Xiaojun WangandWade Dessart

Opinion | China must listen to those directly affected by its belt and road projects to do the most good

The concerns of people living near belt and road projects are rarely heard by Chinese policymakers and investors. Stakeholders need to walk into the villages and listen to what the locals have to say, for real people-to-people connectivity to happen

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Box girders are erected at a construction site of the Jakarta-Bandung High Speed Railway in Jakarta on September 3. The railway is one of hundreds of projects taking place under the Belt and Road Initiative. Photo: Xinhua

Xiaojun WangandWade Dessart

Published: 1:30am, 28 Oct 2020Updated: 5:10am, 28 Oct 2020

The “water and boat” metaphor is often used in China to refer to the relationship between the people and the government. About 2,500 years ago, Chinese philosopher Xunzi, writing about governance, said that “people are the water while the rulers, the boat. Water can support the boat, or overturn it.”

This metaphor has often been quoted as a reminder to rulers of the importance of the people. Today, when China’s influence reaches into countries around the world with its Belt and Road Initiative, it needs to be expanded, as people-to-people connectivity is one of the five initiative’s pillars, along with policy coordination, connectivity of facilities, unimpeded trade and financial integration.

According to the 2019 China Outbound Direct Investment Statistical Report, China’s total investments in belt and road nations reached US$117.3 billion. As of the end of 2019, more than 27,500 Chinese investors had established 44,000 direct investment enterprises in 188 countries and regions.

Billions of people’s lives are being affected, for better or worse. Eight national and regional non-governmental organisations from the Philippines, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Pakistan and Sri Lanka interviewed more than 100 villagers and citizens who live near belt and road projects in these countries. Their testimonies provide a timely view of what lies ahead for the boat.

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Belt and Road Initiative explained

Their testimonies are presented in the new book Belt and Road Through My Village. It covers seven major projects in these five countries that affect some 15 million people.