mean that endogenous economic development is a very limited prospect. An available alternative to internal development is to be the recipient of externally imposed developmental initiatives. Notable among these initiatives is an industrial park or a special economic zone to be built by Chinese capital, such as the proposed Kanpiketi border park. Such an initiative would take its place alongside existing and proposed Chinese projects in Kyaukphyu, Yangon and elsewhere, which have achieved mixed levels of success. Is it possible that such projects, as part of China’s Belt and Road Initiative outreach program, could offer meaningful and sustainable improvement to the standard of living of people in Kachin State? If so, what would be the impact of a new mode of economic activity on existing patterns of Kachin ways of life? This paper uses a case study approach rooted in management science to investigate the possibilities of these initiatives with a view to understanding the potential of such changes.

Keywords: Belt and Road Initiative, economic development, Kachin State, labour force, special economic zone

John Walsh, RMIT Vietnam, October 2020

Forms and Modes of Economic Spatial Initiatives in Myanmar

 

Yesterday I attended the inaugural Research Colloquium at the British University Vietnam, together with some RMIT colleagues. My paper was ‘Forms and Modes of Spatial Economic Initiatives in Myanmar.’ It was a successful event, I think.

Abstract:

Myanmar is following the footsteps of many developing countries in the world by instituting policies that will promote the use of industrial estates and special economic zones. The inspiration of this is China, where hundreds of millions of people were lifted out of poverty because in part of such a policy without yielding political power. In the absence of transparency and adequate infrastructure, how far is it possible to ensure that the spread of corporate power represented by this policy will lead to equitable development? Is it possible that business development is an additional means of promoting economic development that has different side-effects than other development models? This paper evaluates the spread and nature of spatial initiatives in Myanmar in such a way as to try to understand the various different effects that they have and the degree to which they have been firmly established. It is shown that conditions are diverse and subject to failures and successes in the same way that all business ventures are so subject.

Keywords: business development, economic development, industrial estates, Myanmar, special economic zones

 

ASEAN Investment Report: Foreign Direct Investment and Economic Zones in ASEAN

Last year I acted as a consultant for UNCTAD – United Nations Conference on Trade and Development in the area of special economic zones in the Greater Mekong Subregion. The full report is available online here. You might find some of the sections I wrote in various chapters or I can tell you about them in considerable detail.

Provision of Educational Services in Special Economic Zones in the Greater Mekong Subregion

Yesterday I attended the last day of the Newton Fund Researcher Links Workshop at the Asia Hotel in Bangkok organized by the British Council and hosted by Khon Kaen University. The purpose of the workshop is to help foster links between British and Thai academics, particularly early career Thai academics.

My presentation was on Provision of Educational Services in Special Economic Zones in the Greater Mekong Subregion

Abstract

Special economic zones (SEZs) are time and space-limited areas in which the regular laws of the land do not apply. Instead, various provisions are made to privilege capital above labour and, thereby, encourage domestic and especially international investment. States welcome this kind of investment because it provides direct employment and the prospect of technology transfer and industrial deepening. In the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) (i.e. Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam, Yunnan Province of China and Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Zone) SEZs are being enthusiastically promoted because of the help it is hope they will provide states in passing through the Factory Asia Paradigm (FAP) – i.e. import substituting, export oriented, intensive manufacturing based on low labour cost competitiveness and a potential exit from it that would represent graduation from the Middle Income Trap. At various stages of the FAP, it is necessary to provide educational services to employees at different levels of seniority. This might include specific on-the-job training, vocational skills-based education or more advanced forms of learning to foster creativity and innovation. Within the GMS, educational provision has begun to be provided in some of the different types of SEZ that have been opened or which are still being built. More will be expected in the future as, for example, the Thai government has recently called for foreign universities to open facilities within its SEZs to try to meet state-level developmental goals. This paper investigates the current level of provision of such forms of education and compares it with what might be required, together with a brief consideration of how the gap might be bridged.

Keywords: education. Greater Mekong Subregion, special economic zones, vocational education

There is going to be book on the workshop’s themes in due course and I plan to submit a chapter to it.

Governance of Economic Spatial Initiatives

Announcing: Ampornstira, Fuangfa and John Walsh, “Governance of Economic Spatial Initiatives,” International Review of Management and Development Studies, Vol.1, No.3 (2017), pp.1-5.

Abstract:  The current Thai regime has emphasized the importance of special economic zones (SEZs) in border regions as a means of promoting overall economic development. The use of SEZs in this way has become popular throughout most of East Asia, with even North Korea participates, if a little warily. Governments seem to be attracted to these forms of spatial
initiative because they are able to enforce different forms of law within them, customarily privileging capital over labor, as well as because the example of China shows what kind of growth can be achieved without yielding round on democratization and personal and political liberties. They are technocratic solutions that have the support of important transnational organizations such as the Asian Development Bank and, also, the Chinese government and its
many currently compliant corporations, which have been involved with the North-South and East-West Economic Corridors and the Asian Highway Network. At the level of implementation, the creation of these schemes requires enforced purchase of land and involuntary migration of previous residents, which has led to armed resistance to projects from Myanmar to India and beyond. This raises numerous questions about the appropriate means of governing such areas in ways that are equitable and accountable. This paper uses a case study approach to highlight various governance models from different parts of the world and seeks to identify success factors that may or may not be transferable elsewhere. No single model, it is argued, will be successfully applied in every case, although principles of transparency and proper public consultation would always be welcome. Some policy implications and recommendations are drawn from the analysis.

Keywords: development, governance, policy, spatial initiatives, special economic zones

Special Economic Zones in CLMTV

I spent two days last week at a workshop on special economic zones in Southeast Asia for the United Nations (UNCTAD), in conjunction with ASEAN and support from a number of other partners. I was invited to speak on the topic of Special Economic Zones (SEZs) in CLMTV (Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam): Significance, Impact and Linkages. The audience consisted of representatives of eight Southeast Asian nations, academics and private sector representatives and we met at the Amari Watergate Hotel here in sunny Bangkok.

The issues involved are complex and opinions diverse: in India, for example, SEZs are seen as a means of land-grabbing and reviled by most people while in China they are revered as part of the means of enabling hundreds of millions of people to lift themselves from poverty while retaining monolithic political control. Here in the Mekong region, they are part of the Factory Asia paradigm of import-substituting, export-oriented intensive manufacturing based (at least initially) on low labour cost competitiveness. One question is how to involve local companies and individuals as part of the global value chains being created by firms through forward and backward linkages. The provision of infrastructure and connectivity is necessary but not sufficient in achieving this.

Attending the workshop is part of my consultancy with the UN, which now requires me to complete various reports and I will be busy with that over the next couple of weeks.