Chapter 1490 Resource Curse (2/2)

When Li Du looked out, he could not help marveling at the destructive power of man.

A rock mountain was mined ruthlessly as if some angry giant had torn it in two.

”There was a mountain there, no, there were many of them. And look, they are now all gone, reduced to rubble,” Godanwei said pointing to the potholes in the distance when he saw Li Du amazed expression.

As the cars continued to move, Li Du saw motorcades appearing ahead.

The road condition there was better because many heavyweight vehicles had to drive there, including some heavy machinery such as excavators. If the road condition was not good enough, it would be impossible to transport the ore.

The trucks that came out of the mine were loaded with dozens of tons of ore. It was obvious that most of them overloaded.

Driver took stock and turned around. ”That's some mighty heavy stuff,” he said

The further they went, the more lively the area looked, and villages and pedestrians appeared by the roadside.

The villages here were small and shabby, just a few thatched mud huts that had existed in rural China in the 50s and 60s. Myanmar was a region with heavy rains, and Li Du felt that the houses would be washed away if it rained too heavily.

The people in the villages were very poor. As the weather was still hot, many of the villagers wore a pair of shorts without a top. The children were running around barefoot and naked, a dozen of them fighting for a shabby football.

Some people were sitting in the shade, many of them elderly or disabled, with missing legs and arms. The number of cripples was astounding.

Li Du was shocked and said, ”What's going on here? Isn't Hpakant a very rich place?”

With a sarcastic smile on his face, Godanwei said, ”Yes, very rich. You could take us for example. Boss, you might have a billion dollars. That's five hundred million on average for both of us, so doesn't it mean we're both rich?”

Li Du frowned. ”I know what you mean. I know there are many rich businessmen and mine owners here. Are the miners poor? Aren't they well paid?”

Godanwei, who was still grinning sarcastically, said, ”Well paid? It depends on what you consider well paid, I suppose. Besides, the bosses always have a way to get your money back. The miners eat, drink, gamble and spend too much money.”

At this, Li Du shook his head. Godanwei was very clever, and clearly had an intuitive understanding of what his companion was thinking.

He said, ”Boss, you must think that the people here are disappointing, right?”

Without waiting for Li Du to reply, he sneered and said, ”The people here have not received your education and their self-control is not as good as yours. The local environment is like this and there are many temptations. Wouldn't you want to relax and have some fun when you leave the mine exhausted every day and don't know if you're going to stay alive tomorrow? In a word, hell is empty and the devil walks on earth!”

Li Du said, ”You're right. It seems that the resource curse theory is also applicable in Hpakant.”

It was Godanwei's turn to be confused. He blinked. ”What curse? Who cursed this place?”

Li Du said with a smile, ”The resource curse theory states that the richer in natural resources countries and regions are, the more likely they are to be poor overall.”

The situation in Hpakant was similar to that of the diamond-rich areas of Africa. The indigenous people in these areas have not become rich thanks to the resources. Quite the opposite, they had become little better than indentured servants working for the mining industry.

As the car drove between the villages and approached the town, Li Du saw more and more to make him apprehensive.

Like a sad caricature on the Los Angeles metropolitan area, many villages sprang up around the town of Hpakant, and the traffic was heavy as they got closer to the center.